Have you ever realized how calorie dense store bought muffins are? And usually those are empty calories that don’t provide your body with any real nutrients and that leaves us in a slight predicament because we LOVE muffins. They are the perfect quick breakfast or snack and always make a great gift. That is why we love exploring different muffin recipes that allow us to reap the benefits of the deliciousness they provide and allow us to get in some key nutrients. These Zucchini, Orange, and Cranberry muffins are just that! They are delicious plus gluten and grain-free AND really good for you!
If you eat a gluten-free diet and you bake at all, chances are you have used the standard all-purpose gluten-free flour mixtures a time or two. And that’s not to say those aren’t great, because they really are! But it’s also fun to play around with different grain and gluten-free flours, like the quinoa flour we are using in these muffins.
Why quinoa flour? Because it is packed with nutrition – protein and fiber just to name a few! It definitely has that distinct quinoa taste which really works in this recipe. A lot of times when creating gluten or grain-free recipes, we use our go-to favorites: almond, coconut, and oat flour. However, some people cannot tolerate nuts or grains and some people don’t care for coconuts – so we thought, we’d give this a try. We can see how quinoa flour won’t be right for every recipe, but here it is great!
Health Benefits Quinoa:
- is considered a complete plant-based protein because it has all nine essential amino acids (essential means that our bodies need these but don’t make them so we have to get them from our food)
- is high in fiber, which helps our keep us fuller longer and helps our digestion
- has a good amount of B vitamins that help our metabolism
- has iron, potassium and vitamin E
- 1 cup of quinoa has 58% of the RDA of manganese (which plays a roll in metabolizing carbohydrates and cholesterol) and 30% of magnesium (which is needed for over 600 reactions in the body like forming protein from amino acids and regulating the nervous system)
- contains large amounts of flavonoids, including quercetin and kaempferol which has shown to be anti-viral, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer
And we haven’t even talked about the added zucchini and orange in this recipe! Zucchini has a lot of vitamin A, which we know helps our immune system and our vision. Oranges, of course, have a lot of vitamin C which is an essential amino acid. There is that phrase again, “essential amino acid” – if you want to learn more about this, click here for a great explanation.
Now, on the recipe! Be sure tag us when you make this @instagram, @facebook, @twitter or Pin it on Pinterest
Gluten-Free Quinoa Flour Muffins with Zucchini, Orange, and Cranberries
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20-25 minutes
- Total Time: 35-40 minutes
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
Description
These quinoa flour muffins are filled with zucchini, cranberries and orange zest. They are full of flavor and full of nutrients!
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 2 cups quinoa flour, we used Bob’s Red Mill
- 3/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. ground Ceylon cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon salt, we used Himalayan salt
- zest of one orange
Wet Ingredients:
- 2 large organic pasture raised eggs at room temperature
- 1/4 cup grapeseed oil (can use other oils if you like)
- juice from the one orange – should be about 1/4 cup of juice
- plus enough water to the orange juice to make 1 full cup of juice and water mixture
- 1 cup grated zucchini – do not squeeze the liquid out of the zucchini
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375° and prepare your muffin pan with muffin liners or make sure you properly grease the pan.
- In a medium-sized bowl, add all the dry ingredients and whisk to remove any clumps and to combine all together.
- In a larger bowl, combine the wet ingredients, eggs through the juice and water. Whisk to combine and then add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir to combine.
- Fold in the grated zucchini and cranberries and continue to mix until everything is well combined.
- Equally, fill each of the muffins and bake about 20-25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan for about 5-10 minutes then remove the muffins and let them finish cooling on a cooling rack and enjoy!!
