An Apple a Day Monday: III

Remember last week when I made the Apple Cake? Now I had buttermilk left over, as well as still having plenty of apples. I didn’t yet know what I wanted to make with these items. I contemplated buttermilk biscuits or buttermilk apple muffins.

(Check out Apple a Day I and Apple A Day II.)

Then, I got the prize in the mail that I won from Corey! Flaxseed Meal! I have never used it before, but have been putting it in oatmeal, on cereal and now in baking…and its great! I used the recipe that was on the back of the bag and amended it a bit to fit what I had on hand. And…they turned out great! Like a nutty, yummy, bran muffin…without the bran! For those of you who are gluten free, flaxseed is GF, so all you need is some GF flour (can sub for oats as well) and you are all set!

Bran Flax Muffins

(aka Oat Apple Nut Buttermilk Flax Muffins [and Squares])

1½ cups flour

¾ cup flaxseed

¾ cup oat bran (I used stone ground oats)

2 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

½ tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 ½ cup carrots, shredded

2 apples, peeled and shredded

½ cup raisins (I used craisins instead)

1 cup nuts, chopped (I used walnuts)

¾ cup milk (I used buttermilk instead)

2 eggs, beaten

1 tsp. vanilla

Mix dry ingredients (first 7 on the list). 

In a separate bowl, mix the rest of the (wet) ingredients. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients. Do not over stir. Batter may be slightly lumpy. Pour into greased muffin tin. Fill cups approximately ¾ full. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Yields 15 medium sized muffins**

**NOTES: I ended up filling 12 cups ¾ full and still having a lot left over, so I used a bread pan and 2 mini bread pans to use up the rest. You could also easily cook these in a 9x13 baking dish and just cut them into squares. 

Next up: The apple craze continues! What else can one make with an apple? Don’t forget to check back next Monday to find out...and for another edition of “An Apple a Day”, which will be a feature each Monday in November.

Have you ever used flaxseed meal? Have you ever made your own oat bars?