Cranberry Apple Muffins

A couple posts ago I wrote about my painful 11-miler that I ran while in Virginia. Well, unfortunately the pain hasn't left and has concentrated to my right Achilles tendon. When I walk I can feel it rippling (that's the best word I can think of to describe it). If I point and flex my toes the tendon seems to click back and forth. Hmmm. Can't be good. 

Because it hasn't been feeling great, I've been too afraid to run for fear that I'll make it worse. I'm still hopeful that I'll be able to run my half-marathon on Dec. 7th, but we'll have to see what happens with the Achilles. Since Saturday, in order to get in some cardio without putting too much strain on my ankle, I've been walking, swimming and...biking! It's been forever since I've taken my road bike out for a spin and it was so life-giving. I forgot how much I love biking, especially this time of year in Florida. 

While I'm worried that I won't be able to run the third half-marathon that I've tried for, I am thankful that I finally took my bike out of the house. I'm planning on doing a half-ironman in April, so I'd have to start training for the bike soon. Now I'm excited to increase my mileage. 

Like the hot pink shoes? It might be the last color I would choose on my own, but they were the only ones that were available when this model of Nike Frees came out. They've grown on me though.

Enough about injuries and biking. Let's move on to these muffins! My mom used to make these cranberry apple muffins for events where she had to bring a snack and I always hoped that she would make extra so us kids could eat some. When I started getting interested in baking and cooking I asked my mom one day if I could make them for her. It may have been my first time making muffins and I love it...and the results! I'm usually not much of a fruity, baked-goods girl, but these are delicious. 

I had forgotten about them until I saw fresh cranberries at the grocery store a while back. I then remembered that my mom had given me the recipe so I decided to experiment a little and swapped out some of the ingredients so that they'd be vegan. The kitchen smelled amazing as they were baking and I was instantly brought back to my younger years with my first bite. I'll definitely be making these again.

Cranberry Apple Muffins

(Makes 12 servings)

 Ingredients:

· 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce

· 1/4 mashed banana plus 2 teaspoons liquid stevia OR 1 cup dry sugar

· 1 flax egg*

· 1 cup coarsely shredded apples

· 1 T. orange zest

· 1/4 cup orange juice

· 2 cups whole wheat flour

· 2 teaspoons baking powder

· 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

· 1 teaspoon salt

· 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

· 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

· 1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped

· Optional: 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

*To make a flax egg whisk 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed with 3 tablespoons of water and set aside for five minutes

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease a muffin pan and set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk the apple sauce, mashed banana and liquid stevia together.

3. Add in the flax egg, shredded apple, orange zest and juice.

4. In a separate bowl whisk together the dry ingredients, from the wheat flour to nutmeg.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until combined.

6. Add in the cranberries and nuts if using and stir until just combined.

7. Divide the batter among 12 muffin cups and bake for 15-20 minutes.

8. Breathe in that fresh cranberry smell and eat one warm!

 Eat Consciously,

     Faith

Cranberry Orange Oatmeal

Welp. I'm still on an oatmeal kick. This recipe was inspired by my mom's cranberry orange muffins (which I plan on sharing with you all soon) that she used to make when I was in high school. I loved those muffins. I've been looking for fresh cranberries at the grocery store for a while now and yesterday I found them! If you've never had a fresh cranberry before, beware. They are pretty tart on their own, but when baked in bread or cooked with sweetener they are delicious. If fresh cranberries aren't in season you can always use dried cranberries to make this oatmeal. They'll both work great. Enjoy!

Cranberry Orange Oatmeal

(Makes 1 serving)

 Ingredients:

· 1/2 cup orange juice

· 1/2 cup water

· 1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oatmeal

· 1/4 cup fresh cranberries (or dried)

· 1 tablespoon liquid sweetener such as maple syrup or agave nectar

· 2 teaspoons ground flaxseed (optional)

· 1 tablespoon walnuts, chopped (optional)

Directions:

1. Combine the orange juice and water in a medium sized sauce pan and heat almost to a boil. Watch it closely because the orange juice will start  to foam and overflow if you let it boil too long.

2. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add in the oatmeal, cranberries, sweetener and flaxseed. Whisk until well combined.

3. Let the oatmeal cook until most of the liquid is absorbed

4. Pour into a bowl and top with walnuts!

    

Nutrition: Cals: 301; Fat: 4.7g; Carbs: 62g; Fiber: 6.6g; Sugars: 30.4; Protein: 7.2g

Eat Consciously,

     Faith

Cranberry Almond Biscotti

I've tried to make biscotti once before and it didn't turn out so great. I mainly remember it was hard as a rock and pretty bland. Now, oddly enough, I really do love bland crunchy food most of the time, but when you're drinking a good cup of coffee you gotta have something sweet. It's just a fact.

I recently got the Forks Over Knives cookbook from my sister-in-law for my birthday and so far all the recipes I've made have turned out good. I had yet to try out one of the desserts until today and I'm so glad that this biscotti recipe turned out to be delicious! I hope you try it.

Cranberry Almond Biscotti
(Makes 16 slices)

Adapted from Forks Over Knives

1/3 cup orange juice
2 tablespoons ground flaxseeds
3/4 cup evaporated cane sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup almond butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups whole-wheat flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4  teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup fruit-sweetened dried cranberries

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350°F.

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the orange juice and flaxseeds vigorously so it becomes frothy.
Then mix in the dry sweetener, applesauce, almond butter, and vanilla.

Next add in the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and allspice, then add the salt and mix until well combined. Knead in the cranberries using your hands.

On the prepared baking sheet, form the dough into a rectangle about 12 inches long by 3 to 4
inches wide (you may need to add flour to your hands because the dough will be sticky). Bake for 26 to 28 minutes, or until lightly puffed and browned. Remove the sheet from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes. Turn the over temperature up to 375ºF.

After your biscotti loaf has cooled, use a very sharp knife and slice the biscotti into 16 slices. I found it was easiest to slice the entire loaf in half and then to continue slicing each section in half until I had 16 slices. It is probably best not to "saw" the biscotti or the dough may crumble. It worked for me to point my knife straight up and down and cut it in short stabs.

Once you have you slices, lay them down on the cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes (I ended up going for about 15 or so), flipping the slices halfway through. Allow to cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet before transferring the slices to cooling racks

 

I was so so happy with how these turned out! They were so much better than my first biscotti attempt years ago.

Nutrition Facts: Cals: 145; Fat: 2.6g; Carbs: 28g; Fiber: 2.85g; Sugar: 13.8g; Protein: 3g

Eat Consciously,

     Faith