All day I’ve been thinking about this one quote from a fellow blogger’s in a recent post. She said, “in reality, we’re all the same just trying to be different.” How true is that?! But there are things that make us unique or “similarly different.”
I can recall a few times in my life where I felt this way. For instance, when we lived in Hawaii, everyone of course celebrates the Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. but feasting on stuffing, hot apple cider, and pumpkin pie just didn’t feel right when your sitting at the dinner table on the Lanai (aka porch) with your flip flops and tank top. So instead, we did things a little different. We still had a turkey and cranberry sauce but we also made lots of grilled veggies and Pu Pu Platters!
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| sunset from my father in law’s old coffee farm in Kona (during the HOLIDAYS)! |
One summer (2007), while visiting family in New Zealand (the hubs home town), we actually got stuck in a blizzard on the 4th of July! Couldn’t really grill out that night, haha. Does making Chicken Noodle soup count as 4th of July Festivities?
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| I think this was actually the day before the blizzard, July 3rd. Burr!!! |
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| and here’s our July 4th! Pool time anyone? Maybe hot tub instead! |
Anyway, these small things really made for great memories! Striving to embrace change when you’re used to doing things the same can be freeing. Plus it makes you UNIQUE!
GF Carrots n’ Spice Muffins
These gluten free muffins freeze well and can be served plain or with your favorite jam, jelly, or just plain butter.
Ingredients:
• 2 tablespoon coconut oil
• ½ cup Turbinado Sugar
• 1 large Eggs
• ¼ cup plain kefir or yogurt
• 1 tsp. Vanilla Extract
• ½ cup Amaranth Flour
• ⅔ cup rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon flaxseed
• 1 ½ tsp. Baking Powder
• 2 tsp. ground Cinnamon
• 1-½ tsp. Xanthan Gum
• ½ tsp. Salt
• ½ tsp. ground cloves
• 1 cups finely grated carrots
• ¼ cup raw sunflower seeds
• 9 prunes or figs (chop in food processor w/ carrots)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350º. Grease muffin pans.
2. In large bowl, cream oil, sugar, eggs, kefir, and vanilla together with electric mixer until very smooth. Add flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, xanthan gum, salt, and cloves. Mix thoroughly on medium speed until thoroughly combined.
3. Quickly (but gently) stir in carrots, seeds, and chopped prunes. Batter will be somewhat thick. Turn batter and scoop into muffins tins.
4. Bake 35-40minutes at 350F. Place foil over bread during final 20 minutes of baking to reduce over-browning. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then slice the middle open and pat with a little butter (heavenly!!).
Makes 9-10 muffins
Just look how nutty and chewy they are! I’ve been munchin’ on these all week. Well, I kinda shared with the hubs. hehe!
I hope you enjoyed some rhetorical thinking during this post. Try not to think too hard. haha!
Cheers to being SIMILARLY DIFFERENT!
LC
holy crap those look good. can i sub the flour for another kind? if so, i have all the ingredients!i love your post about doing things differently. and your photos.
Thanks for your comment on my blog! I look forward to reading more of yours. This post reminds me of the phrase "I just want to be different…like everyone else."~Missy
holy crap those look good. can i sub the flour for another kind? if so, i have all the ingredients!
i love your post about doing things differently. and your photos.
holy crap those look good. can i sub the flour for another kind? if so, i have all the ingredients!
i love your post about doing things differently. and your photos.
holy crap those look good. can i sub the flour for another kind? if so, i have all the ingredients!i love your post about doing things differently. and your photos.
I love this – I'll never forget celebrating Thanksgiving on an island in Belize last year with a bunch of Canadians. It was so random but the food and the company were great so that's what mattered. 🙂 These muffins look great, as ALL of your recipes do. I love fall flavors.
OMG how amazing. What a COOL way to do things, makes you remember them more. Ever see the Ironman in Kona?!those pics are gorgeous. I really dig this POV!
It must have been amazing living in Hawaii!! And the New-Zealand pics are just beautiful! Those muffins look delicious, I'm glad to see xanthan gum used for something else than vegan soft-serve, I've been curious as to what else I could do with it!
Yummers!Those look SO good! I'm so glad to see you are well and can't wait to catch up with you soon! (And make your yummy muffins!)Xo,Erin
those muffins look great! and while I know i won't have the energy to make em' quite yet…they look great.
also love seeing the pics that do make YOU different;-)
those muffins look great! and while I know i won't have the energy to make em' quite yet…they look great.also love seeing the pics that do make YOU different;-)
These look amazing! I wonder if I could sub in quinoa flour… hmm. Things to try 🙂
I could really go for one of those right now thank you. I've not ever cooked/baked using any of the gums. And I love the pictures. I think I could handle Thanksgiving or Christmas on a lanai in flip flops.
I could really go for one of those right now thank you. I've not ever cooked/baked using any of the gums. And I love the pictures. I think I could handle Thanksgiving or Christmas on a lanai in flip flops.
Love this! You're so right that we are all trying to be different. But I think it's when we don't try that the memories and quirks really stick–like Pu Pu Platters! It's not like you purposely INTENDED not to have a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Your recipes are the same way. You are not setting out to be so different–you're just trying tocook healthy maels specific to you and your hubs' dietary needs…and wonderful, unique creations are the result!!
mmmm those muffins look increible! coffee farm in Hawaii?? 🙂 and love the snow pics!
omg the muffs look awesome! I plan to just skip the egg. I make blueberry muffs and cinny sugar muffs the same way, just w/ oats and sugar and other stuff. But no egg. KEep it vegan AND Gf that way. I bet it won't even matter 🙂 Or use a flax seed egg.
Anyway girl, thanks for all your lovely comments lately, you rock!
🙂
omg the muffs look awesome! I plan to just skip the egg. I make blueberry muffs and cinny sugar muffs the same way, just w/ oats and sugar and other stuff. But no egg. KEep it vegan AND Gf that way. I bet it won't even matter 🙂 Or use a flax seed egg.Anyway girl, thanks for all your lovely comments lately, you rock!:)