Sweet Potato Molasses Muffins

Mid-November does not equal fall here in the Antipodes, but with all of the recipes and photos online of pumpkin, spice-filled delights, this American is craving a little Thanksgiving flavor.  I wish I'd made these last week when my wonderful parents-in-law were in town, but between birthday celebrations, watching the hubs perform at the Opera House (yep, he's pretty amazing), and visiting Sydney's best beaches and restaurants, we didn't have a chance.

The mum-in-law and I did combine our collective baking skills to recreate a family favorite cake of hers: chocolate yum cake.  We baked a gluten-free chocolate spice cake in a bundt pan, covered it with a mixture of honey, cream, and poppyseeds, and slathered a melted chocolate layer over the top. If she gives permission I may post a version here, it's different and delicious.

Back to fall flavors... I had half of a sweet potato and a ripe banana I needed to use up, so I scanned the web for muffin recipes and ended up adapting Kathy's vegan cinnamon pumpkin muffins over at HealthyHappyLife. The results were perfect: beta carotene blast from the sweet potato, aromatic spices, and the deep undertones of molasses.  Plus, these muffins have a great texture and bake up nice and tall.

sweet potato molasses muffins hot out of the oven

They can easily be made gluten-free by using all g-f flour, and vegan by using almond or soy milk in place of the dairy milk. Happy fall to folks in the northern hemisphere!

Sweet Potato Molasses Muffins
adapted from HappyHealthyLife
makes 12 muffins

2 cups flour (I used approx. 1 c spelt flour, 1 c gluten-free blend, and few teaspoons almond meal)
pinch of ground sea salt
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon allspice or cloves
1 tablespoon natural or brown sugar
1 1/4 cups cooked, mashed sweet potato
1/4 cup skim milk (or almond milk, soy milk, etc)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons agave or brown rice syrup
2 tablespoons molasses
1 'flax egg' (1/4 cup warm water + 1 tablespoon ground flaxseeds, let sit, stir till thick)
1/4 cup mashed ripe banana (or applesauce)
2 tablespoons rice bran oil (or other vegetable oil)

Preheat oven to 175C / 350F, and line a muffin tin with muffin cups or squares of parchment paper. Spray the inside of each paper liner lightly with oil.

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl (flour through sugar).  In a medium sized bowl, mix the wet ingredients thoroughly (milk through oil).

Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and stir in the wet ingredients.  If you're baking with gluten-free flours, there's no need to worry about overmixing (as you won't activate the gluten which can make the mixture tough), but if you're baking with gluten-containing flours, be sure to just mix until ingredients are incorporated, even if a few lumps of flour remain.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin tin, filling almost to the top.  Bake at 175C / 350F for 18-23 minutes, until done.  There should be a crisp, thick outer shell, and no crumbs should remain on a toothpick when inserted.  Allow to cool before serving.

These will keep for a couple of days, covered, at room temperature, or can be frozen and reheated in the microwave at 80% power for 15 second intervals.