Apple Flaxseed Muffins

I prefer bacon.

The Luoma house usually isn’t known for health food. With all of the sausage, bacon, and pig parts to season beans, gumbos, and pastas in addition to the cakes made with sweet cream butter, Heather decided she wanted to try a “healthier” menu. I’m willing to give it a shot, but I’m concerned that our meals may suffer from a flavorectomy.

I found a great looking recipe for flaxseed muffins. Yeah, I don’t know what flaxseed is, either. It smells kind of nutty and reminds me of the remnants at the bottom of a box of Cracklin’ Oat Bran. This flaxseed stuff is nothing like cracklins.

That reminds me of a time I hit the drive thru of Southern Made Donuts. They had a sign that they had fresh cracklins. They did not disappoint. They even gave me the end of a crackled snout. It had one and a half nostrils and some hair was still implanted. I enjoyed every bit of that hairy snout.

I adapted this recipe, and I have concerns trying out coconut oil. It looks like petroleum jelly and it tastes like coconut. I’m not a huge fan of coconut, but I promised my wife I would try cooking with it.

1 1/2 cups flaxseed
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons orange peel
1/4 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup water
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 chopped apple
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350.

Grease cupcake pan.

Mix all ingredients together.

Let stand about ten minutes. I presume it is to allow the flaxseed time to absorb some liquid, but what do I know? I don’t know what flax is and I’m too lazy to google it.

Pour batter into pan.

Bake approximately 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 15. I know the pan only makes 12 muffins. You’ll have to get creative.

I have to admit, these muffins polarized our household. Heather thought they were yummy, Alli thought they were great, Zoe’ liked them so much she had to go back for more, and Maddie licked the mixing bowl clean. I didn’t care for them. Maybe if they were Bacon Apple Flaxseed Muffins I would enjoy them. I don’t know if I’m compatible with health food.

Cinnamon Chocolate Cake

Note:  the featured image above is from a full sheet cake.  the cake wasn’t thick as I didn’t have a high walled cake pan.  Cakes are better when they are so tall they won’t fit into your mouth unless you unhinge your jaw like a rattlesnake.  Photo was taken by Josh Guthrie.

Over the past few weeks I have been looking up cake recipes and even had a few ideas of my own.  My family loved the chocolate-peanut butter cake with banana frosting.  Personally, I thought it was too sweet and the peanut butter seemed to overpower the banana.

This isn’t a cake recipe, but recently I made peanut butter-bananas foster chimachangas with marshmallow.  That was our supper one night.  Again, the family loved it, but it was too sweet for me.  I’d like to revisit both  make some adjustments to make these winners.

I have an exceedingly hard time following recipes.  Yes, I can read.  Yes, I can follow simple directions.  Just not in the kitchen.  Does that happen to you?  At the last moment, I always have something I want to change to make it better.  With this impromptu baking I have learned that cakes, breads, etc. can be very forgiving.

I did find a recipe that was anomalous.  It was a cake recipe that I had no desire to change.  I have make this cake four or five times in the past month mostly for me to gorge on, but the family loves it and so does everyone else who has tried it.

I cannot eat enough of this cinnamon-chocolate cake.  Instead of walnuts I used pecans. That’s what was in the pantry. Today’s cake was a little different as I only had enough granulated white sugar for half of what the recipe calls for. The other half was brown sugar.  See, these changes were out of necessity, otherwise I would have *gasp* followed the recipe as written.

I just ate a piece and it was moist and airy.  Doesn’t Mexican chocolate have cinnamon in it?  This recipe just has enough cinnamon to wake up the chocolate.  Chocolate is great.  The cinnamon enhances the chocolate flavor that you cannot rest until the cake is devoured.

Today’s cake. I made this four times or so in the past month.

I really wish I could take credit for this cake. I’m considering a cinnamon-maple cake with coffee frosting. If it’s worthy of sharing, you’ll be the first to know.