You’ll never worry about your muffins getting all hard and dried out as they’re served with a splash of maple syrup. These sweet treats double as a light breakfast (apart from an afternoon pick-me-up) for being loaded full of grain and fruit, for a delicious, dense and moist-in-the-centre snack.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (100 g) white quinoa
- 2 eggs
- ¾ cup (180 ml) pure maple syrup
- ½ cup (140 g) Greek yoghurt
- 2 tbsps canola oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup (135 g) gluten-free self-raising flour
- 1 tsp gluten-free baking powder
- 1¼ tsps ground cinnamon
- 1 cup (80 g) quinoa flakes
- ¾ cup (140 g) coarsely chopped dried figs
- 3 fresh figs, halved
Steps
Preheat oven to 180 C. Lightly grease a 6-hole Texas (¾ cup/180 ml) muffin pan; line with paper cases.
Rinse and drain quinoa. Place quinoa and 1 cup (250 ml) water in a small saucepan; bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to low; cook, covered, for 15 mins or until tender and water is absorbed. Remove from heat; stand for 10 mins, then fluff with a fork. Cool.
Combine eggs, ½ cup (125 ml) of the maple syrup, yoghurt, oil and vanilla. Sift flour, baking powder and 1 tsp of the cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir in quinoa flakes and chopped figs. Make a well in the centre; stir in the egg mixture and quinoa until just combined. Spoon mixture into paper cases; top with halved figs and sprinkle with remaining ¼ tsp cinnamon.
Bake muffins for 25 mins or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. Serve drizzled with remaining maple syrup.
TIP You can replace the dried figs with other dried fruit. Try sultanas and top with a cluster of small fresh grapes, or apricots and their fresh counterpart, or dates, topped with fresh sliced banana.
Photo: bauersyndication.com.au