Mango Muffins

These Mango Muffins were born of the ethereal urge for breakfast gluttony combined with a practical need to finish that mango puree in the refrigerator before it went bad.

I tweaked my Banana Muffin recipe to make these, replacing the two bananas with two cups of the mango puree that I had left over after making my Mango Cashew Cream. And just for the heck of it, I used nutmeg as the spice in these muffins, instead of cardamom which is my usual favorite spice for anything mango. I love nutmeg but don't use it nearly as much as I do other spices in my kitchen, and their mysteriously rich kick in the muffins reminded me of what I'd been missing.


These muffins are mangoey, but not too sweet, so they are almost (although not quite) as good as eating my Mango Cupcakes. And they are healthier, made as they are with whole-wheat pastry flour. I didn't add any nuts to these, but blanched, slivered almonds would be great here.

Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend-- it is a welcome long weekend for those of us here in the United States. Fourth of July or Independence Day is a very special holiday all over the country but it is especially spectacular in my hometown of Washington, D.C. that hosts an all-day party, including concerts, on the National Mall, all of it ending in a gorgeous display of fireworks. It's a hot, humid but incredibly special treat that everyone should enjoy at least once in their lifetimes.

Enjoy the recipe, all!

Mango Muffins

(Makes 12 muffins)

Ingredients:
 
1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

2 cups mango puree

 1/4 tsp salt

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp nutmeg

6 tbsp canola oil

3/4 cup sugar

2 tbsp powdered flax seeds mixed well with 6 tbsp water

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and oil a standard-size muffin tin.

Mix the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and chopped nuts.

In a larger bowl, mix the oil, sugar, flax seed-water mixture, mango, and vanilla extract.

Mix in the flour mixture until all the wet ingredients are just moist. Do not overmix. The batter should be lumpy, like pancake batter, rather than smooth.

With a standard-sized ice cream scoop, or with a tablespoon, divide the batter equally among the 12 muffin tins.

Bake for about 17 minutes in a 375-degree oven or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out almost dry, with a few crumbs sticking to it.

Let cool for a couple of minutes before unmolding.

This recipe is on its way to Harini and Jaya's "Only Baked" event, this month's edition of Pari's original series "Only". Thanks, ladies!