It’s almost the middle of October and I still haven’t made an apple pie! I know. Awful, right?
It’s not my fault*. I blame the foliage. Usually by this time, the trees in upstate New York have burst into color. Not this year.
*It’s totally my fault. Apple pies don’t make themselves. I just haven’t had time. But that’s not as fun to admit. Let’s blame something totally outside my control. WOOT!
So.much.green! No leaves on the lawn? What the what? One needs to be *inspired* to bake a pie. They need leaves on the ground* and a chill in the air. It’s all about romance and feelings.
*Leaves have never been included in a pie recipe. Ever. That’s just an excuse for laziness right there. Romance and feelings? Ha!
At least these four guys are doing their job. Perhaps they can nag their friends to join them*.
*Then I’d be complaining about having to rake the lawn. It’s a no-win for the leaves in this scenario.
Thankfully, and with no help from the trees, the rest of autumn is in full swing. Our local orchards are full of apples, pumpkins, and other good things*.
*Like gluten-filled cider doughnuts that I can’t eat.
Each year I need “just one more” pumpkin. I mean, look at these guys! How can I pick just one? Or five*?
*My wallet really wishes I could pick just one. Who needs to spend that much money on pumpkins? No one, that’s who!
Then there’s the apples. Oh, man. THE APPLES.
New York is the second-largest apple producing state in the country. (Washington State is #1*.)
*Show-offs.
But still. It’s October. I want an apple pie. Or apple doughnuts. Or apple muffins*!
*Ohhhhh, apple muffins! That sounds like a good idea. Let’s do that!
Unlike apple pie, which isn’t hard but takes some time, apple muffins are really fast to make. They’re easy too!
How to Make Paleo Apple Muffins
These paleo apple muffins start with almond flour. As you can see in the picture, almond flour, even finely ground almond flour, can sometimes clump. After you add the cinnamon, baking powder, and salt, give the dry ingredients a vigorous whisking. (You can do this before you add the other ingredients, if you remember! Which, clearly, I did not.) If the little clumps of almond flour don’t break up, rub them with your hands (clean, dry hands, please). This always works.
Before we continue making our paleo apple muffins, we have to talk about something important. The texture of apples in muffins! I don’t know about you, but I can’t stand apple muffins that don’t contain large chunks of apples. This is such a stupid food preference of mine but there you have it. For me, muffins with shredded apples don’t taste as good. (I also like chocolate chips in my chocolate chip and mint chocolate chip ice cream. None of that flaked chocolate for me.)
Some apples are better for baking than others. This really matters when you’re making a pie or other desserts. For this recipe, however, it doesn’t really matter which apple you use. It’s all about what type of texture you want in the finished muffins. If you like your apples to be crisp and chunky, use granny smith apples or another apple labeled “good for baking.” If you prefer soft and tender bits of apple, use an apple that’s good for sauce, like Paula Red. (If you aren’t sure which apple are baking apples and which apples are sauce apples, check out this guide.)
First, add the maple syrup and the eggs to the dry ingredients. Whisk until a batter forms. You can use a handheld whisk for this or you can use an electric hand mixer. Whatever makes your life easier is what you want to use.
Then stir in your apple pieces. The batter is done! Wasn’t that easy?
Line an old* muffin tin with paper liners and drop the batter into the pan.
*You don’t need an old tin. My poor thing works just fine, it’s just old and more than a little scratched. Let’s call this patina! It’ll make my tin sound chic instead of old. Btw, I promise, the thing is clean! Scratched I can handle. Dirty is never, ever okay!)
Bake. Cool. Eat*.
*The best part.
Like most grain-free baked goods, these muffins are best the day they are made. Depending on the humidity of your area, they last for about three days on the counter. If you aren’t going to eat nine muffins in three days, I suggest freezing the muffins once they cool.
Now, if those leaves would only change. I could make an apple pie!
Oh, no. They heard me! Now I have bake and rake. Wah! Excuse me while I eat an apple muffins and ponder this startling turn of events.
Paleo Apple Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups finely ground almond flour (5 ounces; 142 grams)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon grain-free or homemade baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 1/2 tablespoons maple syrup (1 3/4 ounces; 50 grams)
- 2 large eggs (about 1 3/4 ounces; 50 grams, out of shell)
- 1 large apple, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9 standard-size muffin cups with paper liners.
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In a medium bowl, whisk together almond flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Add maple syrup and eggs. Stir until combined. Add chopped apple; stir. Fill muffin cups 2/3 with batter.
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Bake until muffins spring back to the touch, about 18 minutes.
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Remove pan from oven. Allow muffins to cool in the pan for five minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Store cooled muffins on the counter in an airtight container for up to three days or freeze, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, for up to two months.
Homemade Paleo Baking Powder
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup of cream of tartar
- 2 tablespoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon tapioca starch this prevents clumping
Instructions
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Whisk all ingredients together. Store in an airtight container.
Jo Ann says
Thank you for this recipe. I just made a batch of these muffins. I followed your recipe exactly and they turned out delicious. Just finished one for an afternoon snack.
Elizabeth says
Yay! Muffins! I’m glad you enjoyed them. They are so crazy-easy to make that I still haven’t made a pie!
Tamara Hillebrand says
My husband is hard to please when it comes to gluten free recipes, but he loved these. I used mini muffin pans for these, left the peel on the organic apple, and cooked for about 15 minutes. Thank you for sharing.
Elizabeth says
Woot! Glad he enjoyed them!
Sandra says
These sound so delicious, but I’m allergic to almonds… can you recommend a substitute flour that would be equally delicious? Cassava, Tiger Nut? Other?
Elizabeth says
This recipe won’t work with a nut-free flour, sorry. The recipe needs the fat found in the almonds. (Tiger nut might work but I’m not fully confident.)
David says
I’ll double down on that: my son has a nut allergy so I tried these with coconut flour (given it’s high fat content) and basically I had crumbs with apples. There was nothing approximating batter. It was so dry that, frankly, I’m skeptical about the recipe overall. But given the other positive reviews, I’ll assume that almond flour has a ton of moisture as well as fat.
Elizabeth says
Yes. There’s no way this recipe would work with coconut flour. I used coconut flour in many recipes in my paleo baking book. It sucks up liquid like a sponge.
The recipe, as written, works great. It does not work at all, as you found out, with coconut flour.
Sara says
I’ve recently gone GF and wanted to also stay low carb and away from highly processed. I’m also trying out things my kids would like… I know, I’m so high maintenance! 🙂 These are delicious and SO easy, I made them while my 2 year old ate breakfast. Thanks!!!
Patricia says
My batter had come out thicker than what was pictured so I was nervous, but it was delicious! The only change I made was that considering I do not own a muffin pan I used a small cast iron skillet and poured all the batter into that. I also lowered the temperature to 325F and baked it for approximately 40 minutes. Delicious! I ate a quarter of the “pie”!
Jackie says
Really yummy “quaranmuffins”. I added nutmeg to mine as well. So good! Thank you!
Liz Cooper says
I just made these this morning. They were so quick and easy to make!
I ended up with 8 muffins. Three for me and three for my husband. They were a quick and tasty breakfast! My husband says that they are really good with butter. I will be making many more. Thank you for the high protein, low carb, delicious muffins! I will be sharing the recipe with my children who are having issues with gluten. I did add a 1/4 tsp. nutmeg and a little vanilla, about 1/2 tsp. Other than that, they are just plain yummyness!