Vegan PB&J Muffins

An amazing idea crossed my mind one morning as I slathered peanut butter on my toast. What if the peanut butter was ***inside the bread? I thought I’d jump at the idea and see if I was really the genius I thought I was. Turns out I was. I figured I would turn these into muffins so they are easier to grab and go. Now I admit, I have a peanut butter addiction — pancakes, toast, oatmeal, bananas, and straight out of the jar on a spoon — I just can’t get enough. As a vegan, I am sure to include a variety of nuts and seeds in my diet, as they are excellent sources of protein and vitamins. In fact, these muffins contain about 7 grams of protein each! 

What takes these muffins to the next level is the addition of berries. The sweet berries perfectly contrast the rich, salty peanut butter. I guess that’s why peanut butter and jam sandwiches are so popular. I used a frozen blended berry mix in this recipe. My mom always taught me that using frozen berries in baking is key because it helps them from bleeding into the dough and causing a mess in the muffin tins.    

Although my obsession with peanut butter is evident, you can substitute peanut butter for other nut butters and sub out regular flour for a gluten-free alternative to make these gluten friendly.  Serve with a dollop of butter, and enjoy!

Ready in: 40 minutes

Serves: 12 muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

3/4 cup natural peanut butter

1/2 cup coconut oil or vegetable oil

1 cup unsweetened plant milk (I used almond)

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 flax eggs (1 tbsp ground flaxseed meal + 3 tbsp water per egg and allow it to sit until it thickens)

1 – 1½ cups frozen berries of choice

Sprinkle of cinnamon (optional)

Method: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease a muffin tin. Mix flaxseed with water to make flax eggs and set aside.    
2. Mix dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
3. Melt peanut butter and oil together in the microwave for 30 seconds and mix to combine.  
4. Add milk, vanilla, and flax eggs to the peanut butter and oil.
5. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.
6. Mix until just combined. Do not overmix. This will prevent the muffins from getting tough and chewy. 
7. Mix in frozen berries. 
8. Fill the greased muffin tin full and top muffins with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
9. Bake at 350 F for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Image: Sydney Marchand

Sydney Marchand

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Sydney is a BA English major, creative writing student, who has been a content contributor for The Cascade and is now the Opinion editor. In 7th grade, she won $100 in a writing contest but hasn’t made an earning from writing since. In the meantime, she is hoping that her half-written novels will write themselves, be published, and help pay the bills.

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