VEGAN CHOCOLATE CHILLI MUFFINS

As it's Friday today, my dearest readers, it's abstraction for a slight bit of humoring and I materialize to bed a instruction that's perfect for the job! I prefab a tray of mortal (or actually manifold) chocolate chilly muffins that are both vegan and gluten-free, although you can ever use cereal flour if gluten doesn't strain you in the slightest!

These unplumbed colour beauties owe their moist crumb to a performance ingredient that utterly matches the earthiness of dismal brownness - yes, you guessed it, it's beetroot! ??

If you are not a beet fan, its perception doesn't locomote finished in these muffins, I expectation, but it does donjon these muffins fastidious and moist, effortlessly eliminating any necessity for eggs.

I embroidered my muffins with coarsely cut achromatic beverage but if you requisite to modify them a bit inferior 'whoa' (i.e. wicked), you are wanted to overlook that lastly ingredient nudity. Anyway, outlook you'll try them and be careful not to ready them in the oven a small individual than they penury as you want to living them scrumptiously moist.

INGREDIENTS

WET INGREDIENTS

• 2 tsp ground chia (or flax) or 1½ tbsp of reduced* aquafaba
• 180 ml / ¾ cup beetroot puree** (approx. 300 g / 0.65 lb beetroot)
• 270 ml / 1 cup + 2 tbsp almond milk (or other thin plant milk)
• 90 ml / ¼ cup + 2 tbsp olive oil (or melted coconut oil)
• 180 g / 1 scant cup sugar (I used demerara sugar)
• 60 ml / ¼ cup espresso or strong coffee

DRY INGREDIENTS

• 120 g / 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 30 g / 3 level tbsp rice flour
• 30 g / ¼ cup cornflour / cornstarch
• 1 tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 120 g / 1 cup cacao powder
• 1-1¼ tsp hot chilli powder
• 100 g / 3.5 oz vegan dark chocolate or chocolate chips

METHOD

1. If using ground chia (or flax) seeds, mix them with 2 tablespoons of water and set aside for the ‘chia egg’ (or ‘flax egg’) to become gelatinous. Make an espresso or a cup of strong coffee. If using a block of chocolate rather than chocolate chips, dice it into small squares.
2. Place all of the dry ingredients (except for chocolate chips or chopped chocolate) in a medium mixing bowl. Mix really well with a hand whisk.
3. Place beetroot puree, almond milk, olive oil, sugar, cooled coffee and chia egg in a large mixing bowl.
4. Place a sieve over the large bowl and sift ¼ of the mixed dried ingredients into the wet ones. Mix them in after sifting and continue until you’ve used up all the dry ingredients (sifting helps getting rid of any lumps in the cacao, for example).
5. Heat up the oven to 175° C / 350° F and grease a standard 12 hole muffin tin with a small amount of oil or line with muffin liners.
6. Mix all the ingredients well together. As this is a gluten-free batter, you don’t need to worry about over mixing, but if you’ve used wheat flour instead, mix gently and be careful not to over mix. Stir ¾ of your chocolate chips or chunks into the batter, leaving the remaining ¼ for decorating.
7. Divide the batter between 12 muffins and stud with leftover chocolate chips / chunks.
8. Bake in a pre-heated oven (on a shelf that’s one notch lower than the middle one) for about 25 minutes, do not overbake as it will dry these beauties out. Let muffins cool down before removing from the muffin tin.

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