Chickpea Muffins

This muffin recipe will allow you to make high-protein, gluten-free, dairy-free and refined sugar-free muffins.

To begin, preheat your oven to 350°F.

In a mixing bowl, combine together the following dry ingredients:

- 1 1/2 cups chickpea flour (a.k.a. garbanzo bean flour, gram flour or besan)

- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- a pinch of salt

- 6 tablespoons lucuma powder

Side note:

At this moment, you're probably wondering, 'what the heck is lucuma powder?'. Lucuma is a fruit native to Peru. In Canada, one can by lucuma in powdered form. It is relatively expensive, compared to refined white sugar. This one-pound package cost me $18.79 at a health food store. (No one said healthy alternatives were cheap. If it's worth anything, the package below will last me for approximately 1 year.)

The fruit powder is sweet and can be used as a sugar substitute. It is low on the glycemic index, which makes it suitable for individuals with diabetes. Additionally, it has a mild maple/butterscotch flavour.

To the dry ingredients, add the following wet ingredients and mix thoroughly:

- 2 ripe bananas (mashed)

- 2 tablespoons all-natural peanut butter

- 2 teaspoons honey

- 1 container crushed apples (100 mL)

- 2 large eggs

- 1/4 cup water

At this point, add 3/4-1 cup of carob chips or chocolate chips. I used unsweetened carob chips.

Using a spoon, fill muffin papers with the chickpea batter, so that they are almost full.

Bake the muffins for 20 minutes and enjoy.

Breakfast Bulgar

If oatmeal has become your hated choice for breakfast gruel, you may want to switch things up by using bulgar (bulgur) instead.

Bulgar is a cereal food made from the hulled kernels (groats) of wheat. The wheat is normally parboiled and contains a fair amount of fibre.

To make it, simply bring 1 part bulgar and 2 parts water to boil in a pot. Cover the pot and let the bulgar simmer on low heat for 15 minutes. (Cooking times will vary depending on the size and type of bulgar you are using.)

In any case, the cooked bulgar can be enjoyed in any way you like. I like to have it with some warmed almond milk and a dollop of all-natural jam.

Homemade Gianduia

Gianduia (also spelled gianduja) is a chocolate-hazelnut spread. You may have heard of an Italian product called Nutella. Well, Nutella is actually the brand-name for a type of gianduia.

If you have tasted Nutella, you are probably aware that it is awesome. Well, for those of you who have dairy and refined sugar restrictions, you definitely will not be able to enjoy the Ferrero version of the spread.

However, what if I told you that you could make your own dairy-free and sugar-free gianduia, in a matter of minutes?

Please note that the no measurements are required for this recipe.

You can work with a double boiler, in order to not scorch the ingredients, but feel free to work directly on the stove top if you feel that your skills are advanced enough. Note, chocolate can and will burn easily if you don't know what you're doing.

Begin with melting a desired amount of unsweetened Baker's chocolate.

Once melted, add carob powder to sweeten.

(Carob powder is derived from the fruit of the carob tree. It is also known as St. John's-bread or locust bean. Carob powder is used as a substitute for cocoa powder and can be found quite easily in bulk food stores. Simply put, carob powder is very similar to cocoa powder, except that it does not contain any stimulants, like caffeine. Additionally, it contains some carbohydrates, making it naturally sweet. To me, it tastes a bit like "caramel meets maple syrup".)

Add enough carob powder to meet your desired level of sweetness.

Your mixture may become clumpy at this time.

To the mixture, add enough hazelnut butter to equal approximately 1/3 of the amount of melted chocolate and carob.

(Gianduia normally consists of approximately 30% hazelnut paste. I use hazelnut butter, because in Canada, hazelnut butter can be found easily in major grocery stores.)

The natural oils in the hazelnut butter should smooth out the clumps and bring the mixture to the consistency of a spread. If the mixture has not loosened up enough, feel free to add either some olive oil or coconut oil in order to get it to the desired consistency.

At this point, your dairy-free, refined sugar-free gianduia will be ready to enjoy.