I don’t consider myself the most tech-savvy person, but I do have a few tricks up my sleeve from time to time. One of my “tricks” (which is probably common knowledge, mind you) is filtering out email addresses from my inbox. Like many of you, I receive a frightening amount of press releases and other spam. You know the ones that start out like, “Regards Webmaster” or “Dear [any name except your own]”.
To help combat my spam woes, I started filtering out email addresses a couple years ago. If you use Gmail, you probably already know about this filtering feature. The beauty is that if you receive an email from an unwanted recipient you simply click “more” and then “Filter messages like these” and then choose how you filter out the email. That way, if they should try to spam you again from the same email (and you know they will) the message will go straight to the archive, trash, etc. – whichever you prefer! I’ve noticed a huge improvement in my inbox, cutting down unwanted emails by probably 50% over the past couple years. It’s quite amazing to see how many are filtered out each day! You can also use the filtering feature to have emails sent directly into folders of your choosing.
So, back to not being the most tech-savvy person.
Last week we were getting ready to leave on a trip to visit my family. In preparation, I somehow managed to create an email filter that sent all new/unread emails straight into my trash bin. Who knew that was even possible? I still have no clue how it happened…I swear! So all last week, I was in this blissful state of ignorance thinking that I was having a rather “light” week for email. [We all know that doesn’t happen unless it’s Christmas holidays. fool!]
Do you know how good that week felt though? I was free!
When we returned home, I realized something was majorly wrong because I wasn’t even getting my own emails (yes, I email myself…not weird at all…). When a girl can’t get her own emails that’s where I draw the line! So the investigation began. Eric, tech-ninja-genius, suggested I check my trash and spam bins. There, in the trash bin among the lowly filtered-out spam, I found emails from my family, friends, publisher contacts, editor, blog readers, and fact checkers. Dear Lord what did I do? I was getting follow-up emails like, “I haven’t heard from you yet, please reply ASAP!!!!” and then I had to try to explain that I created a filter that sent their emails to the trash. It wasn’t my proudest techy moment.
Tech-ninja fixed the problem and I’m back in email action and caught up, but I will never forget that week of freedom. It almost brings a tear to my eye just thinking about it.
Lesson learned: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
There are, of course, exceptions to every rule, like these vegan blueberry muffins…
Blueberry Banana Muffins
Yield
12 large muffins
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Delightful, healthy banana blueberry walnut muffins made with spelt flour so they are naturally wheat-free (but keep in mind that spelt has gluten in it). If blueberries aren't in season, I suggest using frozen blueberries and saving the fresh ones for summer baking. You can also leave out the walnuts and swap the almond milk for coconut milk if you'd like a nut-free version.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (180 mL) mashed ripe banana (about 2 medium)
- 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (210 mL) unsweetened almond milk
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) pure maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup (60 mL) coconut oil, melted
- 2 cups (280 g) white spelt flour
- 4 to 6 tablespoons (40 to 60 g) coconut sugar or natural cane sugar*
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 cup (50 g) walnut halves, chopped (optional)
- 1 1/4 cups (160 g) frozen or fresh blueberries**
Directions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) and grease a muffin tin.
- In a medium bowl, mash bananas and measure out 3/4 cup. If you have any leftover mashed banana you can freeze it for a smoothie.
- Place mashed banana into medium bowl along with the milk, vinegar, maple syrup, and vanilla. No need to stir it yet.
- Melt the coconut oil in a small pot over low heat. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda).
- Stir coconut oil into the wet mixture. Pour wet ingredients onto the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Do not overmix as spelt is a fragile little flour.
- Gently fold in the walnuts and then the blueberries, being sure not to overmix as this can result in dense muffins.
- Spoon a heaping 1/4 cup of batter into each muffin tin, filling each tin about 3/4 full (they will be almost full, but this is normal). I like to press a few extra blueberries on top of each so they look pretty after baking.
- Bake at 350°F (180°C) for 23 to 27 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. I baked them for 25 minutes.
- Cool in pan for 5 to 8 minutes and then transfer muffins to a cooling rack and cool for another 15 minutes.
Tip:
- * When using ripe, spotty bananas I find 4 tablespoons of sugar is plenty sweet, however if your bananas aren't overripe, you might need to use the full 6 tablespoons. Add to your taste.
- ** If using frozen blueberries, be sure to leave them in the freezer (do not thaw) until just before you stir them into the batter. This helps prevent bleeding.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
I just made these and they are the best muffins I have ever had! Thank you!
Made these this week and they were delicious!
These are baking in my oven right now! I actually had all of the ingredients. That’s very rare!! The batter was magnificent. These are going to rock. :)
I’ve made these for Easterbreakfast tomorrow but we had a little taste already,simply delicious!!!Thank you for this recipe. :)
Can anyone recommend how to replace the banana with eggs? I love the banana, but I have 6 dozen eggs in my fridge from my chickens and I was hoping to crack a few to empty some space. Any ideas? Thanks!
I love blueberry muffins! These are next on my list!
Made this recipe tonight. They did not turn out well, They are heavy and glue like. I bake a lot but would not make these again. I am new to baking with spelt flour so perhaps something went wrong with the spelt flour I was using.
I just made a batch of these muffins tonight and they are absolutely delicious! The walnuts add a tasty crunch and the texture is deliciously dense. I didn’t have cane sugar on hand so I used brown sugar instead but will add cane sugar to my shopping list as these will be a staple from this point on! The house smelled heavenly while they were baking and I had to fight off the family to make sure we still have some muffins left for breakfast in the morning. Thanks a bunch for sharing this recipe!
This is my new favorite muffin recipe! I’m wondering how many calories per muffin – could you let me know or maybe it’s on the webpage already and I missed it. Thanks!
i made these with oat flour that i made from oats, they turned out great! though the frozen blueberries started bleeding almost the minute i mixed them in, didnt expect that but it was alright, i hurried a bit so they didnt look so bad. making these again!
Just made these this morning and LOVED them. Wonderful flavor, texture, and aroma. Thanks so much!
Made these this past week for my dad at an early Father’s Day brunch, and he absolutely loved them! Had some leftovers and gave to my friends, and they practically ate half the batch! These are divinneee- I absolutely love the occasional crunch that the walnuts give :)
Nice! I’m looking forward to trying this!
These were delicious! Do you happen to have the nutrition info? Thanks for such a great egg-free recipe.
wowzers! These muffins are so so so so good! Thank for this recip. I’ll certainly be making them again. I used sprouted spelt flour and they turned out great. I love that tip to put a couple berries on top. They came out so colorful, and the top were crunchy with a burst of blueberry juice. Perfection.
I was looking for a recipe to use up the over ripe bananas and mass quantities of blueberries I had in the fridge and I stumbled on this recipe! I was so excited it was an Oh She Glows recipe – I have the cookbook! I made the muffins last night and they turned out really well. My 3 bananas equaled exactly 3/4 cup, which was extra exciting. I was extra gentle with the spelt (thanks for the call out on that – it was a big help because I’m sure I would have over mixed it). The only ingredient I didn’t have on hand at 7 PM at night was the walnuts, but my husband and I didn’t miss them. Besides, the point of the recipe was to use just what I had in the house :)
Note: My father has celiac sprue and has been gluten free over a decade. One thing people need to take into account when eating of baking gluten free baked goods is that they can be a little more dense than typical baked goods.
I also recommend for anyone who appears to be having recipe trouble and who doesn’t have a new oven to invest in an oven thermometer. Years ago, in my apartment, I couldn’t figure out why anything I baked or cooked in the oven turned on terribly. When I got an oven thermometer, I leaned my oven was way off in temp and had hot spots. Just a suggestion!
Anyway, LOVE the recipe. Thank you!
I used normal wholemeal spelt instead of light, and they turned out fantastic. My kids love them too which is a plus. Will definitely be making these on a regular basis.
hey,
these turned out great! thank for the recipe, I doubled the recipe and made mini muffins (good for little guys). baked for 20 minutes, they turned out perfect. i hope the little guys don’t miss the chocolate!
aj
Thank you for provides such a great recipe! I generally have everything on hand, and when I don’t, that’s okay! Sometimes they aren’t vegan (we focus more on real food than strictly vegan); and sometimes they are cherry/almond instead of blueberry walnut (or what ever fruit/nut combo I have on hand). This recipe is a great base though, so thanks!
Just made these muffins…OMG! amazing!