Morning Glory Muffins

Recipe by PJ Hamel

This recipe, a throwback to the "back to the land" '60s, brings together all kinds of fruits and vegetables in an earthy whole-grain muffin that, despite the description, manages to taste very good indeed. Moist and just sweet enough, Morning Glory are a great "eat in the car" treat. They need the enhancement of neither butter nor jam (though either — or cream cheese — wouldn't be out of place).

Prep
15 mins
Bake
25 to 28 mins
Total
40 mins
Yield
12 muffins
Morning Glory Muffins

Instructions

Prevent your screen from going dark as you follow along.
  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line it with papers and spray the insides of the papers.

  2. In a small bowl, cover the raisins with hot water, and set them aside to soak while you assemble the rest of the recipe.

  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, spices, and salt.

  4. Stir in the carrots, apple, coconut, nuts, and sunflower seeds or wheat germ.

  5. In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, oil, vanilla, and orange juice.

  6. Add to the flour mixture, and stir until evenly moistened.

  7. Drain the raisins and stir them in.

  8. Divide the batter among the wells of the prepared pan (they'll be full almost to the top; that's OK).

  9. Bake the muffins for 25 to 28 minutes, until they're nicely domed and a cake tester inserted in the center of one of the inner muffins comes out clean.

  10. Remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes in their pan on a rack, then turn out of pans to finish cooling. Wrap any leftovers airtight, and store at room temperature for several days; freeze for longer storage.

Tips from our Bakers

  • Want to make this gluten-free? For great results, substitute King Arthur Gluten-Free Measure for Measure Flour for the whole wheat flour in this recipe, no further ingredient changes necessary. Be sure to bake thoroughly; gluten-free baked goods often need a bit more time in the oven.

  • Not fond of raisins? Substitute Jammy Bits, sweet, soft little morsels of fruit purée.

  • Jammy Bits, sweet, soft little morsels of fruit purée, come in five delicious flavors: blueberry, raspberry, cherry, apple cinnamon, and orange.