Peach and Thyme Bran Muffins

Vegan recipe today, guys! (And no one who I gave them to even had a clue!)

I am so freaking excited to be sharing this recipe with you. There is a really fun story behind the inspiration for this. In Colorado, I am a weekly volunteer at the Larimer County Food Bank, which has a huge impact on the local community. They gathered and distributed 8.7 million pounds (I know, right?!) of donated food via their their main programs:  Food Share, Food Link and Child Nutrition/Kids Cafe. All three are awesome. I'm a volunteer in the Food Share program, and I usually work on Fridays during the school year.

Aaaanyways. So I started in March, and because I am incredibly obsessive I always leave campus about an hour earlier than I need to (I am absolutely anal about being on time. If I am one minute late, I freak out. Issues). But when you have an extra hour, what do you do? For me, I explored some local coffee places. My favorite one turned out to be Little Bird, which is this adorable little cafe right in the heart of our downtown square. They have a farm-to-table approach and source locally, which I love. Also, their pastries and coffee are the bomb. In April, about a month into my volunteering, I had finally started to realize that about halfway through my volunteer shift I would always get hungry and that I therefore needed to actually bring something to eat (duh!). And as you can guess, I started getting their Peach and Thyme Muffins. They were so good! The peach and thyme were both so subtle, nuzzled into this sweet batter that had hints of floral notes, and I gobbled them up the way normal people drink water. Naturally, I decided to create my own so I wouldn't spend $500 every week on muffins (since I already spend about that much on coffee-- eep!).

I really think that this recipe is spot on. A lot of people are afraid of bran muffins because they think that they will be dry-- these muffins are far from it! They have the perfect texture, and the bran adds both some complexity and a nice nutty flavor to the batter. The thyme adds beautiful fresh undertones, and I used a mixture of yellow and white peaches so that the sweetness and tartness would intermingle. They get a little caramelized on top which is fantastic, because who doesn't like natural sugars? They look beautiful, as well. This is also an accidentally-on-purpose vegan recipe, in the fact that I could have added an egg but I didn't, and I am so glad for it! If you aren't vegan, don't be afraid. Bake these and don't add any dairy, and it will totally revolutionize the way you think about vegan food.

It's Monday. Have some Muffins. (Muffin Monday should totally be a thing).

Peach and Thyme Bran Muffins
Serves 12

Ingredients:

• 1c soy (or almond) milk
• 1T lime juice
• 3/4c (3/4oz) oat bran
• 3/4c (1 and 5/8oz) wheat bran
• 1/2c packed (3 and 1/4oz) brown sugar
• 1 and 1/2c (8oz) whole wheat flour
• 2t baking powder
• 1t baking soda
• 1/4t salt
• 1c unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2T almond extract (if you do not have, use vanilla)
• 2T fresh thyme leaves, minced
• 1 medium white peach, skin removed, diced, and patted dry with a towel (will total about 1/3c. diced)
• Cooking Spray
• 1 large yellow peach, sliced into 24 segments

Instructions:

1. In a small bowl, combine soy milk and lime juice. (We are creating homemade "buttermilk".) Let sit for ten minutes. Mixture may look slightly curdled, do not worry.
2. Preheat the oven to 400F.
3. In a large bowl, sift together oat bran through salt. Make a small well in the middle of the mixture, and pour the soy milk mixture, applesauce, extract, and thyme into it. Stir the wet and dry together until about half-mixed, then add the white peach cubes. Stir only until everything is just moist (over-stirring can create toughness in the end result).
4. Spray a 12-count muffin pan with cooking spray. Evenly divide batter into the pan (I used about two ice cream scoops for each muffin: don't be afraid to pile that batter into there). Top each muffin with two yellow peach slices, sticking the slice in at an angle so it is about halfway buried into the batter. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Allow to cool.

Nutrition Information
Sodium: 62mg
Total Fat: 1g
      Saturated: 0g
      Trans: 0g
Sugar: 14g
Protein: 5g
Calories: 135
Dietary Fiber: 5g