Magic Muffins

DRY INGREDIENTS – SIEVE INTO A MIXING BOWL

• 330g/12oz self raising flour (Use all white OR half and half fine wholemeal and white)
• 225g/8 oz caster sugar
• 1½ tsp bicarbonate of soda

WET INGREDIENTS – MEASURE INTO A JUG

• 110ml/4 fl oz plain vegetable oil (not olive)
• 290ml/scant 11fl oz soya or other plant milk, eg almond, rice…
• 1 tsp vanilla essence

EGG ALTERNATIVE. CHOOSE FROM ONE OF THESE

• 1 tbsp flax meal +3 tbsp warm water mixed together to make a flax egg. Add this to the combined wet and dry mixture at the end
• OR 4 tsp soya flour – sieve this into the dry ingredients
• OR 3 tbsp aquafaba (the gunky water in a tin of chickpeas or other white beans), whisked to make it frothy. Add this to the combined mixture at the end BUT reduce soya milk to 250ml

PLUS whatever flavourings you like – see suggestions below.

• Chocolate and cinnamon (substitute some of the flour with cocoa powder and 1 tsp cinnamon powder
• Blueberry – a handful of any frozen or dried berries
• Apple and cinnamon – apple chunks and 1 tsp cinnamon
• Pear and cinnamon – as the apple variation
• Carrot – 1 medium grated carrot. Nice with some lemon zest added too
• Maple and pecan – replace some of the sugar with maple syrup and add a handful of pecan pieces
• Banana – 1 well-mashed ripe banana (add 1-2 tbsp extra liquid if mixture too dry)
• Lemon and poppy seed – zest of 1 lemon, 2 tbsp juice and 1 tbsp poppy seeds
• Orange and cranberry – zest of 1 orange, 2 tbsp juice and 1-2 tbsp dried cranberries
• Mixed berry – frozen or dried berries are best because they keep their shape whilst baking but fresh will do at a pinch
• White vegan chocolate (Organica’s vegan white) and berry Chocolate
• Triple vegan chocolate chip or else use broken pieces from a bar of vegan chocolate. Eg Organica’s dark chocolate or their Couverture bar (which tastes rather like Galaxy). If you have a good health food store they may sell vegan chocolate chips.
• Or try just about any dried fruit (chop if large, like apricots)

• BUTTERCREAM ICING
• 100g/generous 3oz icing sugar, sieved
• 30g/1oz vegan margarine, eg Pure OR 30g mild coconut oil OR Trex
• Flavouring, eg vanilla essence; lemon essence and zest; cocoa powder etc