Egg Muffins and Grain-Free Choc. Chip Blondies

Whew!  Whirlwind weekend for us!  Because we had so much going on I feel like I barely got to spend any time with S.  She is really walking up a storm and much more comfortable on two feet.  Still crawling quite a bit but it's clear she prefers standing to sitting.

Since we are still on two naps I did have some spare time yesterday to try a few things I'd had in mind.  If you're familiar with Kalyn's Kitchen you've no doubt seen her Egg Muffins.  She is big into the South Beach Diet so she created egg muffins as a quick, easy, make-ahead breakfast or snack.  It is so simple that no recipe is needed.  I sprayed a muffin pan with non-stick spray and then sprinkled some colby jack and sliced green onions into each cup.  In a large bowl I cracked 12 eggs and then mixed in 2 tsp of seasoned salt, use whatever brand you like.  Mix the eggs up really well or else you'll have gross streaks of egg white in the muffins.  Pour egg mixture into each cup about 3/4 of the way and bake at 375 for about 35 minutes.  Mine puffed up considerably, but then fell when I took them out of the oven.  They aren't that pretty but they are delish, and make a great lunch for S too.  I let them cool for a bit before putting them in a ziploc bag.  Take a peek at Kalyn's website and check out all her variations.  You can put any veg/meat/cheese you like in them!  Bacon, tomatoes, cheddar, broccoli, whatev!  Herbs would be great too.

Edited:  I've now been making egg muffins once a week for a few months and have some new input.  First- get yourself some silicone muffin cups, makes clean-up much easier.  Second, I no longer crack a bunch of eggs into a bowl and mix everything up.  I just put whatever add-ins (cheese, green onions, mushrooms, bacon etc) into the little silicone cup, which is inside the muffin tin, and then crack an egg into the cup.  Way easier, and more fun to eat I think.  Sprinkle some S&P over the top and bake. 

I think we all go through different phases of what we're in the mood for.  For awhile, I couldn't get enough of the raw bites with dates and walnuts.  Thinking about it now, ew.  Then it was freezer fudge.  Then coconut flour breads.  Now I'm on to blondies.  These came out AWESOME!


Grain-Free Blondies
1 3/4 cup almond flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon (you know me and cinnamon!)
1 egg
1/4 cup oil (grapeseed, coconut, melted vegan butter etc)
35 drops of Vanilla Creme Stevia
1/4 cup nutmilk (I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk) and perhaps another tbsp or two depending on how wet your mixture is
1/2 to 3/4 cup choc. chips (or chopped walnuts, dried fruit, whatever!)

Preheat oven to 350 and line an 8x8 with parchment.  Mix flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda together.  In a separate bowl, beat egg and add in oil, nutmilk, and stevia.  This does not make a sweet blondie so if you want it really sweet add a bit more stevia.  Pour wet over dry and incorporate, then adding in choc. chips or nuts.  I used semi-sweet choc chips from TJ's and I realize this makes the recipe not totally sugar-free.  If you wanted to make it totally sugar free then use nuts, or leave out the choc. chips altogether.  If you realllllllllllly want some chocolate, I'll post my suggestion below.  Once the mixture is well-combined, pour into your 8x8 and spread out evenly.  Bake 35 minutes or so or until the top is starting to turn golden.  You want to underbake these a bit so they stay chewy!

So- I have given this a lot of thought.  After scouring the internet and g-stores and coming up empty-handed, I have a few chocolate options for those of us who want to stay 100% sugar free.  The first option of course would be to just chop up some unsweetened baking chocolate.  There is also malitol-sweetened choc bars at TJ's that aren't bad, but they do have a somewhat grainy consistency.  If you don't have any of those- try this.  Melt two squares of baking chocolate in the microwave with some cream, milk, or coconut milk.  Add in your sugar substitute slowly and to taste, depending on how sweet you want it.  This will create a quasi-ganache.  After you've baked the blondie, you can pour the ganache over the top so they'll have a chocolate coating.  Or you could cut up into individual bars and dip the whole thing in the ganache!  Not bad right?  I have made this ganache a few times and it's pretty good- just beware that it will be slightly gritty as nothing dissolves in chocolate quite like sugar.

What did you guys make over the weekend?  I'd love to take a peek!  Put links in the comments so we can all look!  XoXoGFG