Wild Rice and Quinoa Muffins with Cranberries

It is probably quite obvious that I am a fan of mini-muffins. Here is my most recent batch – a muffin that is packed with protein and flavor and great for a little pick-me-up.

Sweet and healthy treats
Festive and aromatic
Perfect on-the-go

• Nonstick spray
• 2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 ½ tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
• 2 – 3 Tbsp granulated sugar (optional)
• 1 ¼ cups cooked wild rice (cooked a day or so in advance)
• 1 ¼ cups cooked quinoa (cooked a day or so in advance)
• 2/3 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
• 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 400. Lightly spray 10 standard (I used mini, of course) muffin cups with nonstick spray.
2. Place the flour, salt, baking powder, and brown sugar in a medium to large bowl. Break up any little clumps of sugar with your fingers, and then stir the mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the granulated sugar, if you like your muffins on the sweet side.
3. Add the cooked grains, using a fork or your fingers to separate and distribute them throughout. Stir in the dried cranberries.
4. Measure the 1 cup of milk into a 2-cup liquid measure. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat gently with a fork or a small whisk until smooth.
5. Slowly pour this mixture into the dry ingredients, adding the melted butter at the same time. Using a spoon or a rubber spatula, stir from the bottom of the bowl until the dry ingredients are all moistened. Don’t overmix; a few lumps are okay.
6. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.
7. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, or until lightly browned on top and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven, place on wire rack to cool, and wait 30 minutes before serving.

I used a little bit of almond flour to replace some of the unbleached all-purpose flour and then replaced ½ tsp of the vanilla extract with almond extract. It gave the muffins a very hearty and delicious smell and made them feel like a holiday treat. Enjoy!

Recipe (again) from Molly Katzen's Sunlight Kitchen.