They know the boundaries, so they never ask for anything too outlandish, but they appreciate being asked just the same.

Now I can take it a step further as I have the pleasure of actually creating recipes with my 12yr old food-loving son. And because he understands the balance of nourishment and taste, the upside to this little collaborative approach is that the food is more likely to be eaten rather than return home! Unsurprisingly, muffins are hot on their list of regular items.

Muffins are always a delicious treat, but it’s still a good idea to mix them up for variety.

I always try to make my muffins as nutritious as possible, so in this recipe I added the sunflower seeds, carrots and apples to the staples, which include the best quality eggs, butter, flour, sugar and coconut I can find and don’t they just make the perfect healthy lunchbox snack too!

If you’re looking for more recipe inspiration, take a look at my new recipe ebook which is getting rave reviews, Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes. It’s packed with 40 delicious nut-free, refined sugar free sweet and savoury recipes which have all been kid-tested and approved! 

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

Here are some of the ingredients you’ll need:

White Spelt flour
Wholemeal spelt flour
Coconut sugar
Sunflower seeds
Baking powder
Cinnamon
Salt
Desiccated coconut
Milk
Vanilla powder

Print

APPLE AND CARROT MUFFINS

Ingredients

• 1 cup spelt flour
• 1 cup wholemeal spelt flour
• 1/2 cup coconut sugar
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds roughly or finely ground
• 2.5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup desiccated coconut
• 1 large granny smith apple peeled and grated
• 1 medium carrot grated
• 2 cups milk
• 100 grams butter melted and slightly cooled
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 175 degrees.
• Butter a 12 hole muffin tray.
• Mix flour, sugar, baking powder, desiccated coconut, cinnamon, sunflower seeds and salt in a large bowl.
• Whisk together the eggs, butter, milk and vanilla and add to the flour mixture along with the grated carrot and apple and gently mix through.
• Spoon the batter into the muffin tray until 3/4 full and bake for approx 20 mins or when skewer comes out clean.
• Enjoy and share the recipe with your friends!

Here’s a little information on the benefits of each ingredient:

Sunflower seeds

High in Vitamin E, magnesium and cancer-fighting selenium, anti-inflammatory, mineral-rich (great for bones), great for nerves and skin.

Carrots

Protect against heart disease and cancer, high in anti-oxidants and vitamins (A, K, C and calcium).

Apples

Packed full of disease fighting vitamins (C & B-complex), and a rich source of antioxidants, minerals flavanoids and dietary fibre.

Eggs

Go for pasture-raised or organic. High in Omega 3’s, Vitamin D, choline and selenium.

Butter

Full of vitamins (A, E, D & K), lauric acid, anti-oxidants anti-cancer properties.

Coconut

Contains minerals, supports brain function, increases feelings of satisfaction and fullness, healthy fat, high in fibre.

If you make this recipe please do take photos and send them to me.If you share them on instagram, remember to tag me @brendajanschek.

Otherwise feel free to pm me your photos via Facebook. I get a total kick out of seeing you bring my recipes to life.

And remember, if you haven’t already, grab your copy of Easy Wholefood Lunchboxes here.

If you liked this recipe you may also like these other delicious muffin recipes – Date & Cinnamon Muffins and Savoury Cheese Muffins.

Bren x

I haven’t had enough time cooking my warming winter dishes to comfortably move onto lighter spring-like offerings. So, I may be busting out the thongs and singlets on the streets
but in my kitchen I am ignoring the fact that spring is with us to allow me more
time to get my autumnal cooking urges out of my system.

My favourite dinner of this week was a lamb stew/pie creation (Actually called French Baked
Lamb with Crispy Potato Topping, thanks to Delicious Mag, September 2013).

Pros about this dish: It is quick and easy to make, requiring only a
few ingredients and tastes like you have been slaving for hours.
Cons: Zero.

Next time I make this recipe I will make my own sugo
(passata) and chicken stock but if you are looking for a quick and
delicious midweek dinner, this is it. If you want to make it more seasonally
appropriate perhaps whack some zucchini on the side. We can call this
‘trans-seasonal cooking’.

Many of the ingredients in this recipe can be sourced from my one-stop-favourite, organic wholefoods online store, The Wholefood Collective. They go to great lengths to ensure everything they source is amazing quality, they stock all my favorite products and I don’t even have to leave the house! Oh and the cherry on the cake is they donate profits to improve food security for vulnerable Aussies.

French Baked Lamb with Crispy Potato Topping

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

4 waxy potatoes such as dutch cream
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra to brush ( or you could use coconut oil or ghee)
6 x 200 grams lamb chump chops
1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 rosemary sprigs, leaves finely chopped, plus extra sprigs to serve
1/2 cup (125ml) chicken stock
1and 1/2 cups (375ml) passata

Preparation

Place potato in a saucepan of cold, salted water.Bring to the boil then reduce heat to medium and cook for 5-10 minutes until par-cooked. Drain, cook and thinly slice.

Preheat oven to 190 degrees. Heat oil in a large frypan over high heat. Season the lamb then cook, turning, for 8-10 minutes until browned. Remove from pan and reduce heat to medium.

Add the onion and carrot, then cook, stirring, for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the rosemary and cook for a further 1 minute or until fragrant. Add the stock and pasta sauce, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Bring to a simmer, then season and cook for 3-4 minutes until slightly reduced.

Place lamb in a baking dish and pour over the tomato sauce . Layer potato over the top and season, then brush with your oil of choice. Bake for one hour or until potato is golden.
Rest for 5 minutes then serve garnished with extra rosemary sprigs.

Thank you to Kim Brill for sharing this recipes – mum of two, wife of one and fellow food lover who adopts a 70/30 rule to good health.

I always encourage having a few staples on rotation in the fridge because it can make healthy eating a breeze.

Here’s what I had:

Grass Fed sausage

Meat from animals who eat grass (what they are born to eat) and not grains (which is very difficult for them to digest) are “rich in all fats now proven to be health-enhancing, but low in the fats that have been linked with disease”, as Doctor Mercola so neatly puts it.

Broccoli Pesto

As broccoli is in season and is a nutritional powerhouse, I thought I would make a batch of broccoli pesto. I lightly steamed it before adding my usual healthy pesto ingredients and, hey pesto! Broccoli is cancer fighting, immune-boosting and great for your bones and nervous system. It’s so versatile that I’ve been using it as a dip, an addition to a warm vege salad, spread on a piece of sourdough and on top of my omelettes. Yummo!

Cup of chicken stock

Having attended a wonderful bone broth workshop by Alexx Stuart, I’m ecstatic to report that, for the the first time, I’ve managed to get my chicken stock to the consistency of the much sought-after gelatin. Yeah baby. For me this was like striking gold after so many failed attempts. Seems I’m enjoying the imune boosting, mineral boosting, ultra-nourishing , wrinkle smoothing benefits of stock. You can read more on the top 10 reasons to make your own stock on Alexx’s blog.

Carrots and beans

Carrots and beans are super tasty right now, mostly because they are in season. Carrots are full of nutritional benefits, and an excellent source of vitamin A and are anti-aging, great for your skin, cancer fighting, cleansing for your body, amongst other things.

Beans are a great source of vitamins and minerals and have great cardiovascular benefits. They are a wonderful source of dietary fibre (great one to have if you are … umm … constipated) and help to prevent infections in the body.

So I received all of these benefits from my simple lunch and you can too with just a smidge of planning.

Oh , and I may or may not have had one of my delicious and energy boosting raw cacao balls after lunch : )

Have a wonderful day.

Bren x