Strawberry picking is one of the true joys of early summer here in New England. It’s one I look forward to for months in advance. We had such a warm spring this year, it feels like I’ve been dreaming of strawberry fields forever (yes, that is a Beatles reference, but don’t worry, I am not about to break into song). The task is made extra joyful because it always seems to go well with the kids and we have a lovely time together. Other berry picking, not so much. Raspberries are much harder for little eyes and hands to find, and the prickly brambles scratch up little arms. And both raspberries and blueberries are ripe in the high heat of July, which means greater discomfort and more bugs to come after sweet young flesh. A lot of complaining ensues if I take the kids raspberry or blueberry picking. But strawberry picking seems to be an idyllic endeavor for all of us. I cherish those times.
This year was no exception. We went out first thing a few Saturdays ago, and spent several lovely hours picking berries and playing at the berry farm. And even though we spent less than an hour in the actual fields, we came home with 6 quarts of strawberries. That doesn’t include the berries we carried home in our tummies! Because I believe all three of my kids ate their weight in strawberries while they were supposed to be filling their baskets.
Fresh berries really don’t last very long. Even refrigerated, they start to turn within a week. So I found myself racking my brain for things to do with them. The problem is that I don’t like cooked strawberries. I detest strawberry jam, and I wasn’t about to haul out all of my canning equipment to make a few small jars of a preserve I don’t even like. I’ve also been trying to create more gluten-free, sugar-free foods my kids will like. I thought of a number of possibilities, but in the end I settled on muffins. Muffins are a perfect breakfast or snack for young kids, and they’re portable so they can be sent to school or camp. And these muffins are incredibly healthy, being made with flax seed meal and oat flour and entirely sugar-free. They’re not very low carb because oat flour is higher carb than my body can handle. But for the kids, they’re perfect.
The Results: My older two children and my husband loved these. The little one was not a huge fan, but she’s by far my pickiest kid. And since I don’t like cooked strawberries in things, I can hardly blame her if she doesn’t either!
- 1 cup flax seed meal
- 1 cup GF oat flour
- 1/4 cup vanilla whey protein powder
- 1/2 cup granulated erythritol or equivalent sweetener of choice I used Swerve
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 3/4 cup plain yogurt
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1/4 cup coconut oil melted
- 1/4 milk or almond milk
- 1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
- Preheat oven to 325F and line a 12-muffin tin with paper liners.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flax meal, oat flour, protein powder, sweeteners, baking powder, baking soda, salt and xanthan gum.
- Add yogurt, eggs, coconut oil and milk and stir vigorously until well-combined. Gently stir in chopped strawberries.
- Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake 25 to 30 minutes, or until tops are set and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in pan.
Kate @ Kate from Scratch says
These are beautiful, Carolyn! An excellent choice. Isn’t it funny how the little ones have the same discerning taste as their parents. I find myself in that situation often as well. Super cute and I just love the recipe. Nicely done.
RavieNomNoms says
YUM, these looks so amazing!!
Katrina @ In Katrina's Kitchen says
Ha ha! Our kids have our tastes don’t they? 🙂
Shawn @ I Wash...You Dry says
Gorgeous muffins! I love it!
Jessica@AKitchenAddiction says
Yum! These look incredible! Strawberry muffins are some of my favorites!
Gina says
Wow it looks great over here, and the muffins too. I love picking strawberries and we are lucky the season out here lasts a while. Hope you have a wonderful weekend.
-Gina-
Claire Marie @ Cooking With Claire Marie says
I wonder if these would taste good with blackberries? They’re my favorite berry but they’re a little more tart than strawberries. I guess I’ll have to experiment! I’ll let you know how they turn out. Thanks again!
Carolyn says
I’m sure they’d be great with blackberries. I might add a little lemon zest too, for extra tartness, if I was using blackberries.
Jeanette says
Love how pretty these healthy kid friendly muffins are Carolyn – you’ve done it again!
Cassie says
These sound amazing Carolyn, I love the flavors you used!
Healthy Living Val says
Nice idea! I haven’t tried making muffins with yogurt. Very cool. I like to freeze extra berries and then use them in smoothies or like ice cubes in carbonated water. Yum!
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts says
I made strawberry muffins last year, they were really good. I love strawberry season, it has to be my favorite time of year!
Angie@Angie's Recipes says
These muffins look fabulous! I love that you used flaxseed and oat flours to make them. Must be very tasty.
Jen @ Savory Simple says
A perfect use for summer berries!
Gerry @ Foodness Gracious says
Sounds like a great day out in the fields! My kids are going berry crazy right now and will consume trays and trays of them in a day, which I really can’t complain about 🙂
Nice idea with the muffins..
Stephanie @ Eat. Drink. Love. says
I love this strawberry recipe of yours! I find myself not using all of mine up lately. These look so good and nutritious!
love2dine says
So, so gorgeous. You make me want to eat
Sommer@ASpicyPerspective says
I’m all about strawberry anything in the summer time! They look gorgeous!
Liz says
These look yummy! I’ve made a strawberry bread with pureed berries, but it wasn’t so great…I think chunks of berries are much more appealing 🙂
PS…I rarely make anything that all 5 of us love!
Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie says
I love strawberry picking! And I really enjoy the looks of these muffins.
Russell at Chasing Delicious.com says
Yum! I love trying to sneak flax into everything. This recipe looks great.
Terra says
Sorry I haven’t stopped by in awhile, it looks like you are having fun running AND baking:-) I actually love cooked strawberries, so I would adore this recipe:-) The top to the muffin alone has me interested! Yum, Hugs, Terra
Kristen says
These were delicious! I would love to make these for my children but my son has multiple food allergies and the whey protein powder I use is manufactured in a facility that uses several of those foods. I might be grasping at straws here, but is there any substitution I can use?
Thanks for a lovely and inspiring website!
Carolyn says
What is your son allergic to specifically? You could maybe forgo the protein powder altogether, although they won’t quite rise as much. But there is hemp protein powder too, although I’ve never tried it. Soy as well, but I avoid soy if I can.
Kristen says
He is allergic to eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts (I have a good egg substitute that I can use in baked goods). Like you, I avoid soy, so the hemp protein powder might be the answer. Thank you!
Stacey says
Kristen, thank you for trying these muffins and reporting on how they tasted instead of “oh, these LOOK good”. It really helps reading people’s opinions on flavor and texture for when I am deciding on what to make next.
hana says
do you think coconut flour could be subbed for the oat flour? I’ve never cooked with oat flour before and want to remove the oats.
Carolyn says
It could, but…you are definitely going to have to rework the recipe. You’d need only about 1/3 cup coconut flour, and you’ll need to increase the eggs and the liquid. I’d say maybe four eggs? And then add more liquid a bit at a time to get a proper batter?
Emily says
I made these the other day and they are a big hit! My kiddos are still getting used to the texture of flax seeds/meal, so I was a little worried they might not like them. I even made my own oat flour! The only small difference I made was not adding chopped strawberries. I added strawberry extract and put one halved strawberry on the top during baking (I’m not a big fan of cooked strawberries either, and I wanted to eat them!). Will definitely be making more!! Thanks!
Carolyn says
So glad your kids liked them!
Swati Pant says
I am skeptical to use vanilla whey protein – my husband was recently diagnosed with LADA and is reacting not very well to whey protein for some reason. Is there anything I can subsitute it with?
Carolyn says
Yes, you can try hemp protein or even powdered egg whites (just make sure it’s not sweetened meringue powder)