Fall seems to revolve around all things pumpkin spice, so I’m embracing it, and sharing a recipe I’ve adapted with you. The original muffin recipe that inspired the base for this one comes from another blogger called Recipes to Nourish – you can see the whole blueberry lemon muffin recipe here. Part of what makes me so happy about this pumpkin version is that it tastes a lot like Czech gingerbread (perník), probably even more so if you added the chopped nuts, dried fruit, and topped it with melted chocolate and shredded coconut.
I honestly might try baking it in a deep sided pan and doing just that next time! It’s such a nostalgic flavour, and it makes me really happy to be able to recreate these sorts of recipes in a way that is safe for my Celiac self. Whether you’re a fellow Czech, or just love pumpkin spice, I hope you enjoy this recipe!
Ingredients
Makes 12 muffins
- 100 to 125mL avocado oil (amount needed will depend on elevation and how settled your flour is)
- ¾ cup full fat coconut milk
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 2 tbsp ground chia seed (I like Prana brand)
- 6 tbsp water
- 1 tsp vanilla (make sure its in a safe base or use dried ground vanilla bean)
1 cup maple sugar or cane sugar (I like to use the dark muscadovo sugar) - 1 tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 2 cups of Otto’s Cassava Flour
- ¼ cup grass fed collagen powder
- 1 ½ cups cooked, pureed pumpkin (or butternut squash)
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp dried ground ginger
- ½ cup Enjoy Life Chocolate Chunks
If you want to really make it Perník, then use:
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp ground cloves
- 2 tsp ground allspice
- 4 tsp ground anise
- 4 tsp ground star anise
- 1 vanilla bean, ground
- 1 cup (combined) crasins, raisins, diced dried apricot, and chopped pecans
- Additional chocolate chunks to melt and spread over the top of the cake
- Shredded coconut to sprinkle on top of the melted chocolate
Some recipes also mention ground fennel seed and cardamom… so basically, use these spices as inspiration and adapt them to your tastes. Bake the perník batter in a 9” x 13” pan, and expect it to take longer to cook through than the muffins. It might also fit in a 7” x 9” pan, but would definitely be thicker slices, and might need as much as double the cooking time.
Method
- Combine ground chia seed and water and set aside to gel. This will form your egg replacement. (if you tolerate eggs, the recipe calls for two).
- Measure out the 100mL+ avocado oil into a 1L (or bigger) liquid measuring cup. Use a pastry brush (never used for glutenous projects) to grease the muffin tin or baking pan.
- Add coconut milk, apple cider vinegar, and gelled chia mixture to the measuring cup and whisk to combine.
- In a separate mixing bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
- If you are using dried fruit, stir them into the dry ingredients now so they are dusted with the flour and won’t clump together.
- Add wet ingredients to dry and stir to combine.
- Stir in chocolate chunks and/or chopped nuts.
- Scoop into muffin tin, or spread batter evenly in your deep sided baking dish.
- Bake at 350℉ for 35-40 minutes. Check with a toothpick to ensure they’re cooked through.
- Allow muffins to sit in the pan for a few minutes after removing from the oven. You should then be able to easily remove them and place them on a cooling rack (I use a spoon to help get them out).
- These muffins should be consumed or frozen within 24 to 48 hours for the best taste and texture. If you find them a little bit too moist at first, leaving them out on the counter overnight seems to dry them out just enough. They keep well in the freezer (ensure they are fully cooled first), and can be thawed slowly at room temperature, or more quickly in a toaster oven or microwave.
Enjoy!
PS if you are following strict AIP (autoimmune paleo), you can try replacing the chia eggs with gelatin eggs (2 tbsp grass fed gelatin + 6 tbsp water, stir to combine and allow to mostly gel before adding to wet ingredients). You would also be limited to the cinnamon and ginger version, replace chocolate with carob, and use coconut flakes or slivered tigernuts in place of nuts.