Salted Caramel Muffins

Did you know its Organic September? From the first to the last day of the month, Organic September is a month of events and awareness encouraging more people to try organic by just replacing even one everyday household item with an organic version.

Organic September led by the British Soil Association aims to educate people about organic produce and encourage them to change their shopping habits.

It is true that organic items tend to be more expensive than non organic but that is becoming less of the case, the more organic becomes mainstream. For example, an organic veg box scheme (I use Riverford mainly) is a great way to get a crate load of veg, fresh from the earth at a great bulk price and consistently significantly cheaper than supermarket ranges. Plus new organic ranges in budget supermarkets like Aldi make organic produce shopping more accessible. My favourite way is to pick up reduced organic products that are close to their sell by date but still have plenty of time left to be enjoyed!

I got to try some wonderful organic products to celebrate the event including this wonderful Rooibos Caramel Tea which I used to add depth and richness to these decadent Salted Caramel Muffins.

These are sweet muffins, inspired by one of my fiance’s (did I mention that Rob asked me to marry him?!) favourite coffee shop treats that I wanted to lighten up and veganize.

The tea is gorgeous and the background caramel notes really come through, a perfect afternoon pick-me-up – especially with a Salted Caramel Muffin!

Of course the topping is optional but totally delicious, especially with a sprinkle of dark chocolate to top it all off!

Why don’t you take the challenge and see if you can make these with at least one organic ingredient?

Muffin batter adapted from The Joy of Vegan Baking via Madhuram’s Eggless Cooking

Ingredients: Makes 12 muffins

1 cup dark unrefined sugar (or coconut sugar)
1 cup strong brewed caramel or regular tea with plant milk (1 tea bag)
1/3 cup rapeseed (or melted coconut) oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 cups plain flour
1.5 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1 tsp fine sea salt

Salted Caramel Topping:

1/4 cup dark unrefined sugar (or coconut sugar)
1/4 cup dark agave, brown rice or maple syrup
2 tbsp vegan margarine (optional but recommended)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup canned coconut milk or vegan cream (e.g soya, rice, cashew, almond)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 190’C/ 375’F and line a muffin tray with cases.
In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar through to vinegar and whisk until well combined. Sift over the flour, bicarbonate of soda and salt and fold in with a large metal spoon, just until combined. Do not mix or beat, the flour should all be moistened but the mixture still a bit lumpy.
Use an ice cream scoop or spoon to divide the batter between the cases, filling them about 2/3 full. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until risen and golden and a skewer inserted comes out clean of wet batter (but a few crumbs are OK). Remove from the tin onto a wire rack as soon as cool enough to handle.
Make the topping. Melt the sugar, syrup and margarine, if using ,over a low-medium heat, stirring gently to encourage the sugar to dissolve. When the sugar is dissolved, add in the cream carefully as it may splutter. Stir it in vigorously over the heat to combine, it may go lumpy at first but it will soon become smooth. Add the salt and taste, adding more if desired and adding more vegan milk or cream for a thinner consistency.
Either inject with a baking syringe or spoon over the caramel onto the muffins.