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Whole Spelt Pumpkin Muffins
I finally did it. I’ve been wanting to bake with some alternative flours for some time and this weekend I finally made Pumpkin Muffins using whole spelt flour! And they are deeeelicious. We’ve definitely been missing out. The texture is much more cake-like and the flavor is milder than whole-wheat flour. And it was super easy to make the 1:1 substitution…I have no idea why I kept putting it off! I must thank our sponsor, Nature’s Legacy, for giving me the final push (i.e. a bag of spelt in the mail!) that I needed to dive right in and give it a shot.
Spelt may sound like a “new” grain, but it’s actually been around for more than 9,000 years. As I mentioned the flavor is “lighter” than wheat and even though it contains gluten, some with an intolerance to wheat find that they are able to enjoy spelt. Just like wheat though, you want to be sure to select “Whole Spelt” products as opposed to the refined (white) version. And to keep your whole spelt flour fresh, it’s best to stick it in the freezer (or fridge) along with your other whole grain flours. In addition to flour there are also other spelt products available, like pasta. To learn more about the benefits of eating whole spelt and how it differs from wheat check out this FAQ page.
Also be sure to check out our sponsor’s product, VitaSpelt, because they are offering our readers 20% off all purchases with the code “100DAYS” between now and Oct 9th! To help you get started I am sharing my Whole Spelt Pumpkin Recipe below, and Nature’s Legacy has also provided two other spelt recipes as well.
Whole Spelt Flour
- 1½ cups whole spelt flour
- 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice blend
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup honey
- ⅓ cup melted butter
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with liners and set aside.
- Using a whisk or fork mix together the flour, pumpkin spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
- Make a well (hole) in the center of the flour mixture and drop in the eggs, honey, and melted butter. Mix together until well combined. Fold in the pumpkin puree. Do not overmix.
- Pour the batter into the muffin pan so it’s evenly distributed. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick comes clean, about 18 – 20 minutes. Store at room temperature or freeze for a rainy day.
Photograph by Jenny Stevenson
- 2 large eggs, separated
- ½ cup whole spelt flour (sifted)
- 1 cup cottage cheese
- 1.5 tablespoons honey
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
- Zest of half a lemon
- Butter or oil
- Pancake Directions
- In a large mixing bowl beat egg whites until stiff peaks form (tips will stand straight).
- In a medium sized mixing bowl combine the egg yolks, whole spelt flour, cottage cheese, honey, baking powder, salt and lemon zest.
- Gently fold beaten egg whites into flour/cottage cheese mixture. Do not over-mix.
- Heat a large skillet (nonstick or cast-iron) or griddle over medium heat. Melt a bit of butter or oil in it.
- For each pancake, spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of batter onto skillet, using the back of the spoon to spread batter into a round.
- Cook until surface of pancakes have some bubbles, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip carefully with a turner, and cook until golden brown on the underside, 1 to 2 minutes more. Transfer to a baking sheet or platter; cover loosely with aluminum foil, and keep warm in oven. Repeat until you have cooked all of the batter.
- 2 cups of blueberries (fresh or frozen)
- 2 cups of water
- ⅓ cup maple syrup
- Juice and zest from ½ lemon
- A few sprigs of Fresh Basil or Fresh Mint (optional)
- In a medium saucepan combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove the saucepan from heat. Push the blueberry mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a bowl or large measuring cup. Discard blueberry skins and herbs (if using).
- Return blueberry mixture to the saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for another 30-45 minutes until the mixture has thickened.
Photograph by Jenny Stevenson
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 large onion, chopped (or 1½ cups chopped onion)
- 1 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper, or more to taste
- 3 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves, or 1 teaspoon dried
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
- ¼ cup red wine (optional)
- 6 large eggs
- 1 Box Nature’s Legacy Whole Spelt Pasta (Choose your favorite variety)
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Heat olive oil in heavy large skillet over medium heat.
- Add chopped onion, crushed red pepper and thyme; sprinkle lightly with coarse kosher salt and sauté until onion is tender and lightly golden, about 10 minutes.
- Add minced garlic; stir 1 minute.
- Stir in diced tomatoes with juice and red wine (if using); bring to boil.
- Reduce heat to low; simmer at least 15 minutes and up to an hour, to allow flavors to blend. The longer simmer time is recommended when using red wine.
- DO AHEAD Tomato sauce can be made ahead of time. Cool slightly, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm sauce before continuing.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Start to boil water for pasta. Pour tomato sauce into shallow glass or ceramic baking dish.
- Using the back of a spoon, make 6 evenly spaced indentations in sauce for holding eggs.
- Crack 1 egg into each indentation in sauce (some of eggs may run together slightly in spots).
- Bake until egg whites and yolks are softly set, 12 to 16 minutes. Carefully remove baking dish from oven.
- As eggs are baking, cook pasta so that pasta finishes just before eggs come out of the oven.
- Season eggs with salt and pepper; sprinkle grated Parmesan cheese over dish and serve over Nature’s Legacy Whole Spelt Pasta.
- -12oz Italian sausage (Hot or Sweet)
- -1 package your favorite mushrooms (we prefer baby bellas)
Brown the Italian sausage in step 2. Add the mushrooms in step 3.
- -4-6 oz baby spinach
- -1 can artichoke hearts, drained
Add the baby spinach until wilted after step 2. Add the artichoke hearts in step 3.
- -1½ tbsp capers, rinsed
- -1/2 cup Greek olives, chopped
- -1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
Add the capers, Greek olives and basil in step 3.
- -1 roasted red Bell Pepper (see below)
- -4 oz chevre
Char bell pepper directly over gas flame or in broiler until blackened on all sides. Enclose pepper in paper bag 10 minutes. Peel, seed, and chop pepper. Add the roasted pepper in step 3. Add the chevre after step 8. You will not need to add the Parmesan cheese with this variation.
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THANK YOU! I’ve been trying to find healthy snacks that my picky 4 year old would actually eat. I had little success, until now!! She loved these muffins. I will make this recipe again and again!
I went to double the recipe and found my 16 oz (2 cups) can of pumpkin was only 15 oz!! So, I threw in a ripe banana and it tuned out just as yummy. Thanks for the recipe
I just made the pumpkin muffins to have for breakfast in the morning. My husband of course had to eat some tonight and the first words out of his mouth were, “Did you forget to add the sugar?” He’s having a hard time coming around to some of my new “healthy” food ideas. He’s eating his second one now (can’t be that bad!) and is trying to “fix it” with butter. Hopefully my kids won’t be so picky in the morning…
[...] up these Pumpkin Spelt Muffins via 100 Days of Real Food. They were so (sorry for the people who hate this word) moist, flavorful [...]
Has anyone made these with regular whole wheat flour? I have everything for them except the spelt, and I’d rather use up what I have, but not sure if they’d be ridiculously dense.
Hi Amy. You can typically substitute spelt and whole wheat 1:1. The muffin will be more dense but not ridiculous.
~Amy
I love the pumpkin spelt muffins & have just adapted the recipe to make chocolate ones – replace 1/3 flour with cocoa powder and swap pumpkin pie spice for vanilla extract
[...] Pumpkin Spelt muffin and [...]
Made these today for the first time, daughter and husband ate them up. Thank you. I did wonder if the whole wheat muffins and banana pancake recipes you publish can be modified swapping the 10% whole wheat flour with the spelt. I tried the pancakes before with the 100% whole wheat flour and my daughter wouldn’t even try them bc they looked too brown for her. Wondering if trying the spelt flour might help. Thanks.
Hi Sherri. Please try and share your results with us. ~Amy
[...] Pumpkin Spelt muffin and [...]
[...] Pumpkin Spelt Muffins. This was a bit of a cheat since this recipe is already in regular rotation, but I needed to use [...]
[...] Pumpkin Spelt Muffins. This was a bit of a cheat since this recipe is already in regular rotation, but I needed to use [...]
Pumpkin Spelt muffins are a hit with our family! Two thumbs up from all the kids. They are delish!!
The Pumpkin Muffins look really good. I’m avoiding eggs, though, and wonder if you or anyone has found a good substitution that will preserve theflavor and texture of your muffins.
Hello Pastor Sherry. This post from another blog that we’ve featured should help: http://onceamonthmom.com/going-egg-free-how-to-substitute-eggs-in-recipes/. I’ve used the flax/chia option with much success. Good luck. ~Amy
[...] http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/09/25/recipe-whole-spelt-pumpkin-muffins-and-other-spelt-recip… [...]
I tried the pumpkin-spelt muffins today and they are awesome! They have great flavor – I actually prefer the mild sweetness to the alternatives. I guess we’ll freeze the next batch – this one isn’t going to last long enough for that!