Guyssssssssss!
Oh my gosh, I am SO SO excited to get this post up tonight!
After several hours of kitchen experimentation, I present you with this:
Ain’t he cute?
But before I get into any details…I have to get into some details!
Not making much sense? Don’t worry, I will!
See, a few months back, I was contacted by the lovely people over at NuNaturals
(shout out for one of our awesome Blend Retreat contributors…whoo!)
about trying two of their newest products:
I was immediately intrigued!
Little did I know that in a few days THIS is what would show up at my door:
More Stevia than you can shake a sugar-free stick at!
Not to be confused with Pixi Sticks, or any sort of limb coming from a tree that inspires nineties country music! 😉
 But any who…onto the sweet stuff!
As soon as my “loot” arrived, I got to work seeing what magic it could make out of my meals…
Remember these guys?
Yep, my bottle of lemon Stevia saved the day when, after a trip to the store for ingredients to make lemon poppy seed pancakes, I forgot the frickin’ lemons!
So what else did I try?
There’s just something about the combo of lemon and blueberries!
And this breakfast of OIAJ (oats in a jar) definitely did NOT disappoint! The lemon Stevia sweetened my oats just enough and gave a nice crisp, buttery lemon flavor that paired SO well with the tart frozen blueberries!
But as fantastic as both the pancakes and the oats were, the star of tonight’s post are these beauties:
Soft and flakey, orange and creamy, these muffins just scream SUMMER!
And guess what…they’re vegan AND gluten-free!
You’re welcome! 😉
Orange Creamsicle Protein Muffins
Prep Time: 10-15 minutes
Cook Time: 22-24 minutes
Ingredients (6 regular-sized muffins)
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/8 cup coconut flour
- 1 scoop vanilla plant-based protein powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 cup milk
- 1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1/8 cup agave syrup
- 20 drops Orange NuStevia
- zest of one orange (about 1-2 teaspoons)
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350F and line a muffin tin with foil liners (or coat pan with a generous amount of non-stick spray)
2. In a medium-sized bowl combine flours, protein powder, baking powder, salt, xanthan gum, and chia seeds and stir together.
3. In a separate bowl, add milk, oil, agave, stevia, and orange zest and stir to combine.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until all the flour is incorporated.
5. Spoon batter into muffin liners filling 3/4 of the way full.
5. Bake for 22-24 minutes or until the tops are slightly browned.
6. Once done, transfer to a wire rack and allow to cool for 10 minutes.
7. Enjoy alone with a glass of milk or coffee, or crumble over your favorite yogurt for a protein packed breakfast!
Mmm, mmm, MMM!
Even though I’m not a huge sweets person and rarely ever sweeten my foods, I do occasionally get a craving for something more. I found the NuNaturals liquid Stevia drops to be the perfect way to give just enough sweetness to satisfy my momentary sweet tooth.
I just can’t believe it took me so long to try baking with it!
Call me a procrastinator…or call me genius…I DO think I perform best under a bit of pressure…but I DID in fact wait until the last week of the month to knock out one of my main goals for June…
Wait…did somebody say giveaway?
Oh yes, yes SOMEBODY did!
And this is where it REALLY gets good.
Not one…not two…not three…but FOUR winners will be chosen to receive one bottle each of the new lemon and orange NuNaturals Stevia…all you have to do is enter!
To “hoops or jumps” entry:
Tell me what your favorite summer treat is and the best way to enjoy it!
Giveaway Deets:
Contest will run until next 11:59pm CST next Thursday, July 5, 2012
Only open to US residents
Good luck!!
While the products from NuNaturals Stevia were sent to me free of charge, this review is of my own personal opinion and in no way was I compensated for it.
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![this](<div class="hrecipe f1"><p class="fn single_recipe_header" style="font-size: 18px; color:#3a7e3a; padding: 0; margin: 5px 5px 5px 0px;">FROG'n Chili Sauce</p><img class="photo" src="http://www.recipage.com/images/user1173/1340934571/recipe_image.jpg" style="clear: both; float: left; width: 40%; padding: 0 10px 10px 0;" alt="" /><p id="author" class="single_recipe_text" style="font-size: 15px; color:#000000; padding: 0; margin: 5px 5px 5px 0px;">by <span class="author">Heather Powers</span></p><p class="single_recipe_text" style="color:#000000; font-size: 12px; padding: 0; margin: 8px 4px 4px 4px;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Prep Time:</span><span class="preptime"> N/A</span></p><p class="single_recipe_text" style="color:#000000; font-size: 12px; padding: 0; margin: 4px;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cook Time:</span><span class="cooktime"> 5-10 minutes plus cooling time</span></p><p class="single_recipe_text" style="color:#000000; font-size: 12px; padding: 0; margin: 4px;"></p><div id="get_media_div" style="max-height: 100px;"><div id="recipe_id_div" style="display:none;">6027728</div><script type="text/javascript" src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/1.6.4/jquery.js"></script><script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.recipage.com/new_scripts/get_html2.js"></script></div><div id="ingredients"><p class="single_recipe_header" id="ingr_header" style="font-size: 18px; color:#3a7e3a; text-decoration: none; padding: 0;">Ingredients<span class="single_recipe_text" style="font-size: 14px; color:#000000;"> (Serves 3-4)</span></p><ul id="ingr" class="single_recipe_text" style="color:#000000; font-size: 14px;"><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1/4 cup apple cider vinegar</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1/8 cup Xagave agave syrup</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1/8 cup FROG preserves, or other tart jam (orange, apricot, plum)</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1 garlic clove, minced</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1/2 tablespoon sriracha sauce</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1 teaspoon white wine (or water)</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1/2 tablespoon cornstarch</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">1 1/2 tablespoons water</li><li class="ingredient" style="margin-bottom: 3px;">Cilantro for an optional garnish</li></ul></div><div id="instructions"><p class="single_recipe_header" id="inst_header" style="font-size: 18px; color:#3a7e3a; text-decoration: none; padding: 0;">Instructions</p><p class="instruction">1. In a small sauce pan, heat the vinegar, agave syrup, and jelly until thinned.</p><p class="instruction">2. Add the garlic, sriracha sauce, and wine and simmer for about 5 minutes.</p><p class="instruction">3. Whisk the cornstarch and cold water together. Add to sauce mixture, whisking until thickened to a sauce consistency.</p><p class="instruction">4. Remove from heat and let cool for 1 hour.*</p><p class="instruction">5. Garnish with cilantro before serving.</p></div><div class="single_recipe_text" style="width: 100%; text-align: center; font-size: 10px; color:#000000;">Powered by <a class="single_recipe_header" style="text-decoration: none; color:#3a7e3a;" href="http://www.recipage.com/" target="_blank">Recipage</a></div></div>){kind=link}