Healthy muffins are my holy grail! I, like a lot of people have a fondness for sweet treats but I’m currently trying to cut out refined sugar. But there are of course other ways to indulge my sweet tooth.

I’ve spent a lot of time experimenting with vegan baking and as time has gone on my technique has improved. My best discovery has been discovering that chia seeds can be used in place of eggs. Fantastic, easy and I always have chia seeds in my cupboard.

Dried chia seeds contain 6% water, 42% carbohydrates, 16% protein, and 31% fat . In a 100-gram amount, chia seeds are a rich source (20% or more of the Daily Value, DV) of the B vitamins, thiamin and niacin (54% and 59% DV, respectively), and a moderate source of riboflavin (14% DV) and folate (12% DV). Several dietary minerals are in rich content, including calcium, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and zinc (all more than 20% DV).

The fatty acids of chia seed oil are mainly unsaturated, with linoleic acid (17-26% of total fat) and linolenic acid (50-57%) as the major fats.

Chia seeds may be sprinkled or ground up on top of other foods. Chia seeds can also be mixed into smoothies, breakfast cereals, energy bars, granola bars, yogurt, tortillas, and bread. They can be soaked in water and consumed directly or mixed with any kind of juice or milk. Chia seed pudding, similar to tapioca pudding, is made with a type of milk, sweetener, and whole chia seeds. 

These healthy muffins are delicious, chocolatey, fruity goodness. Not only that but they’re free of refined sugar and other processed nasties. The use of wholewheat spelt flour also gives you a healthyish hit of sweetness.

Of course like everything moderation is key.

Scroll down for my healthy muffins recipe.

Yield: 12

Healthy Blueberry and Chocolate Muffins - Vegan

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

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Ingredients

• 170 g wholewheat spelt flour
• 50 g rolled oats
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• pinch of salt
• 70 ml coconut oil
• 80 ml maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 4 tablespoons warm water
• 1 mashed banana
• 125 ml almond milk
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoons vinegar
• 150 g blueberries
• 100 g dark chocolate chips, check ingredients to ensure it is dairy free

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 150 degrees celsius.
2. Mix together the chia seeds with the warm water and put in the fridge for 15 minutes.
3. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, oats, baking powder, salt and bicarbonate of soda.
4. In another bowl, mix together the oil, syrup, banana, milk, vinegar and vanilla. Remove the chia seed mix from the fridge and add it to the mix.
5. Mix the contents of the two bowls together to form a dough.
6. Add in the blueberries and the choc chips.
7. Grease a muffin tin and put in a heaped tablespoon of the dough into each case.
8. Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes.
9. Remove from oven and enjoy!