By Megan, from Eat Beautiful
These protein-rich, savory muffins are studded with delicious vegetables and make an excellent breakfast or snack. They don’t contain almonds or almond products, and can be made nut-free with the use of sunflower seeds. So many Paleo or GAPS-friendly baked goods contain almonds or almond flour, so I’d like to share a recipe with you that doesn’t.
There is a glut of almond flour recipes in the Paleo baking community and while they are delicious they are also high in omega-6s, which already inundate the standard American diet. Additionally, most commercial almond products (meal, blanched meal, flour and butter) are not sprouted. In my opinion, all nuts and seeds should be sprouted before consumption for digestibility, and mineral absorption.
What about a muffin that has no flour at all? Truly Paleolithic in spirit, and even healing in its gentleness and nutrient profile, a muffin of meat, soaked seeds, eggs, veggies and fat is in order!
Soaked pine nuts are the secret ingredient in these lunch-inspired savory treats! The pine nuts do not, however, need to be dehydrated. They soak overnight in salt water (this takes less than 5 minutes, including their morning rinsing) and then get pureed right into the muffin batter. Easy.
For a more economical version, raw sunflower seeds are used.
The Sausage and Egg Muffin is also full of grated veggies. So you’re getting a walloping dose of goodness, a meal, in the form of a delicious handheld snack. I make a batch of these and freeze them. Then I alternate putting them, or leftovers from dinner, in my daughter’s daily lunches. She loves them and they look “normal” to her friends who do not eat Paleo diets. (That’s helpful when you’re 14.)
These are also great for road trips, or whenever you’re overly hungry but have no time to make a quality meal. They defrost beautifully in a toaster oven, straight from the freezer.
We love them plain. We also love to break them in half and top the halves with slices of butter or cheese.
You may notice; the recipe indicates the muffins are baking soda-free. For those on healing diets, such as GAPS, this plays in. Baking soda makes the stomach less acidic. Having an acidic belly is important in terms of triggering the digestive mechanisms to secrete digestive juices. (I even take a supplement called Betaine HCl with Pepsin that adds more acid to my stomach.) The muffins rise beautifully and stay their risen selves without the leavening agent.
Try these nourishing, protein-packed muffins that offer nothing but good stuff to give you energy toward wellness!
By the way, this recipe comes from my cookbook; and it’s one we make in our Paleo café. If you enjoy this recipe and approach to grain-free baking, check out my cookbook where you’ll find lots more treats that are customer-approved and genuinely healthy! My cookbook is Eat Beautiful: Grain-free, Sugar-free and Loving It and can be purchased as an eCookbook or in softcover from Amazon.
Cheers, friends! Enjoy.
Savory Meat and Veggie Muffins, aka Sausage and Egg Muffins
(nut-free, dairy-free, baking soda-free)
Intentionally GAPS-friendly, these muffins are an easy meal in your hand. Accompanied by a mug or Thermos of bone broth, they make the diet easier when you need to be away from home. Make a bundle of them and keep them in the freezer, easy to grab on the go. They also are free of baking soda, an added GAPS bonus, for a healing and satisfying food.
Ingredients:
- 1 cup soaked raw pine nuts, wet* (see how-to below), or sunflower seeds (for a more economical option)
- 1 cup zucchini or carrots, grated, or a combination of both
- 1 cup cooked ground beef or other ground meat (ideally cooked up with a little sea salt, 1/2 teaspoon per 1 pound meat)
- 6 eggs, preferably pastured
- 1/2 cup olive oil, coconut oil, ghee or rendered animal fat, melted and cooled
- 1/3 cup coconut flour or chia seeds
- 1 dried teaspoon oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon powdered stevia (or 10 to 15 drops liquid stevia — NuNaturals brand preferred) or 2 tsp. honey
Yields 6 large or 12 small-size muffins.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
Directions:
- Prepare 6 extra-large muffin cups or 12 medium-size muffin cups by lining them with cut squares of parchment paper. (Or use good-quality muffin cup liners that won’t stick.)
- Place the pine nuts, eggs, oil, coconut flour, oregano, sea salt and stevia into the blender.
- Puree the ingredients until they are smooth, about 30 to 45 seconds.
- Fold in zucchini or carrots and meat.
- Pour the muffin batter into the prepared tin and bake until they are puffed, golden and a knife inserted into the center of one comes out clean — about 25 minutes.
Variations:
- Substitute grated apple and bulk pork for the zucchini and beef. Substitute 1/4 teaspoon allspice and 1/2 teaspoon sage for the oregano.
- For added protein, use the full 1 pound of cooked ground meat, folding it into the batter as described. This version turns out great.
*How to soak raw seeds- For every 4 cups raw seeds, cover by two inches with room-temperature filtered water and 2 teaspoons sea salt. Stir well to dissolve the salt. Leave uncovered at room temperature overnight, then drain and rinse well in the morning. They are now ready to be used in their wet form.
- 1 cup soaked raw pine nuts, wet* (see how-to below), or sunflower seeds (for a more economical option)
- 1 cup zucchini or carrots, grated, or a combination of both
- 1 cup cooked ground beef or other ground meat (ideally cooked up with a little sea salt, ½ teaspoon per 1 pound meat)
- 6 eggs, preferably pastured
- ½ cup olive oil, coconut oil, ghee or rendered animal fat, melted and cooled
- ⅓ cup coconut flour or chia seeds
- 1 dried teaspoon oregano
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon powdered stevia (or 10 to 15 drops liquid stevia — NuNaturals brand preferred) or 2 tsp. honey
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare 6 extra-large muffin cups or 12 medium-size muffin cups by lining them with cut squares of parchment paper. (Or use good-quality muffin cup liners that won’t stick.)
- Place the pine nuts, eggs, oil, coconut flour, oregano, sea salt and stevia into the blender.
- Puree the ingredients until they are smooth, about 30 to 45 seconds.
- Fold in zucchini or carrots and meat.
- Pour the muffin batter into the prepared tin and bake until they are puffed, golden and a knife inserted into the center of one comes out clean — about 25 minutes.
For added protein, use the full 1 pound of cooked ground meat, folding it into the batter as described. This version turns out great.
*How to soak raw seeds- For every 4 cups raw seeds, cover by two inches with room-temperature filtered water and 2 teaspoons sea salt. Stir well to dissolve the salt. Leave uncovered at room temperature overnight, then drain and rinse well in the morning. They are now ready to be used in their wet form.
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Ann
Great recipe! I almost skipped it because I thought, “Ugh, Not another almond flour muffin!” So glad I looked. Will be making these as the cooler weather comes in. Thanks for sharing.
Megan Stevens
I’m so glad, Ann. Enjoy!
Kim
Kim. When you say one cup soaked pine nuts or sunflower seeds do you mean you soak the one cup and use that or use one cup of the finished product after soaking. Mine expanded a lot so i am not sure. Thanks
Megan Stevens
Hi Kim, thanks for the question. Measure the 1 cup after you’ve soaked the seeds. 🙂
ann
This recipe sounds yummy! However, my son’s are egg free. Is there any substitutes for the six eggs in this recipe? Flax eggs, applesauce, etc?
Megan Stevens
You can certainly try any of your favorite egg substitutes; but because this recipe is supposed to be an egg-based muffin, it is not as likely to succeed. If a recipe uses only 2 eggs the substitution is more likely to work. Good luck, if you try it!
A
Since this contains meat, it probably should be kept refrigerated, right?
Megan Stevens
Yes, I put a couple in the fridge, usually, and the rest in the freezer for future days.
Amy
Hi, any suggestions to replace the pine nuts or sunflower seeds? Would almond flour work? Thanks!
joanna n.
i was wondering this also, since i really want to try the recipe otherwise!
Megan Stevens
Hi Amy, if you replace the nuts with almond flour, the quantity will change. I recommend using whole nuts, if you want to use an alternative to pine nuts or sunflower seeds, since they will measure more similarly to the whole wet nuts that the recipe calls for. Thanks for the question.
Pam
If the sweetener (stevia or honey) is omitted does it have a big impact on the taste?
Thanks – can’t wait to try these!
Megan Stevens
No, you can omit the sweetener. That small amount just nicely balances the flavors; any actual sweetness is really subtle. You’ll be fine omitting it entirely. 🙂
May
Hi Megan,
Thanks for sharing this recipe. What is the amount of dry pine nuts that will yield 1 cup when soaked?
Thanks,
May
Megan Stevens
Good question, May! I always soak between 2 and 4 cups of seeds or nuts at a time, and then use any leftovers for one other recipe as well. That said, nuts and seeds swell when soaked. So just under 1 cup will create 1 cup of soaked seeds/nuts. I don’t have an exact measurement, though. Any seeds leftover, if you just have a bit, can be thrown into the batter whole, with the meat, and folded in, just like adding in nuts at the end of any muffin recipe. There will be a few whole ones, if you wish to do that.
Suzanna
Just wondering if you have tried this with mashed or puréed butternut squash or anything similar. Also a little confused about coconut flour or chia seeds…I use both regularly but didn’t think one substituted for the other. Do you use ground chia or whole in this recipe? I really think my kids will like this, so I can’t wait to try it! Thanks so much!
Megan Stevens
Hi Suzanna, thanks for your questions. You can certainly try adding winter squash; that sounds lovely. This recipe calls for grated veggies; so the effect will be a bit different. But winter squash is always nice in muffins; so I expect you will meet with success. Regarding chia seeds, the recipe will work with either the whole seeds or meal. And yes, it is, in this recipe, interchangeable with coconut flour. They both have their unique qualities and both make the muffin nice in their own way. Enjoy!
Roberta
Hi Megan,
Thank you for sharing this recipe! It made me want to try it soon, as it somehow reminded me of a frittata my grandmother used to make. I didn’t have pine nuts or sunflower seeds, so I used cashews. I’m not really happy with the results, so I’m sharing this here so other people won’t make the same mistake.
Megan Stevens
Thanks, Roberta. I’ve never made them with cashews. Sorry they didn’t work out with that substitution.
Barbara
Wonderful looking recipe. I have soaked sunflower seeds from Wilderness Family Naturals (I’m allergic to nuts). So they are now dry and don’t need soaking but should I soak them so they are wet for the recipe? Also, can I use regular fresh ground sprouted flour instead of coconut? Thanks!
Megan Stevens
Thanks! Regarding the seeds, yes, you can put them in water for two hours; then drain, so they are wet for the recipe. You can try using the sprouted nut flour in place of the coconut; I can’t say for sure, because I haven’t tried that substitution. Likely it will be good, just hard to be sure about the quantity as coconut flour and chia are both so absorbent.
Megan M
I was wondering if I could use pumpkin seeds instead of the sunflower seeds, I have everything thing else on hand.
Megan Stevens
Yes, absolutely! Sounds yummy and extra high in protein with pumpkin seeds! 🙂
Sara
I made these, but used tahini instead of the pine nuts, as thats what I had on hand. So yummy!
Megan Stevens
Thanks for sharing, Sara! Great to hear. I do the same thing. I always seem to have tahini on hand when I run out of soaked nuts and seeds! Great improvisation.
Elizabeth
Do you use a whole cup of tahini in place of the wet seeds?
Megan Stevens
I haven’t made that substitution lately, so I’m not sure. I would try 3/4 cup tahini, personally. Let me know how it goes. 🙂
Bongi
Hi. Can i use linseed instead of sunflower seeds?
Megan Stevens
Hi, no, I wouldn’t make that substitution. You can use part linseed, but not all.
Bongi
Hi Megan. Thanks for the recipe. That was my 1st glutten and sugar free baking, im so proud of myself! 🙂
They are delicious and filling, but found them a bit rich.
Megan Stevens
Yay, Bongi! Good for you and glad they were a hit for you. Yes, grain-free eating is often rich. I find my body craves good fats and that they satisfy. But when you’re not used to eating that way it’s an adjustment.
Joy
I am trying to stick around stage 4 which means no coconut or chia. Could i omit them or would they not turn out well?
Have you tried adding cheese? (I know that is full gaps)
Thank you!