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So this week so far has been a lot of running around and getting my life back in order. My surgery rotation really ate up my free time, and there are a ton of things I have to focus on these next few months to take the next step in my crazy med student life. In just a few months, I'll be taking an important board exam, applying to residency, going on residency interviews, participating in my class play, and getting ready for graduation.
Can I repeat, CRAZY??
Needless to say I'm incredibly stressed. A month off is never really a month off in med school. However, I've finally been able to return to the one stress reliever that served me so well during my other rotations= Baking! Last week I came across this interesting find at a local Giant Eagle:
Coconut sugar w/ stevia!
Check out a review/recipes for coconut sugar Here on Yoga Earth. Basically, the gist of coconut sugar is that it's a low glycemic (no more sugar crash!), nutrition-packed (potassium, magnesium, zinc to name a few), and a reliable alternative to sugar products ( brown sugar, white sugar, etc).
I had this guy for a whole week before I had the time to use it, but once I did, I was definitely impressed!
Take a look at what I created:
Coconut Banana-Raspberry Muffins
Ingredients:
2 cups flour (I used 1 c spelt, 1 c WW graham)
1 tsp baking powder
pinch salt
1 flax egg (1 T ground flax, 3 T water)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 c coconut sugar
1/4 c brown sugar
1 large, ripe banana
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 c greek yogurt
3/4 c coconut milk (or regular)
1/2 c fresh (or frozen) raspberries
optional: 2 TBSP raisins
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400F. Grease 12 muffin tins. Mix flax egg and set aside.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, sugars in a large bowl.
3. Mash banana and combine w/yogurt, vanilla, coconut milk, and flax egg into a small bowl.
4. Pour wet into dry, mix until well combined. Fold in raspberries and raisins.
5. Spoon batter into muffin tins.
6. Bake at 400F for ~20 mins
I was incredibly psyched about how these turned out! They were light, fluffy, and not too sweet. Hubs gave them two thumbs up (meaning he took the plate of muffins and bolted from the kitchen ;) ).
If you're interested in baking with coconut sugar and can't find it in your local store, I found it on iherb.com for $5.39, check it out here.
And another plug for my BIC Bands Giveaway (If you can't tell I'm really psyched about it and hope you are too!) --enter here.
What's your favorite sugar to use for baking?