Treat your family and friends to homemade gingerbread muffins this holiday season.  Start with fresh ingredients like Brazilian Ginger.  It’s clean, smooth, has a purplish tinge on the inside and can be found right now in the produce department at D&W Fresh Market.  Ginger not only adds great flavor to any dish, but it also possesses potent anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties which can help keep us healthy for the holidays.

Gingerbread Muffins
Makes 3 dozen mini-muffins

Ingredients:
2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 c gluten free flour, plus more to flour pan
1 t baking soda
1/2 t cinnamon, ground
1/8 t allspice, ground
1/4 t salt
1/2 c vegan butter
1/4 c water, purified
1/2 c brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 c molasses
2 T flax seeds, ground
6 T water, warm and purified
1/4 c ginger root, fresh and grated
1/4 c raw cane sugar, as a topping

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Using a pastry brush, oil a mini-muffin pan with extra virgin olive oil and dust with flour, tapping out any excess. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice and salt. Melt the vegan butter with water. Using an electric mixer, beat together the brown sugar and molasses until combined. In a ramekin, mix the flax seeds with the warm water into a thick paste an add half at a time to the creamed sugar mixture until incorporated. Beat in the flour mixture at low speed until just combined. Add the butter mixture and ginger, beating until smooth. Fill each mini-muffin form 1/2-3/4 full, wiping off any excess that spills on the top of the pan. Bake for 18 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let cool to touch then transfer each muffin to a wire backing rack. Sprinkle each muffin with raw cane sugar.

You can find all of these items at your nearest D&W Fresh Market.  Great variety, always fresh.

Notes:
“When selecting ginger root”, Dave Heetderks, Produce Manager at D&W Fresh Market- Knapp’s Crossing, suggests to “look for firm, plump pieces that are without wrinkles or soft spots.” If you’re planning on using it up within two weeks, keep your ginger root in the refrigerator. For longer storage, place it in a resealable freezer storage bag and pop it into the freezer. Break off or zest what you need and then re-freeze it.

Muffins can be made a day ahead of time and stored covered at room temperature. Or, they can be made many days to weeks ahead of time and frozen in an airtight container.

Happy Holidays!