These Chocolate Muffins with Cashew Caramel Sauce will keep you full ’til lunch!

Packed with whole grains from buckwheat flour, natural sweetness from date syrup and unsweetened applesauce, and a hidden vegetable ingredient. 😉 And trust me – they taste DELICIOUS. Man-approved also (I always gotta make sure my fiancé likes it too before posting). The perfect way to sneak in a veggie if you’re trying to get your intake up for good health!

My favorite part of these is of course the cashew butter caramel sauce drizzled on top…wow. Just enough sweetness!

When it comes to intuitive eating, eating foods you want to eat and that sound satisfying to you is important. Sometimes you’ll want sugary, bakery-made chocolate muffins. And sometimes you’ll want these whole grain Chocolate Muffins with Cashew Butter. Listening to your body is key.

These muffins certainly aren’t going to satisfy that need when you’re wanting a classic blueberry muffin with sugar crystals on top, but this muffin is delicious and also has plenty of added health benefits! With intuitive eating, it’s also important to consider how food is going to make you feel. Because these are packed with whole grains (more fiber), protein from Tigernut flour (stable blood sugars) and less refined sugar that your typical store bought muffins, they probably will make you feel more energized, rather than sluggish, enabling you to crush that workout, focus at work, or keep up with your kids. When it comes to making food choices, it’s more about the thoughts and reasonings behind the food choice – coming from a place of self care, rather than dieting. A fun experiment to try is to eat a pastry-like muffin for breakfast one morning, paying attention to your hunger, fullness, and satisfaction levels, and see how you feel after eating it and how long you stay full for. Then do the same with a muffin like this (whole grain ingredients, less sugar) and see if you feel any different. Then, you may choose the healthier version because you feel better eating it, not because you just “should” because its healthier! Each eating experience should be a learning experience, and both ‘unhealthier’ foods and ‘healthier’ foods have places in our eating patterns!

Vegan Chocolate Muffins with Cashew Caramel Sauce

Print Recipe

These hearty whole grain muffins aren’t your typical muffins. Dense, delicious, and perfect when warmed up and topped with this Cashew Butter Caramel sauce. High in fiber, and lower in refined sugar to keep your blood sugars stable and energy up! Vegan & GF.

• Author: Caroline
• Yield: 1 dozen 1x

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Muffins:

• 1 1/2 cup buckwheat flour (any alternative flour may work – coconut, oat, almond)
• 1/2 cup tigernut flour (or garbanzo bean flour)
• 1/2 cup creamy cashew butter
• 1 TBSP arrowroot starch
• 2 TBSP date syrup
• 1 1/2 cup cauliflower puree (from 1 head of fresh cauliflower)
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
• 2 chia eggs (mix 2 TBSP chia seeds with 6 TBSP water, let sit in fridge for 10 mins, can also use flax eggs)
• 3 TBSP raw cacao powder
• 1/4 cup coconut sugar
• dash of cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extra
• 1/2 tsp salt

Cashew Butter Caramel:

• 4 TBSP creamy cashew butter
• 1 TBSP coconut oil
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2–3 TBSP date or maple syrup

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray muffin pan with nonstick spray.
2. While oven is preheating, chop 1 head of cauliflower into florets and add to a pot with a small amount of water. Steam until soft. Once cooked soft, add to a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. Set aside.
3. While cauliflower is steaming, add all dry ingredients to a large bowl: both flours, arrowroot starch, cacao, coconut sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Mix to combine.
4. Once cauliflower puree is ready, add to bowl with dry ingredients and add all remaining wet ingredients. Mix well.
5. Divide mixture into muffin tins evenly and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
6. Once muffins are finished, set aside to cool while you make the caramel sauce.
7. Add all caramel ingredients to a small microwave-safe bowl and microwave very briefly, about 30 seconds, until coconut oil has melted. Stir well and then drizzle over muffins. Let cool and enjoy!

Notes

Store muffins in fridge. Reheat upon serving. Can also store caramel sauce separately and drizzle on top just before serving.

I personally tend to feel better eating more plant-based foods (Everyone is different, this is how my body is, so listen to yours!), so I love having a go-to recipe to make muffins with plant-based ingredients. And the added fiber in these Chocolate Muffins is a bonus, too!