Rosemary Lemon Bread

I've become slightly stuck on rosemary lately. After buying a bunch at the store, I decided to see how my love for the buttery flavored herb transitioned to baked goods. The outcome? Rosemary lemon bread--made bready thanks to my new standby, coconut flour.

The are definitely a bit more grown up--not the treat to serve to little kids or someone looking for a sweet, dessert-like bread. However, they're incredibly flavorful without being super sweet and are much more interesting than the usual banana bread. This recipe is definitely a keeper in my collection. Enjoy!

Nutty Banana Muffins

Continuing onward with my almond flour experiment, I decided to use some to whip up some nutty, dairy-free (obviously) breakfast muffins. Inspired by the fabulous Elana’s Pantry blog (a must-read for anyone looking for white flour alternatives or just loves beautiful pictures of cupcakes), I added a little arrowroot powder into my almond flour. Let me tell you, that woman knows her cakes. These muffins taste like muffins—springy texture, moist with banana, and filled with the occasional bite from the crunchy peanut butter I used.

Double Coconut Muffins

These dairy-free and gluten-free muffins use the two newest ingredients I’ve run across whilst spending way too much time and money in Whole Foods: coconut oil, which I’m now using as a butter substitute, and coconut flour, which may be my new favorite gluten-free flour. It isn’t dry, and it holds together well—meaning baked goods don’t crumble at first touch, which is always a positive.

These muffins are much more dense and less cakey than the traditional blueberry or banana, making them more filling—more of a cross between a muffin and a biscuit. Whatever you call them, they’re super tasty with a little almond butter or agave spread on top. The flavor isn’t overwhelmingly coconutty, although adding some more shredded coconut into the batter in the last step would bump up this flavor even more.