My First Time

The other day I was sifting through my desk at work, and somehow a recipe had gotten trapped in a folder full of very project management important documents. It was a hand-written copy of my very first vegan recipe. My younger sister went vegan when I was in college. I believe that she ran into some "vegangelists " at a concert and was quickly converted over to a plant-based diet. I am not proud of the fact that I was not as understanding as I should have been. It just seemed so foreign to me that she would choose to avoid all animal products. Plus, she's always been thin and gorgeous, so the benefits to her appearance were not as evident as they were on someone like me. Now I realize that she had it right back then. One Christmas I went home and, as a show of good faith, baked vegan pumpkin muffins for breakfast. Even though I wasn't sold on the whole "vegan thing" at the time, I do remember very distinctly that these muffins were more delicious than I thought they would have been.
I've tweaked the recipe just a little bit, because it did include a fair bit of sugar and fat. I left out some of the sugar, which leads to a spicier muffin, and replaced most of the fat with applesauce. Applesauce is hands-down the best fat replacer when it comes to breakfast breads. It keeps them moist and delicious without adding unnecessary inches to your waistline. These muffins are really delicious and perfect for a chilly morning, or, if you live in Southern California like me, just any time that you get a craving for some pumpkin awesomeness.

First-Timer Muffins

• 1 1/2 c. flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 tsp. ginger
• 1 c. pureed pumpkin
• 1/4 c. white sugar
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/3 c. soy milk
• 1/3 tsp. vanilla
• 6 tbsp. unsweetened applesauce
• ener-g egg replacer for 2 eggs (pre-mixed)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin pan with muffin liners.
Whisk together the flour, spices, baking soda, and baking powder.
In a large bowl, add the applesauce and sugar and mix well. Add the pumpkin and vanilla and blend until creamy.
Add the ener-g to the pumpkin mixture and mix well.
Add the soy milk and flour mixture, alternating between the two.
Spoon 1/4 c. batter into muffin cups and bake at 350 for 35 minutes
Makes 9 muffins at 150 calories each.