Farmers grow our food and they are the reason why we are here. Visiting any type of farm is an eye-opening experience that I highly recommend because it’s important to see firsthand all the work it takes to produce the food that feeds us. My trip to an almond orchard, courtesy of the Almond Board of California, inspired this recipe for Almond Flour Apple Muffins with Pumpkin.

 

All About Almonds: Fun Facts

It was interesting to learn about how almonds are grown and to actually see how they are harvested. Here is some of what I learned about almonds:

• California grows 80% of the world’s almonds

• 90% of California almond farms are family farms

• One ounce of almonds supplies about half of your daily requirement for vitamin E, which protects cells against everyday damage.

 

 

What is Almond Flour?

Almond flour is made from peeled almonds. It’s different from almond meal, which is usually made from unpeeled almonds. (Note: While almond meal is gluten-free, the recipe for Almond Flour Apple Muffins is not because it also uses whole wheat flour.)

You can interchange almond flour and almond meal in this muffin recipe, and in other quick breads, and baked goods such as cookies and pancakes.  Almond flour is lighter so you may want to use it in a cake recipe instead of almond meal.

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Here’s how to make your own almond flour. For this recipe, I grind up whatever almonds I have on hand. 

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Replacing Wheat Flour with Almond Flour

I use ground almonds for most of the flour in this recipe, and swap in whole wheat flour for the all-purpose kind.

Almond flour is lower in carbohydrates and higher in fat than all-purpose flour, which helps make these muffins moist and tender. In baking quick breads, such as muffins and pancakes you can replace wheat flour, such as all-purpose flour, with an equal amount of almond flour. However, baked products will be flatter when you don’t use any wheat flour and more dense because of the lack of gluten, which helps them rise.

I did not use all almond flour because I prefer a lighter muffin. I opted for some whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose because whole wheat flour adds more fiber and other vital nutrients.

Good Apples for Baking

Apples supply fiber, fluid, and other nutrients. You can many different types of apples in this recipe and other baked goods, but I would avoid Macintosh because they are too watery to begin with and often get mushy when cooked.

I prefer Cortland or Granny Smith for baking because they hold up better. But, it’s really your choice!

Healthier Almond Flour Apple Muffins with Pumpkin

Muffins from the supermarket and coffee shops can have between 300 and 500 calories (and so can the homemade variety) and are often mostly refined grains and added sugar.

These tasty muffins are a healthier choice because they provide more nutrients, such as fiber, and less sugar and added fat.

I hope you enjoy these muffins as much as we do!