These treats with a surprise ingredient were developed with kids (and parents!) in mind. Soft and cakey in texture, and a good source of protein and fibre too. They are barely sweet, with most of the sweetness coming from the chocolate chips. You can easily double this recipe and freeze any extras.
Chocolate Chip Muffin Drops
1/2 cup (115g) butter, room temperature
1/2 (105g) cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup (140g) Flourist Split Red Lentils
1 1/2 cup (200 g) Flourist Sifted Red Spring Wheat Flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup (75g) rolled oats
1 cup (170g) chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place Flourist Split Red Lentils and 2 cups of water in a pot and bring to a boil. Simmer for 10-15 minutes or until lentils are soft. Puree in a blender until smooth and allow to cool, using the lentils and the water (they will have cooked to almost a puree). There should be about 2-2 1/2 cups of lentil puree. If you have less than 2 cups, add water and stir to make it 2 cups minimum of puree.
In a standing mixer with a paddle attachment or with a hand mixer, cream butter and brown sugar together for a few minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula.
Add egg and vanilla, and mix until combined. Add 2-2 1/2 cups of lentil puree and stir together. Stir in the Flourist Sifted Red Spring Wheat Flour, salt, baking soda and continue mixing until just incorporated. Scrape down the bowl again and stir in the rolled oats and chocolate chips until combined.
Use an ice cream scoop to portion balls of batter onto a prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 2 inches apart (they will spread out during baking).
Bake for about 12 minutes until golden brown and firm around the edges.
For variation, feel free to experiment with any Flourist sifted or whole grain flours for this recipe.
Comments
Hi Marian! We found that since this recipe uses less fat and sugar than most cookies and muffins the texture falls between the two but also different in its own way. They should be soft and you could try pureeing the lentils less for more texture. If they are spreading out a lot they may have too much liquid from the puree which could possibly contribute to the longer cook time. We’re glad your family loves them!
I tried making these muffins twice. My family loved them, but they were more like cookies than muffins. The texture was very smooth and not cake like. I had to cook them for double the amoujt of time recommended in the recipe.
Hi Nancy! In this case we don’t recommend using the Laird Lentils, they just won’t get soft enough to blend in smoothly.
I have Flourist Laird Lentils on hand – would they work as a substitute for the split red lentils, or should I not even try? Thanks very much!
Thank you so much for your feedback Nyx! Patricia – we used a 1oz scoop which is approximately 30 ml.
Patricia – I just baked these (for the first time) using a 2 Tablespoon scoop. I was able to fit 8 scoops of dough comfortably on a half sheet pan and I baked them for 14 minutes (but oven times will vary, of course). I also used our nutribullet to purée the cooked split red lentils (not flourist brand but it still worked) after they cooled a bit, worked perfectly! These were VERY enjoyable fresh out of the oven. The texture is more cookie than muffin to me, but it’s really neither. They feel so incredibly LIGHT in the mouth – which makes sense when using a fraction of the butter/oil and sugar compared to normal cookies & muffins! I used the Flourist sifted red spring wheat flour in this recipe, too. I can’t wait to try it in a recipe I’ve done before so I can distinguish the difference better. Will definitely be making these again. Fantastic recipe!
These look delicious! What size ice cream scoop? The size will affect the baking time and there are a bunch of different scoop sizes. Thanks!
Hi Mel! Yes! Blend the lentils with all the water (they will basically cook to become mush). I actually got less than 2 cups of puree and so I added more water to make it two cups. Hope that helps!
Hi – these look fun! Quick question, do you strain the lentils after cooking or just purée them with the cooking water? Thanks!