Carrot Apple Muffins with Coconut and Raisins
One of the things I love about Provo is that this city goes all out in celebrating the 4th of July. The Stadium of Fire, held every year in the BYU football stadium, is one of the largest Independence Day celebrations in the United States and is televised worldwide to America’s troops on American Forces TV. In addition to fireworks, music, and a cool air show featuring jets that fly over the stadium, there are always a few celebrities performing live, and this year it was Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys as well as American Idol winner Scott McCreery. Earlier in the day, the annual Fourth of July Parade was held with people camping out the night before to get the best seats. And even earlier than that, at 6:30 am, the Balloon Fest got underway with about 25 hot air balloons being launched at about the same time. I got up really early so that I could get some pictures of the Balloon Fest to share with you. Here are just a couple of them, but if you would like to see the rest, you can check them out here: Balloon Fest.
The recipe I have for you today is for these wonderful Carrot Apple Muffins with Coconut and Raisins. I particularly like the way they are made with a combination of white flour and wheat flour because it makes the muffins a little more dense. I think muffins (and cakes also) taste like they were made from a store-bought mix if they aren’t dense and rich. These muffins are loaded with good stuff, and there is no chance that anybody will think they were made from a mix. The recipe calls for either raisins or nuts which is nice because some people like nuts but hate raisins, and other people are raisin-lovers but hate nuts. I like both, so I use 1/2 cup of raisins and 1/2 cup of nuts. To make these muffins you’ll need flour, wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, ground cloves, apples, carrots, coconut, nuts or raisins, oil, applesauce, milk, vanilla, and eggs. Start by combining the flour, wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and cloves in a medium-sized bowl; set aside.
Peel and grate the apples and carrots and place them in a large bowl.
Add the coconut, nuts or raisins, oil, applesauce, milk, vanilla, and eggs. Mix well.
Preheat the oven to 350. Add the dry ingredients to the apple mixture and stir well.
Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full.
Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Leftover muffins can be frozen.
Origin Unknown/Adapted by Winner Dinners
Makes about 3 dozen muffins
2 cups flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
2-1/2 cups sugar
4 teaspoons baking soda
4 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
4 cups Golden Delicious apples, peeled and grated
1 cup carrots, peeled and grated
1 cup coconut
1 cup nuts or raisins (or 1/2 cup of each)
1/2 cup oil
3/4 cup applesauce
1/2 cup milk
4 teaspoons vanilla
3 eggs
Combine the flour, wheat flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and cloves in a medium-sized bowl; set aside. Peel and grate the apples and carrots and place them in a large bowl. Add the coconut, nuts or raisins, oil, applesauce, milk, vanilla, and eggs. Mix well. Preheat the oven to 350. Add the dry ingredients to the apple mixture and stir well. Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes. Leftover muffins can be frozen.
