Secret Recipe Revealed- June’s Famous Muffins by Jessica Blanchard

The lovely June

Each year when I travel to Koh Samui, Thailand to teach at Yoga Thailand, my first stop is at About Art Cafe, owned by the lovely June.  She has two of the best items on Samui – muffins and chocolate cake.  Unfortunately the chocolate cake is made by her friend and she won’t share.  I did manage to sneak into their kitchen one Saturday morning to get her world-famous muffin recipe.  Here I have translated from spoon, scoop, and cup into actual measurements.

Why are these muffins so good?
1. They taste good but healthy – we can taste the fresh ingredients.
2. They are moist but not too mushy.
3. They are dense but not too solid.
4.  They are kissed with sweetness without being overwhelming.

This first attempt I mimicked June’s recipe to see that I could do it.  My next attempt I will try to “veganise” by substituting 2 tablespoons of flax seeds, which I ordered from American seed banks.  I will also try with other types of flour like spelt, buckwheat and brown rice.

Muffins baked by June

Muffins baked by Jessica

Ingredients
Wet ingredients
2 eggs
1/4 cup coconut oil
1 can coconut milk
3/4 cup non-dairy milk, (So delicious coconut milk works well)
Mix above together until frothy.

Dry ingredients
2 cups white flour
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup oats
1/4 cup toasted white sesame seeds
1/4 cup toasted black sesame seeds
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 tablespoons cinnamon

Mix dry ingredients together, gradually add dry ingredients.

Going into the Thai “oven”

Flavor variations – I divided the batter up into two portions and made Banana & Date muffins.
Banana muffins:  add 1 cup very ripe mashed bananas, top with sliced banana & sesame seeds
Carrot muffins:  1 cup grated carrot + raisins, top with cashew nuts
Coconut muffins:  1 cup coconut meat (boiled slightly) + dry coconut, top with grated coconut & sesame seeds
Blueberry muffins:  1 cup blueberries in middle then put dough on top
Date muffins:  add 1 cup chopped dates, top with chopped dates
Chocolate muffins:  Use same dry ingredients, without sesame seeds, add vanilla, chocolate powder and additional sugar.  Add wet to dry and mix.  Top with chocolate chips.

Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit or 200 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes.  This may vary by oven type.