Aunt Rocky’s Peppermint Mocha Muffins (Low Carb, Gluten Free)

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Put 12 parchment muffin tin liners in your muffin pan (or silicone muffin cups on a baking sheet) and set aside. (See notes below.)

If you plan to garnish with peppermint sprinkles, make them now. Place 4 or 5 sugar free peppermint candies (or 2 small sugar free peppermint candy canes) in a zip bag and seal it. Using a small hammer or meat mallet, give them some good whacks until they break into pieces. Don’t hit so much that they turn into dust. You want peppermint chips. Set aside until needed.

Whisk all dry muffin ingredients a medium mixing bowl until there are no lumps. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, melt the butter, coconut oil, and Baker’s chocolate pieces in the microwave (45–60 seconds, depending on how small you chopped the chocolate).

Add the extracts and eggs, and whisk well. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients all at once, and quickly whisk to mix well. Coconut flour is very thirsty, and your batter will be thick, not runny like cake batter. Scoop about 1/4 cup batter into each muffin cup (they don’t rise much, so don’t worry if your cups look too full).

Bake 20 minutes, remove muffins from oven, sprinkle the peppermint chips on top of each muffin, and return to oven for 2 more minutes so the peppermint chips will start to melt and stick to the muffins. Don’t leave in too long, or the chips will completely melt.

Remove from oven, but leave in muffin pan for 5 minutes or so to set more, then carefully transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Store on counter for up to 5 days in covered container, in refrigerator for up to 10 days, or may be frozen. These muffins travel well in a plastic container with a lid.

Notes:
• I recommend using parchment paper muffin cups to assure the muffins don’t stick. If you use aluminum or holiday design cups for presentation, you may want to put a parchment liner inside of them so you can get the muffin out in one piece.
• Oat fiber is made from the hull of the oat plant, not the grain. It is 100% fiber. For that reason most Ketoers find it acceptable. I use Lifesource Oat Fiber 500 to assure a product free from gluten cross contamination. If gluten is not an issue for you, use whatever brand is cheapest. If you can’t find it, omit it from the recipe. The muffin will not have as nice a texture, but will still be good.
• Nutrition estimates are based on My Fitness Pal’s online recipe analyzer. Brand names are included only to assure more accurate estimates. The recipe is stored on and available to MFP users for logging in their food diaries. Sugar alcohols, Allulose, and liquid Sucralose are not absorbed by the body and rate zero on the glycemic index, so are excluded from nutrition counts.
• For more Atkins/low carb/Keto recipes and cooking tips, look for Aunt Rocky’s Low Carb Recipes & Tips Group on Facebook, or follow me on Pinterest at auntrocky2.

Per serving: Calories 158, Total Fat 14 g, Saturated Fat 9 g, Sodium 130 mg, Potassium 49 mg, Total Carbohydrate 14 g, Dietary Fiber 12.5 g, Net Carbs 1.5 g, Sugars 1 g, Protein 4 g. Macros: 84% fat, 11% protein, 5% carbs.

© November 26, 2018 Roxana Lopez for Aunt Rocky’s.