Vegan Juice Pulp Muffins
Aside from these baked vegan juice pulp muffins, I think it’s safe to say that I ate more fresh produce last week than any other week in my entire existence. Nearly all of my grocery budget was spent on straight up, whole fruits and vegetables, and as I was trying to cram everything into my fridge, I seriously doubted that two people could eat that much produce in the span of a week.
But when breakfast every morning consists of a smoothie with a whole cucumber, avocado, apple, head of romaine, and broccoli (yes, broccoli—it wasn’t bad), on top of daily green juice, and large salads for lunches and dinners—we nearly cleaned out our fridge by Friday. I was impressed with myself, and I also had an insane amount of leftover juice pulp. Enter: juice pulp muffins!
I hate wasting food, and although I do feel like we get our money’s worth out of juicing, I wanted to try to use the pulp instead of just throwing it out. I’ve seen quite a few recipes for crackers, but sadly, I don’t have a dehydrator (it’s next on my kitchen wish list). Muffins sounded like a good way to incorporate the leftover juice pulp, and also to use up some of my very neglected gluten-free flour. One taste of the batter and I quickly remembered that gluten-free flour does NOT taste good pre-bake.
Post-bake, on the other hand, these vegan juice pulp muffins have a satisfying, dense texture and a hint of the fruits and vegetables from the pulp. While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend baking with an all kale pulp, for example, the juicing process really does remove most of the flavors, so I think you could use a wide range of produce when you’re juicing and still end up with delicious muffins.
I used a combination of apple, beet, lemon, and carrot pulp, and baked them in a mini muffin pan to create a naturally sweet snack. The pretty, slightly pink color from the beets is just an added bonus.
- 1/2 cup juice pulp (I used an apple/beet/lemon/carrot combo)
- 1/4 cup agave nectar
- 1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 1/2 cups flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a mini muffin pan.
- In a large bowl, add the juicer pulp, making sure to remove any large pieces. Add the agave nectar, coconut oil, and applesauce. Stir to combine.
- Sift in the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Mix with a wooden spoon until just combined. The batter will be very thick.
- Transfer the batter to the mini muffin pan and bake for 10-12 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean when they’re done.
- Allow to cool slightly, then enjoy as-is or top with a little coconut oil or jam if you like.
