Muffin Monday: Sauerkraut Chocolate Muffins

Momma always said… when life gives you lemons make lemonade. But how about when life gives you sauerkraut? Well, when you marry a German the odds are good that he or she is going to like the pungent cabbage dish. Mine does. So when a certain local grocery chain had a sale on the stuff I was gifted several unsolicited cans for his sake. I’m gratified that my family loves my husband enough to think of him in the canned vegetable aisle, but I don’t even know how to make sauerkraut. So naturally… I looked up Sauerkraut Muffins on the internet to see if there was a base recipe I could borrow for this blog. AH-HA I’m obviously not the only person with the problem, because I found sever interesting recipes.

Basically my version uses the kraut instead of the grated zucchini that you can usually find in my muffins.

Here goes…

INGREDIENTS;

3/4 cups of chopped Sauerkraut

2 cups Flour

1/2 cup Cocoa

2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Cardamom

2 Eggs

1/2 cup Olive Oil

2/3 cup Sugar

2 tsp Vanilla Extract

3/4 brewed Coffee (any kinds) room temperature

SAUCE:

1/2 cup Almond Butter

1/2 cup Dark Chocolate Chips

2 Tbsp Maple Syrup

2 Tbsp Butter

DIRECTIONS:

1 Preheat oven to 350. Prep muffin cups.  (This recipe makes a dozen, but I doubled it so I could send some out to unsuspecting college students.)

2. RINSE the Sauerkraut several times to cut the vinegar taste. Set aside.

3. In a large bowl mix the Flour, Cocoa, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Salt, Cinnamon and Cardamom.

4. In a medium bowl mix the Eggs, Olive Oil, Sugar and Vanilla Extract.

5. Add the wet to the dry and mix until combined (it will be on the dry side.)

6. Alternate adding 1/4 of the Sauerkraut and 1/4 of the Coffee, gently folding with each addition.

7. Divide evenly into the muffin cups.

8. Bake for 30 minutes until the muffins pass the toothpick test.

9. Make the Sauce (yes, these muffins have a sauce, I don’t know why that doesn’t make them cup cakes, just roll with me here.) place the Almond Butter, Dark Chocolate Chips and Maple Syrup in a medium sauce pan. Cook over low heat until the Chocolate starts to melt. Add the butter. Stir continuously.

10. Pour a hefty tablespoon of the sauce over each of the muffins (divide evenly.) Let cool 5 minutes then enjoy.

I tried the muffins with and with out the sauce and they are definitely better WITH the sauce. I liked these muffins. I liked them MUCH better than I like actual Sauerkraut, but, really, just as muffins they were good… not too sweet and the present with interesting flavor profiles (the coffee, cardamom, cinnamon and almond butter help with that.)