To say these disappear quickly is an understatement. I actually had to make several batches of these while doing the recipe development for this book, not because they needed more testing, but because people kept requesting them! It’s not hard to see why, though. A light and tender chocolate muffin accented with a sweet and creamy cream cheese swirl makes these pretty irresistible especially because they’re such a wonderfully healthy indulgence.
Ingredients
For the muffins
- ¾ cup (84 g) almond flour
- ½ cup (40 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tbsp (14 g) ground flaxseed
- 1½ tsp (6 g) baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 2 large eggs
- ¼ cup (59 ml) unsweetened applesauce
- ¼ cup (64 g) almond butter
- ½ cup (170 g) honey
- 1 tbsp (15 ml) vanilla extract
For the cheesecake swirl
- 6 oz (170 g) cream cheese, softened
- 1 egg yolk
- ¼ cup (48 g) cane or granulated sugar
How to Make It
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (177°C) and prepare a muffin pan by lining the cavities with parchment paper liners. Set aside.
- Add the almond flour, cocoa powder, ground flaxseed, baking powder, baking soda and salt to a high-speed blender and pulse a few times until all the dry ingredients become well combined.
- Add all of the remaining muffin ingredients, and process on high for about 30 seconds until the batter becomes smooth and creamy. Periodically stop and scrape down the sides of your blender, as necessary.
- Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling each one about ⅔ of the way full. In a medium-sized bowl, beat the cream cheese until it becomes smooth. Add the egg yolk and sugar, and continue beating until all the ingredients become well combined. Top each muffin with one tablespoon (15 g) of the cream cheese mixture, and use a toothpick to gently swirl it into the batter.
- Bake for 19–21 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. As soon as they’ve cooled, transfer them to an airtight container and store them at room temperature for up to 5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.