Cranberry Almond-Quinoa Muffins

These are so delectable. Lots of whole wheat goodness with the nutritional punch of quinoa. Everytime I make muffins with cooked quinoa, I marvel at how tasty they are. These are lightly sweetened with maple syrup and chopped Craisins. I'm sure you could use fresh cranberries if you added more sweetener. This recipe is adapted from the Almond-Quinoa Muffins in Veganomicon by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. It is The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook that everyone should have in their collection. It is a well rounded cookbook with lots of "how to" information and plenty of original, tasty recipes. Makes 12 muffins.

Ingredients
1 cup soymilk
1 TB ground flaxseed
-----
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
-----
1-1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup almond meal or flour*
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom
-----
1-1/4 cup cooked quinoa
1/2 cup chopped Craisins

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare muffin pan. Combine milk and flax seed, whisk together and let sit for a minute. Add oil, syrup and vanilla extract. Set aside.

In large bowl, combine dry ingredients and mix together. Stir in wet ingredients and mix until barely combined. Fold in quinoa and Craisins and stir until just mixed. Do not over mix. Spoon into muffin tin and bake 20-23 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.

*Almond meal and/or flour is ridiculously expensive. I just whiz whole almonds in a small blender until it makes a coarse flour. Be sure not to make almond butter!