A simple recipe for lean muffins with photos

HomeQuick KitchenBakingMuffinsA simple recipe for lean muffins with photos

Category: Muffins

Author: Victor Afanasyev

10

50 min

228.5 kcal

5/5 (1)

Ingredients

When you follow a diet or fast, your diet is a little limited. But this is not a reason to deny yourself small tasty pleasures, and the word “lenten” does not mean “tasteless.” There are many interchangeable products. And when preparing some dishes, you can do without certain ingredients altogether. I will prove this to you by suggesting recipes that make diet muffins very easy to prepare, and you will be happy to drink a cup of coffee or tea with them.

Lenten chocolate cupcake

Ingredients

• cocoa powder – 20 g;
• granulated sugar – 50 g;
• crystal sugar – 100 g;
• vegetable oil – 40 g;
• lemon concentrate – ½ teaspoon;
• baking soda – ½ teaspoon;
• natural juice (optional) – 1 glass;
• flour – 150 g.

Cooking process

During Lent, the daily diet is meager and monotonous. Most products, including those of animal origin, are prohibited. Vegetarians also suffer from a limited menu. If you want to diversify your daily diet, prepare a lean chocolate cupcake , which will perfectly complement tea drinking and lift your spirits. This budget dish is also suitable for housewives who are used to surprising with culinary masterpieces, but do not like to spend a lot of time in the kitchen cooking.

The meaning of the Lenten cake “Fanuropita”

In Greece, this cake is called Fanuropita and it is not just prepared differently. It is endowed with a special meaning .

Fanuropita is translated from Greek as St. Pie. Fanuria, whose day is celebrated on August 27. Greek housewives bake it when they want to ask something from a saint, and initially to find someone or something that was lost. For example, in Crete and Cyprus, Fanuropita is prepared by mothers who want to find grooms for their unmarried daughters. Hehe. What lengths will you go to for a good son-in-law))

According to the rules, Fanuropita cake must consist of an odd number of ingredients . Initially - from 7, which symbolizes the 7 sacraments in Orthodoxy. But depending on the area, the cake may consist of 9 or less often 11 ingredients.

Well? Who needs a groom? Get to work!

Total calorie content of the dish

This dish first appeared during the American “ Depression” of the 30s of the 20th century and immediately became a favorite delicacy of the population. A distinctive feature of the Lenten chocolate pie recipe is the absence of eggs and butter in the dough. Despite this, the baked goods turn out tender and airy, and some people with a sweet tooth even call it a full-fledged cake .

Lenten chocolate cake with cocoa is considered a dietary dish, the energy value of which is 226 kcal. We have already written about the calorie content of cocoa. Protein per 100 g of the finished product is 3.4 g, fat – 7.6 g, carbohydrates – 36.2 g. When losing weight, it is better to eat a piece of pie in the first half of the day, and then the extra calories will not have a negative impact on the figure.

In the confectionery business, there are several recipes for Lenten pie with chocolate, which are sure to please even sophisticated gourmets. Let's try to please our family and friends with our culinary talents.

Recipe for Lenten “Quick” cake in the microwave

To prepare the dough you will need only 5 minutes of free time and the following ingredients, which it is advisable to prepare in advance:

• cocoa powder – 20 g;
• granulated sugar – 50 g;
• crystal sugar – 100 g;
• vegetable oil – 40 g;
• lemon concentrate – ½ teaspoon;
• baking soda – ½ teaspoon;
• natural juice (optional) – 1 glass;
• flour – 150 g.

Cooking method:

1. Mix bulk ingredients in one bowl - sugar, cocoa, flour.
2. Pour in vegetable oil and natural juice in a stream, mix well.
3. Quench the soda with lemon juice and add to the main mixture.
4. Knead well until the dough is smooth and sticky.
5. Line the pan with baking paper to prevent the cake from sticking to the bottom.
6. Pour in and spread evenly over the entire surface.
7. Bake in the microwave at maximum temperature for up to 7 minutes.
8. When ready, do not open the door for another 3 minutes, otherwise the dough will shrink.
9. Remove the cake from the pan and sprinkle with powdered sugar to decorate.

Just 10-15 minutes - and a delicious dessert is ready. The recipe is designed for 4 servings, great for a family breakfast - adults and children enjoy it equally.

Lenten muffins: recipe with berries

• Cooking time: 30 to 40 minutes.
• Number of servings: 12 – 14.

Kitchen tools

To avoid spending too long in the kitchen, prepare in advance the kitchen utensils and tools that you may need while baking muffins:

• molds for cupcakes or muffins (you can use regular iron ones);
• bowls (two or three pieces) with a capacity of 400 ml;
• tablespoons and teaspoons;
• cotton towels;
• kitchen scale or regular measuring cup;
• cutting board and whisk.

Also, keep a blender or food processor with special attachments at the ready so you can prepare the perfect dough.

You will need

How to choose the right ingredients

Berry muffins may not turn out well if you used the wrong ingredients during their preparation.

• Almond milk must be fresh, made from natural almonds. If you can't get it, try soy or cashew milk instead.
• Lemon and its juice can be easily replaced with orange, but it is better not to use grapefruit - the products will turn out a little bitter.

Cooking sequence

1. Place wheat flour in a large bowl,

   
   add sugar to it.

2. Stir, add salt, baking powder and lemon zest.

3. Beat a little, add almond milk and sunflower oil.

4. Mix thoroughly, add lemon juice and mix it into the dough.

5. Separately, sprinkle the blueberries with flour and then add them to the mixture.

6. Gently stir it to combine the berries with the preparation.

7. Place the dough in the molds and place in the oven preheated to 200 degrees.

8. Place the muffins in the oven for about 20 minutes.

Lenten muffins with berries: video

Below in the video you can see in detail the complete process of preparing the dough and baking magnificent berry muffins.

Chocolate dessert “Quick” in the oven

Another delicious dessert that will decorate the Lenten menu and will not take much time. You will need:

• cocoa powder – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• water – 1 glass;
• sugar – 1 glass;
• flour – 1-2 cups;
• baking powder - 1 tbsp. spoon;
• vegetable oil – 120 g;
• chocolate, chocolate glaze - optional.

Cooking method:

1. Sift the flour through a sieve.
2. Add cocoa, sugar, baking powder, mix.
3. Separately combine water and vegetable oil.
4. Mix the liquid and dry mixtures and knead into a soft dough.
5. After making sure there are no lumps, pour the homogeneous mixture into a baking dish.
6. Spread evenly with a spoon.
7. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees, bake the pie for 40-45 minutes. until ready.

All that remains is to cool the baked goods and decorate them with grated chocolate or pour chocolate icing. To reduce the calorie content of a dish, it is better to do without such experiments.

Greeks and Lent

I don’t fast myself, but I really love lean food and eat it often, since I don’t eat meat or fish. And the Greeks have a lot of delicious everyday dishes that can be classified as Lenten. These include all kinds of legumes, vegetables, all kinds of greens, and pies made with olive or vegetable oil. They also don’t deny themselves sweets. Here they have a huge selection of Lenten cookies, muffins, pies and other sweets such as halva, Turkish delight, etc.

But I prepared today’s cupcake exclusively for you, my dears, because lately I have been receiving requests for Lenten baking . And besides these lean chocolate muffins and sweet pumpkin pie, I have nothing special to offer you.

If you think that Lenten baking is limited to “wooden” gingerbread and shortbreads, you are deeply mistaken. Lenten baked goods can and should be soft, airy and fluffy no less than regular ones.

This is exactly the cupcake I prepared for you today. Incredibly simple, fast and incredibly tasty . With raisins, nuts, indescribable aromas of cinnamon, cloves and oranges. don't even need a mixer to prepare it .

Recipe for chocolate cake with cherry mousse

For a special event (for example, a birthday), you can slightly diversify the classic recipe and give the chocolate pie a new taste, in our case, cherry. To prepare the dish you will need 2 hours of free time, and the output will be 8 servings.

You will need:

• cocoa powder – 40 g;
• sugar – 1 glass;
• flour – up to 2 cups;
• lemon juice – 1 tbsp. spoon;
• vegetable oil – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• boiled water – 1 glass;
• baking soda – 1 teaspoon;
• salt – 1 pinch;
• vanillin - optional.

To prepare the glaze you will need:

• cocoa powder – 2 tbsp. spoons;
• sugar – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• water – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• dark chocolate – 30 g;
• vegetable oil – ½ teaspoon.

To prepare cherry mousse you will need:

• agar-agar – 2 g;
• boiled water – 250 ml;
• loose semolina – 25 g;
• sugar – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• frozen cherries – 250 g.

Cooking method:

1. Mix all the bulk ingredients in one container - flour, sugar, vanillin, cocoa, salt, soda.
2. Separately combine vegetable oil, water and lemon concentrate.
3. Mix dry and liquid compositions.
4. Knead the dough so that there are no lumps left.
5. Separately cover the mold with baking paper and pour in the dough.
6. Spread evenly over entire surface.
7. Bake at 180 degrees for 40-45 minutes. - until fully prepared.
8. Cool the finished pie.
9. Cut off the top with a knife so that the remaining dough looks like a pot or vase.
10. Remove most of the crumb, the main thing is not to damage the dense crust.

Method for preparing the filling:

1. Pour 200 ml of warm water into a container, add 150 g of cherries.
2. Place on fire and boil.
3. Remove from heat and puree the berries through a fine sieve.
4. to the resulting cherry syrup and boil again.
5. Add semolina, stirring constantly (so that it does not form lumps).
6. Simmer the syrup over low heat for 15 minutes.
7. Then cool slightly and beat with a mixer.
8. Separately, dissolve the agar in 50 ml of water for 5-7 minutes.
9. Put on fire, boil, hold for a couple of minutes.
10. Pour into cherry mousse .

Dessert collection:

1. Add the remaining cherries to the finished mousse.
2. Crumble the chocolate crumbs in there.
3. Mix the filling and fill the pie with it.
4. Cover with a crust “lid” and press down lightly.
5. Place in a beautiful bowl.

Preparing the glaze:

1. Mix cocoa, butter and sugar, add water.
2. Boil a homogeneous mixture.
3. Add milk free chocolate.
4. Stir and pour over the pie.
5. Place in the refrigerator overnight to thoroughly soak.

Remember that when adding agag-agar, the cherry mousse thickens quickly, so do not hesitate to fill the pie with filling. The same goes for chocolate glaze - it hardens quickly. If desired, cherries can be replaced with black currants. The resulting taste of chocolate cake will also pleasantly please you.

American cupcake since the Great Depression

To prepare this simple recipe you will need 30 minutes of free time, a minimum of effort and ingredients. The result will be 6 delicious servings, you can’t even tell that this is a lean chocolate cake.

You will need:

• apple cider vinegar – 1 tbsp. l.;
• vegetable oil – ½ cup;
• water – 1 glass;
• cocoa – 2 tbsp. spoons;
• vanillin - to taste;
• sugar – 1 glass;
• salt – ½ teaspoon;
• soda – 1 teaspoon.

Cooking method:

1. Combine all dry ingredients in a baking dish.
2. Mix liquid ingredients separately.
3. Pour the oil-vinegar solution into the cocoa-sugar mixture.
4. Beat with a mixer, make sure there are no lumps.
5. Distribute the dough evenly.
6. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
7. Bake in pan for 30-45 minutes until done.
8. First sprinkle the finished baked goods with powdered sugar or coconut flakes.
9. Place berries on top to decorate.
10. Serve chilled.

To prepare truly delicious dessert, it would be a good idea to study the photo instructions and watch videos of professional confectioners on a given topic. In general, nothing complicated, but there are some nuances.

How to decorate a dish and what to serve with

The most common way to decorate a cupcake is to sprinkle it with powdered sugar. I advise you to sprinkle it through a stencil with a pattern. It will be very beautiful. You can prepare cream for cupcakes and decorate with berries on top.

In my opinion, it is better to make chocolate glaze. To do this, mix 3 tablespoons of sugar with 3 tablespoons of cocoa, add 300 ml of water and mix with a whisk until smooth. Separately mix 120 ml of water with 2 tablespoons of starch. Place the cocoa mixture on the stove, bring to a boil and pour in the diluted starch in a thin stream, stirring continuously. Remove the mixture from the heat, let it cool slightly and pour the glaze over our cake.

Once all unnecessary dishes have been removed from the table, dessert can be served. I serve the cupcake on a cake platter. I brew strong tea or aromatic coffee, and offer the kids fruit or berry compote.

Lenten chocolate cake in a slow cooker: quick and tasty

It takes up to 20 minutes of free time to prepare the dessert, and the yield is 4 servings. You will need:

• sparkling water – 1 glass;
• vegetable oil – ¼ cup;
• cocoa powder – 3 tbsp. spoons;
• fresh lemon juice – 1 tbsp. spoon;
• baking soda – 1 tbsp. spoon;
• flour – 1.5 cups;
• vanillin – 1 g;
• salt – 1 pinch.

Cooking method:

1. Mix sugar, salt, cocoa and flour.
2. Quench soda with lemon concentrate.
3. Pour vegetable oil and water into the dry mixture.
4. Stir, add coffee, previously dissolved in 2 tbsp. spoons of boiling water .
5. Beat the mixture with a mixer until the lumps disappear.
6. the bottom and sides of the multicooker .
7. Pour out the dough and smooth it out evenly.
8. Set the “Baking” mode and keep the dough until the sound signal (30-40 minutes at a temperature of 180 degrees).
9. After the beep, open the lid and let the baked goods cool slightly.
10. If desired, top with chocolate glaze, melted honey or jam .

As decoration, you can use sliced ​​apples or bananas , whole fresh berries, grated nuts, and candied fruits. The pie immediately becomes festive.

Valuable recommendations for novice confectioners

prepare a Lenten pie with cocoa; the main thing is to follow these simple recommendations and monitor the baking time:

• To make the baked goods tender and airy, sift the flour before the first kneading of the dough.
• the sugar portions indicated in the recipes individually - at your discretion.
• If you don’t have baking paper on hand, use sunflower oil and thoroughly coat the sides and bottom of the pan.
• When using vanillin, first dissolve it in cold water along with vegetable oil and vinegar.
• For variety, add chocolate dragees, candied fruits, chopped nuts and fresh berries to the dough.
• If using cooked semolina in a recipe, whisk until doubled in size.
• Do not violate the technology for preparing this lean dish, follow the recipe step by step .
• Add the filling sparingly, otherwise the dough may not rise and will be tough when ready.
• For a more concentrated chocolate flavor, replace the cocoa powder with instant coffee.
• Before transferring the dessert from the mold to a plate, let it cool slightly, otherwise it will break.

To ensure that the menu at your post is always varied, and that the Lenten pie does not become boring for a long time, experiment with fillings. The same goes for your diet, the main thing is to count calories. In general, the dish is tasty and satisfying, will appeal to adults and children, does not harm the figure and is considered “unpretentious”.

Lean carrot muffins

List of ingredients:

• 80 ml vegetable oil;
• 6 tbsp. regular sugar;
• 240 g flour;
• 1 carrot;
• 1 tsp quenched soda;
• 100 ml carrot juice or water.

Kitchen appliances and equipment: dough container, whisk, grater, muffin tins, paper tartlets, baking sheet. Quantity: 8–10 pieces. Preparation will take: 50 minutes.

1. Heat the oven to 180°.
2. Grate the peeled carrots on the fine side of a grater.
3. Grind the sugar immediately into a dough container with vegetable oil.
4. Pour in juice or water, as well as dissolved soda and mix.
   Using carrot juice, the muffins will have a richer taste and a beautiful, rosy color.
5. Add flour and mix until viscous and homogeneous.
6. At the end of kneading, add carrots into the dough.
7. Line the molds with paper tartlets or grease them with butter.
8. Fill them more than halfway with dough and place them on a baking sheet.
9. Place the baking sheet with the preparations in the oven for 35 minutes.
10. Use a match or skewer to check readiness. If necessary, we’ll finish baking it .
11. Remove from the molds and cool.

You can also easily make muffins in the microwave.