2 The 2 and 1/2 cups of oats when powdered measured to 2 cups. So I think we could also use 2 cups of oat flour instead.

2 The original recipe uses regular cornmeal and white rice flour. I have used whole cornmeal and brown rice flour to incorporate whole grains.

3 The ratio of EnerG and water given in the pack is 1 and 1/2 teaspoons and 2 tablespoons of water. The EnerG egg replacer powder I’m having is almost a year old. So I wasn’t sure if it was good enough, so I increased it to 2 teaspoons and 3 tablespoons of water and this did not affect the cookies. In fact the cookies came out very good, the shape, texture and taste was awesome.

2 In a large mixing bowl add peanut butter, margarine and sugars. Beat together well until smooth and creamy.

3 In a blender (I used the small jar of my Magic Bullet), blend together the egg replacer and warm water until it’s frothy.

4 To the creamed sugar mixture add the egg replacer liquid and vanilla. Beat once again until it’s combined well.

5 To this add the barley flour, baking soda and salt and stir well.

6 Add remaining ingredients and mix well.

7 Spoon the batter onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes. I took mine out after 11 minutes.

8 Leave the cookies on the sheet for 5 minutes. Then transfer it to a cooling rack for the cookies to cool completely. Transfer the cooled cookies to an airtight container.

I’m not a peanut butter fan, but I used it to just finish it off. So I was very happy because the presence of peanut butter was not at all felt from the 2nd day onwards.

I bought very little amount of carob chips and used it in this recipe instead of chocolate chips to make it completely vegan. When tasted it by itself, I found that there was a slight difference in taste when compared to chocolate chips. I didn’t like it that much. But I literally couldn’t feel any difference (maybe a little or it was just psychological) when I tasted the cookies and my son didn’t find it. The original recipe had called for 1/2 cup of chocolate chips, since I was using carob chips I used only 1/4 cup of it and I used 1/4 cup of dried cranberries. However I’m not sure if I would substitute carob chips for chocolate chips in a chocolate chip cookie recipe. Maybe it would be too much. I think the better bet is to try other dairy free vegan chocolate chips instead.

2 The original recipe mentions to use cornflakes. I used Rice Krispies because I had only that in hand.

3 Similarly you could use all nuts, or all chocolate chips or any dried fruits etc. Just be sure to keep the measurements same though.

4 At first I thought the quantity of sugar was more in the recipe with 1/3 cup each of brown sugar and granulated sugar, but it was perfect when we tasted the cookies. Maybe it would have been even sweeter, had I used 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and raisins instead of cranberries.

5 The cookies don’t spread like the usual chocolate chip cookies. So I think if you flatten it with a fork you may get crispier cookies but you would have to adjust the baking time. Also I overlooked the 1 teaspoon of water in the recipe. Maybe if I had added that the cookies would have spread a little bit.

6 I have mentioned this a couple of times, but writing it once again. If using a dark coated non stick pan, stay alert and take the sheet out of the oven 2-3 minutes earlier because the bottoms burn quite quickly. The same thing happened in this recipe too. Even after being careful and lining the cookie sheet with parchment paper the bottom of the cookies went black. Maybe double lining the sheet would help. I’m going to try it the next time.

1 Pulse the oats in a food processor until it resembles coarse flour. To this also add the whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt and process until combined. Transfer this mix to a large mixing bowl.

2 Put the drained and rinsed beans in the food processor and pulse until smoothly pureed. You may add 2-3 tablespoons of water to make it easier. Add the butter/margarine and process until well blended.

3 Now add the brown sugar, applesauce and vanilla and pulse until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl.

4 Pour the bean mixture into the oat mixture and stir using a spatula. Add the peanut butter chips/chocolate chips, raisins/dried cranberries, nuts and flax seed meal and stir until blended.

5 Drop by large spoonfuls of dough onto the prepared cookie sheets. Flatten each one a little with your hand. Have a bowl of water nearby to dampen your palms, so that flattening the cookies will be easy.

6 Bake for 14-16 minutes, until pale around the edges but still soft in the middle. The cookies baked in a dark coated cookie sheet started browning after 14 minutes itself but the pale coated cookie sheet was done after 16 minutes.

7 Place the the cookie sheets on individual wire racks. Let it cool for 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to the cooling rack after that.

2 For chocolate flavored cookies use 1/2 cup of unsweetened cocoa powder instead of the flour.

3 Updated: I stored these cookies in a cookie jar over the counter and it became very soft. This is okay if you are going to consume it within 2-3 days. The longer it stays on the counter the softer it gets. Recently I borrowed Moosewood Restaurant Low Fat Favorites from the library and found a tip for storing low-fat cookies. It says that the best way to store low-fat cookies is in layers separated by wax paper or plastic wrap in an airtight container in the freezer. Defrost at room temperature for about 20 minutes before serving. But I think storing in the refrigerator should be fine because it gives instant gratification

2 In a large bowl combine together all the dry ingredients (from whole wheat flour to grated pear).

3 In a measuring mug, measure the buttermilk. Add 1/4 cup water, vinegar, vanilla extract and oil. Whisk together. Dissolve the brown sugar in this liquid mixture and blend it well with a fork.

4 Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring just until moistened. Do not over mix.

5 Fill the batter in each muffin cup to the top. Sprinkle a teaspoon of oatmeal on each cup.

6 Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Mine was done in 16 minutes.

7 Leave it in the pan for 10-15 minutes. Then transfer it to a cooling rack.

These muffins were very filling too. Unlike the empty calories-sugary muffins, I did not feel like reaching for another one. So these muffins don’t disappear fast and I stored it in the fridge. It becomes little hard if stored in the fridge. So heat it in the microwave oven for 30-35 seconds before eating it and it’s moist again like freshly baked.

2 The original recipe used 1 cup of all purpose flour and 1 cup of whole wheat flour. So if you don’t have whole wheat pastry flour go with this blend.

3 If you are a cinnamon fan use 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon and omit the vanilla extract (as per the original recipe).

4 The recipe clearly asked to fill the batter to the top of the cup. I was not sure about this because usually muffin recipes mention 2/3rds full. I thought that it would overflow while baking and the muffins will get stuck to each other. Except for 4 muffins I did not fill it to the top. So I got 12 regular size muffins and had some batter left which was enough for 6 mini muffins. The 4 muffins which I had filled to the top rose beautifully and it did not stick to the other muffins. So if you fill the entire cup there should not be any batter left and the given measurement should yield exactly 12 regular size muffins.

If baking as mini muffins 8-10 minutes should be enough. I baked mine for 10 minutes and it was already very dark in the bottom.

2 In a large bowl, combine together the flour, granulated sugar, 1/3 cup cocoa and baking powder.

3 Stir in milk and applesauce to the dry ingredients until just moistened.

4 Fold in the cherries and nuts. The cake batter is very thick at this stage.

5 Spoon into the greased pan.

6 Mix the brown sugar, hot water and 1/4 cup cocoa in the same large bowl, until smooth; pour over batter.

7 Bake for 35-40 minutes or until set (cake will have a pudding like texture). Serve warm or at room temperature.

As the name suggests, this is a pudding cake. There is pudding in the bottom and cake on top. Frankly the three of us did not like it. The chocolate cake alone was very good, especially for a fat free one it was quite tasty, but we did not like the combination of pudding and a cake. First you bite into a firm cake then follows this ooey gooey pudding. To be more specific, it’s kozha kozha (non Tamilians please excuse me. I had to use this word to be very clear at least for Tamilians.) So if you have already tasted a pudding cake and like it you can go ahead and try this low fat version.

But what did we do with such a big cake, when we didn’t like it? That’s when a light bulb flashed and I put the cake (of course with the pan) in the freezer. I thought that it would taste like an ice cream cake and I was right. Yay! Freeze it for a couple of hours and remove it from the freezer and leave it on the kitchen counter for 15-25 minutes before serving, so that the pudding layer would soften up a little bit making it easy to eat (but not ooey gooey at all). Then cut them into slices and enjoy. Refreeze the rest of the cake.

2 While using a glass baking pan it is suggested to reduce the oven temperature by 25F or to bake 5-10 minutes less than the specified time. I have used a glass baking pan and so baked the cake at 325F. If you are using any other pan set the oven at 350F.

3 While reading the recipe I was not sure if the quantity of baking powder (3 tablespoons) was correct. I proceeded anyhow and was relieved that the cake did not have the after taste of baking powder.

4 Measure the 3 cups of boiling water in a liquid measuring mug. While pouring it over the cake batter it may look like that it’s a lot, but don’t worry the cake will turn out fine.

2 In a medium bowl sift together the flours, salt, baking powder. Add sugar, dried fruit and the nuts. Combine well. Make a well in the center and set aside.

3 In a liquid measuring mug measure the milk, add the yogurt, orange juice (or peel) and whisk well.

4 Add the wet ingredients to the flour all at once and stir just until combined. Do not over mix. At this point I felt that the batter was very thick, so I added another 2 tablespoons of milk. The consistency felt right after adding the milk.

5 Now spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two thirds full. I have a ladle which holds 3 tablespoons of batter and it’s the perfect amount to bake the perfect sized muffins. Sprinkle oats on top, if using.

6 Bake in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes or until golden and a wooden toothpick inserted in centers comes out clean. Mine was done by 19 minutes.

7 Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove from muffin cups; serve warm (See Taste).

2 Oat flour is readily available in some of the grocery stores. You can make it at home too by finely processing quick cooking oats in a food processor/mixer. Since oat flour does not contain gluten, it cannot substitute 100% of all purpose flour/whole wheat flour. Baked goods will not rise if it is only used. So it has to be used in combination with either all purpose flour or whole wheat flour.

3 I didn’t have fresh oranges to make the zest, so I went with 2 tablespoons of store bought orange juice. This does not give that fresh orange flavor, but be careful not to go overboard with the juice because sometimes the store bought juice has a bitter after-taste and it spoils the taste of the baked goods.

4 I have used 2 tablespoons of yogurt in place of one egg white mentioned in the recipe. Even after using 2 tablespoons of orange juice I found that the batter was very thick, so I had to use another 2 tablespoons of milk. I think the whole wheat flour and the oat flour absorbed more moisture. So consider what type of flour you are using and add water as required.

5 The original recipe is supposed to yield 12 muffins but I got only 9.

2 Combine the dry ingredients together in a big bowl. From granola to baking soda.

3 In another medium size bowl, whisk together the applesauce, milk, brown sugar, oil and yogurt.

4 Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and mix until just combined.

5 Divide evenly into prepared muffin tin, approximately 3 tablespoons of batter per muffin or 3/4th of the tin. Sprinkle little granola/oats on top.

6 Bake 18-20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. I baked mine for about 26 minutes. Always set the timer for the minimum time mentioned in the recipe, test for doneness and if it’s not done, increase the time for 2-3 minutes at a time. (Check My Notes, point 5)

7 Let cool slightly in the tin and then remove to a cooling rack.

Will I be baking it again? Definitely.

2 If you prefer sweet muffins, either use sweetened applesauce or increase the quantity of brown sugar to 1/2 cup.

3 The original recipe did not use oat flour, I used it because I had it. So if you don’t have oat flour just use 1 cup of all purpose flour or in a food processor finely powder quick cooking oats.

4 Walnuts and semi sweet chocolate chips were not mentioned in the recipe. I added it to lure my son to eat something healthy and it worked! The chocolate chips also gave the sweetness. Always try using mini chocolate chips because you can cut down on calories, sugar and fat. In place of using 1 cup of chocolate chips, you can use just 1/2 cup of the mini without affecting the taste.

5 I had some flavored yogurt (which we did not like by itself) so I used it instead of eggs. I used peach flavored yogurt. Also while using yogurt to replace eggs, instead of measuring exactly 1/4 cup of yogurt, use 3 tablespoons of yogurt and 1 tablespoon of water or any liquid. For this recipe I emptied directly two small containers of yogurt and while mixing felt that the muffin batter was very thick and then I had to add extra water, which made it very watery. I think this is the reason I had to bake it for around 26 minutes. So while using yogurt measure 3 tablespoons of yogurt and 1 tablespoon of water in a cup, whisk it well and then mix it to the other ingredients or simply use buttermilk.

2 In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Since the quantity of butter is very less, the creamed mixture was dry and resembled coarse crumbs.

3 In a blender/food processor blend together Ener-G, water, soy milk and vanilla extract until nice and foamy.

4 Add the Ener-G mixture to the creamed butter/sugar and beat everything together with the hand mixer until thoroughly combined. This mixture looks creamy like a white sauce.

5 In another bowl combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg (if using). Add this to the wet ingredients. The batter will be thick.

6 Stir in apples and nuts. Mix it thoroughly.

7 Spread the batter in the prepared pan and bake for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out with just a few crumbs. Mine was done around 38 minutes. You can also see that the cake starts pulling from the edges.

8 This cake can be sliced directly from the pan while its still warm, so no need to wait for the pan to cool to invert it and then slice it.

2 The apples were required to be diced, but I grated it because I was not sure if my son would eat the cake if it had chunks of apples in it. He usually eats all fruits and especially apples and pears are his favorite. But I can never guess him. The apples were really invisible, so if you have a picky eater sneak the apples by grating.

3 I was wondering what to do about the sweetness. If it’s not sweet enough you can always sprinkle some powdered sugar, have it with vanilla ice cream etc. But how to reduce the sweetness. Then I got this idea of coating the cake with unsweetened chocolate so that the bitterness would offset the sweetness. I wanted to try it immediately but did not have it at home. Sent my husband immediately to the grocery store and he got the Baker’s unsweetened baking chocolate. It’s a pack of 8 individually wrapped squares of plain chocolate. I wanted to test very little first. So melted 3 squares in the microwave oven. Cooled it a little bit. I decided to shaped the cake into small balls and dip it in the melted chocolate so that it would resemble truffles. Since the cake was slightly warm and moist I was able to proceed with the idea and shaped them into small balls. Dipped the cake quickly into the melted chocolate and placed it in a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. I had a perfect slice of cake as well. My husband dipped 3 sides of the cake in the chocolate. I placed the baking sheet in the fridge for the chocolate to set. I couldn’t contain my excitement to taste it. Managed to wait until the next day morning. The chocolate had set perfectly and I took a bite of the apple cake truffle and was literally doing the happy dance. It tasted so good! The bitterness of the unsweetened chocolate took care of the sweetness perfectly. The taste was phenomenal. I’m very glad that I tried this apple cake recipe.