Soaked pumpkin spice muffins

Have you ever heard of soaking whole grains? Many of us haven't but soaking as well as sprouting was the practice in the days of Jesus for example. Soaking increases the nutrient content of whole grains and makes them easily digestible for us.

The problem with whole grains is a little thing called Phytic acid. It prevents the minerals in the grain from absorbing into our bodies and can ultimately lead to mineral deficiency. Enter soaking! When you soak the whole grains, a little guy by the name of Pytase shows up. This little fella is an enzyme that breaks the Phytic acid apart but there are some conditions that Pytase demands:

1. Moisture 

2. Time 

3. Warmth

4. Acidic environment

And that is exactly what soaking is. Moisture is the water in your recipe, length of time is 12 to 24 hrs, warmth is sitting in the room temperature and acidic environment is brought on by either buttermilk or plain yogurt. By soaking whole grains, you can lessen the gluten sensitivity.

If you would like to try a recipe, here is one for soaked pumpkin muffins.

My dough after soaking

Recipe:

1 2/3 cup white whole wheat flour
1 c. pureed pumpkin
3/4 c. water + 2 Tbs buttermilk or plain yogurt
1/2 c. melted butter

Mix the ingredients together and let soak or rest on the counter for 12 - 24 hrs. 

NOTE: I melted the butter first and let it cool off while mixing the rest of the ingredients.

The next day add:
1 cup sugar or natural granular alternative
2 eggs
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Pour into muffin cups and bake 45 minutes at 325 degrees F. Let cool for 5 min.

NOTE: These muffins will be wetter than normal so be very careful not to over-bake them.
Also, you could switch the butter to organic raw coconut oil and lessen the amount of sugar to between 1/2 to 3/4 cup. I used Sugar in the Raw which is not organic but is what my husband brought home from the store. The eggs I used were organic free range and salt was Real salt.

In my opinion, these muffins were so light that I never would have guessed they were whole wheat had I not made them myself. Wonderful recipe and a great addition to my repertoire. 

Thank you Kitchen Stewardship for the posting this recipe!