One Bowl Sweet Potato Pie Muffins

Oddball shopping list for supermarket/Whole Foods but worth it:

• Big jar Dr. Bronner's Organic Virgin Coconut Oil.
• Sack of Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer Powder.
• Beautiful big sack of Bob's Red Mill 100% Whole Grain Ivory Organic Wheat Flour. [I bought at grocery store and have already loved results in my grandma's Irish Soda Bread; Brown Butter Skillet Cornbread; Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies; H.'s potato pancakes; and these muffins.]

I Xeroxed [I think that's the word we used back then] this recipe from the December 1989 issue of Glamour Magazine. The original recipe, for "Jen's Sweet Potato Muffins," was contributed by Jennifer Kapp of Los Gatos, California, who was quoted as saying, I wanted to eat healthy things while I was pregnant but those healthy things were never handy, only junk was.

I lived down at the shore in my Ocean Grove apartment; H. and I had been dating since late 1986. The recipe page showed a woman with a big pregnant belly, and I had it up on my fridge.

What's that? H. asked, bemused and kind of nervous when he saw it. I immediately could tell what he feared--and immediately reassured him, no such worry. Fast forward 28 years, and our firstborn is a vegan young woman, age 21. I decided to tweak the recipe to make it vegan. Some recipes lend themselves to powdered egg replacer and coconut oil--many don't.

These are delicious, Alice, H. said. Figgy thought so, too. But again, Punch turned her nose up at the wholesome snack. I hope you like them.

ONE BOWL SWEET POTATO PIE MUFFINS  

These easy, packable treats are moist and almost pudding-y, like your grandma's best Thanksgiving sweet potato pie.

1 15-ounce can organic sweet potato puree
1/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut milk
1/2 cup melted coconut oil, plus more to grease muffin pan
1 tablespoon egg replacer powder, mixed with 3 tablespoons water [to replace one egg]
1 1/3 cups Bob's Red Mill 100% Whole Grain Ivory Organic Wheat Flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon [I love smoother Korintje cinnamon, but any kind is fine]
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup toasted, chopped pecans [I was hungry and ate them before they made it into the muffins, but they would be a great addition.]

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly brush the wells of a 12-cup muffin pan with melted coconut oil.
2. Using a fork, beat sweet potato puree, brown sugar, coconut milk, coconut oil and egg replacer mixture until smooth.
3. Add flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and pecans, if using. Stir with spoon until blended.
4. Spoon batter into muffin pan.
5. Bake 25 to 30 minutes.