Ginger A-fred

I used to have such a deep-rooted fear of ginger root that the only way I could stand the flavor of it was in the form of powder.
Now, for some bewildering reason, I can’t seem to get enough of it.
La donna è mobile*, for real, and further proof of the fact is that I also used to hate peanut butter when I first invaded the States. It should be quite obvious that it’s not even remotely close to being an issue anymore.
You’ll find that these muffins taste (and look) quite chocolatey, even though they contain a mere 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder. No one’s complaining about that over here.
Also, have you seen the size of the berries? They’re from the Joe, who apparently likes to purchase his produce from mutant-loving farmers.
Ginger Cranberry Muffins 2 cups (240 g) whole-wheat pastry flour
1/4 cup (20 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup (96 g) raw sugar
3/4 cup (180 ml) almond or other nondairy milk
1/2 cup (120 g) vanilla soy or other nondairy yogurt
1/4 cup (60 ml) canola oil
1/4 cup (88 g) blackstrap or regular molasses
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon (8 g) grated ginger root
2/3 cup (42 g) fresh cranberries, halvedPreheat oven to 350°F (180°C, or gas mark 4).
Line a standard muffin tin with paper liners.
In a large bowl, sift together flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk in sugar. Set aside.
In a small bowl, whisk together milk, yogurt, oil, molasses, and ginger.
Fold wet ingredients into dry, being careful not to over mix.
Fold in cranberry halves.
Divide batter equally into muffin cups. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack.Yield: 12 muffins
*The woman is fickle.
Jes said,
December 1, 2008 at 11:38 am
*Drooling* And the cranberries look pretty awesome, actually.
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Becks~not a rabbit said,
December 1, 2008 at 11:54 am
They look awesome!
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VeggieGirl said,
December 1, 2008 at 11:55 am
HOOOOOOLY yum.
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Esi said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:11 pm
The woman certainly is fickle! I also thought I didn’t like ginger, until about a month and a half ago. Now I am using it all the time! These are beautiful.
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allularpunk said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:12 pm
YUM! i think i actually have all the ingredients for these at home right now, so i may make these later! great looking recipe ya got there, lady. and i dunno about women being fickle (ha), but i DO know that supposedly your taste buds change every 7 years. maybe that is to blame? i’m still waiting for mine to change into mushroom loving mode. a few years back i got to finally start enjoying things like avocados and sweet potatoes after years of hating them. ginger’s never been an issue for me though, so i’m totally excited about doing some baking for these later :D
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Rosa said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:15 pm
Beautiful! They look fantastic!
Cheers,
Rosa
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Shelby said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:17 pm
You’ve done it again! Seriously, just come a cook for me. I love all of your recipes.
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jessy said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:29 pm
sweet jeebus! ginger, chocolate, cranberries, AND molasses?!? hot damn! you’re too awesome, Celine!
i was thinking that those cranberries looked pretty gigantical! ahahahaa! awesome!
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Gina said,
December 1, 2008 at 12:51 pm
Those look beyond awesome. Yumm!!
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hannehanne said,
December 1, 2008 at 1:12 pm
Wow, what an interesting combination! Rich cocoa, spicy ginger, tangy cranberries… I’m fascinated, and very tempted.
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vaala said,
December 1, 2008 at 1:13 pm
Ooo, beautiful! I want some :)
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Courtney said,
December 1, 2008 at 1:47 pm
These look great…except for the ginger! Haha–I am still not a huge fan. But maybe these will be the muffins that start my conversion from a ginger hater to a ginger lover?! I will have to make them and see…
Courtney
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Nick said,
December 1, 2008 at 2:12 pm
The combination sounds wonderful although I’d never have thought of it. I’ll be needing some muffins soon and I think I have all these ingredients already!
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Isobel said,
December 1, 2008 at 2:26 pm
apparently you are a genius…gingerbread + chocolate = the two greatest things ever coming together as one and I am extremely excited to make these.
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Ricki said,
December 1, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Since I already love all those ingredients, I’m sure I’ll love them in combination! They look great. :)
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Vegetation said,
December 1, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Yes. It has been ages since we’ve had a catch up!
Mmmmm chocolately muffins. I love ginger, although funny enough used to hate it too! These days I put double in almost everything I put it in. Mmmmm.
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Cakespy said,
December 1, 2008 at 4:51 pm
I’ve had a lifelong love of ginger, and this just serves to continue the love affair!
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River (Wing-It Vegan) said,
December 1, 2008 at 5:33 pm
Awesome! Wow check out the size of those berries! YAY for mutant-loving farmers! :)
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culinarycory said,
December 1, 2008 at 5:44 pm
I’m surprised at how dark and rich they look for only having 2 TBL of cocoa. Of course, I’m sure the molasses is helping.
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bonbon said,
December 1, 2008 at 5:50 pm
I have so much ginger root in the freezer right now, I can’t wait to make these. All I need to get is some molasses, pit stop tomorrow evening!
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kittee said,
December 1, 2008 at 6:31 pm
So pretty, Celine.
xo
kittee
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lisa (show me vegan) said,
December 1, 2008 at 7:42 pm
The chocolate muffin dotted with cranberries is stunning. Your blog is always a pleasure.
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melisser said,
December 2, 2008 at 2:02 am
Wow, they look SO lovely!
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Sal said,
December 2, 2008 at 3:28 am
gorgeous – I love love LOVE the combo of ginger & chocolate.
I made some choc-ginger muffins the other week but never would have though to add cranberries, loving that idea!! I just bought some as well.
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shellyfish said,
December 2, 2008 at 4:43 am
You’re like the rock star of vegan goodies ma biche. Tu le sais?
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Tina said,
December 2, 2008 at 7:32 am
Oh my, delicious recipe! Beautiful photo too!
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eliane said,
December 2, 2008 at 7:44 am
I used to hate ginger, for me it tasted like soap. I sort of like it now, I guess it depends on the recipe.
I can use tofu instead of yogurt, right? maybe add some sugar, and vanilla extract…
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Celine said,
December 2, 2008 at 7:57 am
eliane: yeah, blended silken tofu does the trick. adding sugar isn’t necessary, but vanilla will never hurt.
shelly: ohlala. me fais pas rougir!
everyone: consider yourselves hugged. I’m in a mushy mood.
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kickpleat said,
December 2, 2008 at 9:47 am
ooh, i’m marking this recipe for sure! i’ve got cranberries and i love fresh ginger (no fear!). yum.
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Amy said,
December 2, 2008 at 10:21 am
OOOOOOOOOOH! Hmpf. Those are pretty as ever!!!
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Joanna said,
December 2, 2008 at 11:25 am
girl, you KNOW these on my “muffins to bake” list. i’m a little nervous about the combo of ginger and cocoa. i’ve never had them together in a recipe- it sounds delightfully dangerous!!! haha
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Sally Parrott Ashbrook said,
December 2, 2008 at 12:35 pm
The quality of light in your photos is always so gorgeous.
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Andrea said,
December 2, 2008 at 3:56 pm
These sound great. My kind of muffins!
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ruby red vegan said,
December 2, 2008 at 5:42 pm
Incredible, Celine! That’s what these muffins look like.
I only recently discovered how wonderful fresh ginger root tastes in sweets… I need to try this recipe soon!
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Diann said,
December 2, 2008 at 7:17 pm
I’m glad you decided to love ginger so you would make this muffin recipe. It looks so fantastic. Before I got my braces I loved to snack on Ginger Chews – very spicy and addictive.
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Tim said,
December 3, 2008 at 5:25 am
oh, these looks to amazing! yay for ginger loving.
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Jodye said,
December 3, 2008 at 11:46 am
I have been silently drooling over your recipes week after week now, and I must say I am so grateful that you and your blog exist. Everything you make looks delicious. I have a whole list of recipes from your blog that I’ve been meaning to try out. I am so in the mood for these muffins right now
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Veggie Wedgie said,
December 3, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Same thing with be about ginger.Used to hate it,now I add fresh ginger to my juice. Who knew?These muffins look adorable and I have some mutant cranberries sitting in my fridge as well…What a coincidence!
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Meagan said,
December 3, 2008 at 7:24 pm
This muffin looks awesome! I happen to have some extra TJ cranberries, so this will be the perfect thing to try out this weekend!
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Juma said,
December 4, 2008 at 1:33 am
Ginger with cocoa or chocolate is a match made in heaven. This muffins look absolutely delicious!
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Sanja said,
December 4, 2008 at 2:27 am
That’s funny: I feared ginger as well, now I can’t stop using it. It thought peanut butter was really gross, now I love it. Can you give me a heads up on what previously despised food we are going to like next? ;-)
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Sanja said,
December 4, 2008 at 2:28 am
O, and those muffins look (with the recipe in mind) sound amazing!
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Tami said,
December 4, 2008 at 11:54 am
Oh my goodness, Celine…these are perfection!
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Erin said,
December 4, 2008 at 12:06 pm
Soda-licious!
Have you thought about entering this in the Blogger Secret Ingredient contest? I don’t know if you’ve read about that or are interested, but if you are – let me know!
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foodphotoblog.com said,
December 4, 2008 at 3:53 pm
I love the combo of cranberries and ginger. Nice photography also.
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Celine said,
December 5, 2008 at 2:27 am
thanks, you guys! have a great weekend.
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Erin said,
December 5, 2008 at 1:52 pm
Those are some GINORMOUS cranberries! Oh, the possibilities!! :)
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Vivacious Vegan said,
December 5, 2008 at 4:24 pm
These look wonderful. My ginger-loving mom would love them. They would make a great addition to the next care package I send her.
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Celine said,
December 5, 2008 at 7:54 pm
Erin: they scare me a little.
VV: best daughter ever? you get the award! not because you’re thinking of including these, but for sending your mom a care package.
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Sophie said,
December 6, 2008 at 7:02 am
I have some mixed feelings when it comes to ginger too :D. I love the smell of fresh ginger, but it is quite strong when eaten raw. Incorporating it into a baked good is a good idea, though. Your muffins look beautiful, I love the contrast of colors and flavors. It’s a very festive and elegant photo :).
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Celine said,
December 6, 2008 at 7:28 am
Sophie, I am so not lying when I tell you I was just thinking about you this morning. we’re like, psychics, or something.
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Kelly said,
December 6, 2008 at 10:37 am
I am always both impressed and amused with the flavor combinations you come up with. I would have never thought to put cranberries, chocolate, and ginger together but I’m guessing it tastes amazing.
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Jude said,
December 7, 2008 at 11:13 pm
haha.. The bigger, the better, if you ask me.
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Liz² said,
December 7, 2008 at 11:25 pm
beautiful combination, wish I had mutant cranberries to try a batch right now!
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roberta said,
December 8, 2008 at 4:11 pm
hello, they look great, what about sub the molasses with malt syrup, do you think it could work?
thanks
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2012ad said,
December 8, 2008 at 10:40 pm
I absolutely LOVE ginger. In fact, I’ve been dropping hints all over the place to my mom that I want the Ginger Rush perfume and body cream from Origins in my stocking this year. It smells like you just rolled in candied ginger. Mmmmm.
These look FANTASTIC, though. I’m definitely bookmarking this recipe for later use! Gorgeous picture, as well. (Not that that’s a surprise, though!)
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jen said,
March 15, 2009 at 1:08 pm
made these today and they are so amazingly good. great flavour combo, very creative! thank you for posting!
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sofi said,
December 19, 2009 at 11:09 am
I finally had the chance to make these and they are delicious! They aren’t very sweet so I would be happy to eat them for breakfast. I had some extra batter which I poured into two 5 inch pans and whipped up some vanilla frosting to make a ginger-cranberry cake. This recipe goes very well with super sweet frosting too. Thank you!
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Celine Reply:
December 19th, 2009 at 11:57 am
no, thank YOU for taking the time to leave some feedback.
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