Barleycup & Chocolate Chip Muffins

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As a Latter Day Saint, I subscribe to a law of health which is called the Word of Wisdom.  As a part of that law,  we have been asked to abstain from drinking tea and coffee. This can be somewhat of a challenge, especially if you enjoy the flavours of teas and coffees. I have not imbibed them as hot drinks for a very long time now, but have still used them in baking. Recently however I challenged myself to come up with an alternative so that I could follow the WOW in every form, and so I have been using Barleycup as a healthy alternative.  For those of you who are not familiar with the product,  Barleycup is a range of instant hot drinks created from roasted cereals and chicory root, which are completely free from caffeine and artificial additives.

It is a very easy product to use.  Simply spoon the Barleycup into a mug and add boiling water.  This hot drink contains no sugar but has a tempting aroma and mild taste, coming in at only 10 calories per cup.  You can enjoy it on its own or with milk (including soy, almond or rice milk) as a part of a balanced diet.

There are four variations of Barleycup to choose from. Barleycup Powder, Barleycup Granules, Barleycup Organic and Barleycup with Dandelion. 

It is available in 200g jars from independent health food stores nationwide and on line. Our friends Tony and Tina actually use it to make milkshakes, which I haven’t done yet, but it is on my list of things to try. 

Basically however, I have been trying to use it in my baking as a suitable substitution for coffee.  First I used it in my Coffee & Walnut Cake recipe, with excellent results.  It was used both in the icing and in the cake itself and worked very well.  In fact I could barely tell the difference!

I love muffins.  They are like little cakes for one . . .  but not too sweet. I  like to think of them as a healthy alternative to cake.

Muffins are great for packing into lunch boxes!  Perfectly portable, they are great for breakfasts on the go, and they make great bring-alongs to work for break time and are probably a lot healthier than anything you could buy at a bake shop.

Adding Barleycup to these muffins adds some extra fibre, along with a mild flavour that is caffeine free and tastes good! Its also low in calories, so win/win/win! 

I like to use dark chocolate chips because they pack a lot of flavour and dark chocolate is actually quite good for you.  Try to find a chocolate chip with a high level of cacao.  Alternately you can chop of a bar of high level cacao chocolate into smaller bits.  This works fine.

  

As you can see these muffins rise tall with beautiful domed tops!  I love domed tops, and these muffins are just the perfect size.  You don’t need, and shouldn’t be,  eating anything larger than this!

Why not enjoy them along with a nice hot cup of Barleycup? A beautiful combination.  Caffeine free, filled with fibre and delicious too!

Barley Cup & Chocolate Chip Muffins

For further information and recipe inspiration, visit:  www.barleycup.com or @BarleycupUK on facebook. 

#BakingWithBarleycup