Jeff and Joan Stanford came west to Carmel, California to find careers in education, agreeing to help manage a small inn while looking for work. Jobs were scarce, the United States was in recession, and they found themselves enjoying their guests and rehabilitating the property they managed. Looking to the future, they chose to continue inn-keeping, and by 1980 they were in Mendocino starting a family. Joan ran the front, while Jeff remodeled the inn and created their certified organic farm on the site of what had been known as the China Gardens during Mendocino’s logging era.
The Inn allowed both of them to return to their former interests. Passionate about early education, Joan trained as a Montessori teacher which led her to discover the power of art to transform human experience. She enrolled in psychology at Sonoma State University and received an MA, specializing in Art Therapy. Today she is a registered art therapist, collagist, and educator.
Jeff recognized that the “state of realization” that so many sought in the movement of the 1970s and 80s must come from a new relationship with life, beginning in the kitchen, where decisions affect the practitioner and the planet. He became vegetarian as a first step to honor all life, not only the lives of his family, friends, and pets. He and Joan sought to create an inn that sat softly upon the earth. They created one of the first “green” bed and breakfast inns without realizing they were doing so.
Understanding that their Inn was a destination, Jeff and Joan wanted to provide the highest quality food to their guests, which Jeff began cooking in the early 1990s. The restaurant followed their philosophy serving a whole food, plant-based dishes designed to rival the cuisine found at the highest rated restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. They discovered that many cooks can create great food, and they created a co-creative kitchen where all are invited to comment and tweak dishes. The final arbiter is Jeff, but the process is dynamic and assures that each person in the kitchen can express their creativity. Learn more at ravensrestaurant.com and stanfordinn.com.
I was gifted a copy from BenBella Books and I have thoroughly enjoyed trying several of the recipes. One of my favorites is "Classic Breakfast Muffins".
This is a very quick and easy recipe, it uses ground flax mixed with water as a binder, however, I got ahead of myself and mixed the ground flax in with the dry ingredients, instead of mixing it with the wet, it didn't change the outcome -- delicious!
PrintClassic Breakfast Muffins
A breakfast treat, these muffins are like desserts--just one serving is fine, and not every day. Guests enjoy these and often ask for the recipe--it's another that causes people to say, "I can't believe there's no egg!"
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 12 1x
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, I used half whole wheat, half all-purpose
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoon golden flaxseed, ground to a fine powder
- 1 cup soymilk, I used almond milk
- ½ cup water
- ⅓ cup coconut oil, melted
- 2 tablespoons organic applesauce
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¼ cup fruit (blueberries, chopped strawberries, bananas, etc.; optional) I used ⅔ cups of fruit
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tin or line with muffin cups.
- Whisk (affiliate link) together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk (affiliate link) together flaxseed, soy or almond milk, water, coconut oil, applesauce, lemon juice and vanilla extract.
- Add the wet mixture to the dry, and stir until just combined. Fold in the fruit.
- Spoon batter into the muffin tin, dividing among muffin cups.
- Bake for 15 -25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into middle of muffin comes out clean.
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Desiree says
Hi! I had a question about the recipe, is the flaxseed used whole or ground? And if I don't have lemon juice, can I sub lime juice or just leave it out all together? So excited to try this recipe! 🙂
Celeste says
Hi Desiree, the flaxseed used is ground, I will go in and change to make it more clear. Thanks for leaving the question. I hope you make this one and enjpy it as much as we did in my house.
Celeste says
Desiree, for the other part of your question, I would use lime to replace the acid form the lemons.
Marissa D says
We love muffins, making sure they are healthy is important to me but there are just so many options. Thanks for sharing!
Celeste says
These are so delicious Marissa, I hope you give them a try.
Deborah Davis says
Hi Celeste,
What a tantalizing word picture your painted in your story of the Raven Inn and Restaurant and the wonderful plant-based food they serve. I look forward to getting a copy of “Dining At The Ravens”and enjoying the Ravens Restaurant's vegan recipes. The recipe for classic breakfast muffins looks so moist and delicious. It is just the recipe I was looking for to make some tasty, low-cholesterol breakfast muffins for my husband. He is very picky and doesn't like desserts that taste "healthy" so this yummy recipe might just do the trick while protecting his health. Thanks for sharing Dining at the Ravens and classic breakfast muffins with us at the Healthy Happy Green & Natural Party. I'm pinning and sharing.
Walking on Sunshine Recipes says
Thank you for joining Delicious Dishes Recipe Party!
Celeste says
Thanks, I always like a good party!
Nikki says
Buggers,, I missed the deadline for the cookbook! But I love the story behind Ravens, that is so cool that they started a green bed and breakfast without even knowing it was a thing. They were just trying to do the best by the people that trusted them, and they started something pretty incredible. I'm going to try your recipe, I do have ground flax at home I keep forgetting to add it when I'm cooking or baking. Duh!
sara says
Yum! Thanks for the great recipe! Thanks for sharing at Merry Monday!
Celeste says
You are welcome Sara!
Thanks for hosting the Merry Monday Link Party.
Susan Gay says
Muffins are a favorite, can't wait to give them a try!
Celeste says
Thanks Susan, enjoy!!!
Tonya says
Mmmm! I spelled your muffins a million blogs away, yummers! I love the Ravens Resturant, a Vegan's paradise!!! Great post!!
Celeste says
Thank you Kathryn, I hope you are having a great weekend.
Good luck!
Charlotte says
wow these muffins look delicious and looks like a fab giveaway too! I love finding new cookbooks!
Sarah | Well and Full says
The Ravens Restaurant looks absolutely beautiful... I can't believe everything is vegan!! And an eco resort sounds right up my alley too. It looks like my perfect getaway!
Celeste says
Yes, it a wonderful place, I'm trying to schedule a trip in the fall.
Thanks Sarah for visiting.
Lori Schumaker says
These look delicious! Your images are gorgeous, too! I am for sure pinning these to save for later! Yum!
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Celeste says
Thanks Lori,I hope you are having a wonderful weekend.
Sherry says
I love muffins for breakfast but most recipes are full of fat and sugar and not on our plan. I am so glad to see a healthy muffin recipe. Thanks.
Celeste says
I hope you have a chance to give these a try soon.
Have a great weekend.
Carrie Groneman says
Oh my, I would LOVE one of those muffins right now. How delish and to think they are egg-free too! I hope to go to The Ravens someday soon, what a fabulous place to visit!
Celeste says
I wish I lived closer to The Ravens, but hopefully I'll have a chance to visit in the fall.
Carol says
These muffins look so delicious and I really enjoyed reading the history of the Inn.
Celeste says
I think it is a wonderful place and wonderful people. Hope to visit soon.
lynn says
Happy Friday Celeste...these muffins look so moist and I know they've got to be tasty. The Ravens looks like my kind of restaurant. We were out in that area 2 summers ago; wish I knew about it then.
Thanks for the delicious recipe.
Have a great weekend.
Lynn
Celeste says
Hi Lynn, I think that this inn would be the best place ever to visit. Hopefully one day soon!
Hope you are having a wonderful weekend.
Anita says
This recipe looks so delicious! Hi, I'm Anita visiting from Link Party Palooza.
Celeste says
Thanks Anita, I hope you have a chance to try it soon.
Thanks for visiting.
Gina says
I wish I had some of those muffins right now! I love making healthy recipes like this and find that I like them a lot more than others. They're so much more filling! The addition of flaxseed as a binding agent is genius! Flaxseed is one of my favorite ingredients and I'm always looking to use it in recipes. I'll be pinning this for later. And I entered the giveaway, thanks for hosting it!! 🙂
Celeste says
Hi Gina, Hopefully you will love these as much as I do. It's hard to have just one for breakfast or an afternoon snack.
Good luck and have a nice weekend.