Cardamom Spiced Parsnip & Date Muffins with Honey & Cream Cheese Frosting
Folks, these muffins are a game changer for us. They’re absolutely delicious and packed full of hearty ingredients so even though they’re topped with “frosting” they’re actually quite nourishing and suitable enough for a hearty breakfast (I’m obviously no doctor but I feel great after consuming one of these babies with a cup of coffee or tea before tackling my day!) In keeping with the spirit of using mostly local ingredients I am happy to report that aside from the cardamom and dates (California Medjool dates are my absolute favorite!) the ingredients in these muffins came from our farm and surrounding farms in the Pacific Northwest. I used Oregon hazelnut flour instead of traditional wheat flour but feel free to use almond flour or any nut flour if you can’t find hazelnut flour. And for those local Oregon folks out there, I used Nancy’s cream cheese for the frosting and it was divine!
Cardamom Spiced Parsnip & Date Muffins with Honey Cream Cheese Frosting
Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 20 minutes Serves: 12 muffins
Muffins- 2 cups Hazelnut Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 cup hazelnut oil (or another neutral tasting oil)
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup shredded parsnips
- 1/2 cup chopped dates
- 1/2 cup toasted hazelnuts, roughly chopped (reserve some of this mixture for sprinkling on top of the muffins)
- 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese (room temperature)
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 cup honey
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a standard 12 cup muffin tin and set aside.
- In a large bowl combine the hazelnut flour, salt, baking soda, and cardamom.
- In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, oil, honey and vanilla. Gently fold in the shredded parsnips, dates and hazelnuts. Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix well.
- Divide the batter between the muffin tins and bake in the oven until lightly browned and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the center of a muffin. About 18 minutes.
- Prepare the frosting by beating the cream cheese and butter together with a mixer until light and fluffy. Stir in the vanilla and honey and continue to beat until smooth and well incorporated. Taste test and adjust as needed.
- Let the cupcakes cool completely before frosting. Sprinkle with reserved crushed hazelnuts and enjoy!
Notes
Cooking times will very from kitchen to kitchen
Made these after a bad day, really enjoyed them! I will neither confirm nor deny I ate two in one sitting! I only used a 1/2 tsp cardamom (instead of a full tsp) in the batter and 2 tbsp honey in the frosting (instead of 1/4 cp). I forgot to mix in the chopped hazelnuts and sprinkled them on top before putting the muffins in the oven (they made a lovely lid). Bake time was 23 minutes for me. Thanks for the great recipe!
These were fantastic. We didn’t even need the frosting. Can’t wait to make another batch!
Great recipe – with these times I had to make due with what I had on hand. I used the almond flour as you suggest but I did not have dates. I subbed in chopped dried apricots and they came out great.
Soooo good! The dates get all sticky, like caramel bombs within the muffin. Such a nice flavor combo with the cardamom/parsnip/hazelnut balance. I used half hazelnut flour and half almond flour since that’s what I had. Didn’t do the frosting, maybe next time. My two toddlers loved these, as did all the adults too. Great recipe!
These muffins look way! How can you use baking soda without an acid?