Chai Fig Breakfast Muffins

The perfect sweet and spicy muffin for a grab and go breakfast or snack… all with no added sugar. Oh, and did I mention that they’re also top 9 free? You’re welcome.

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If you’ve been around for awhile, you know that I’m here for all of the beautiful figs that bless us for a few short weeks every year. Last year I really wanted to make some delicious fig and date muffins, but by the time I had the inspiration, fig season had passed (and I really wanted the texture of fresh figs in the muffin). 10 or so months later, and here we are… a different recipe than what 2021 me envisioned, and so much better!

I can’t decide what I love most about these muffins, the complex balance of chai spice, fig and citrus, or the fact that there is zero added sugar. I really love how the chai spice and subtle orange flavor pair with the fig. I wasn’t sure if it would balance well, to be honest. But the I wanted to think about these as a breakfast muffin, so the chai felt like a risk worth exploring. It’s a subtle chai flavor- like ordering your Starbucks iced chai with half the chai. Now take that iced chai and pair it with a fig newton, but with orange… ok, the analogy broke down on me there, but the point is: half the chai!

I don’t like a lot of sugar for breakfast, so not sweetening these muffins was intentional. Plus, who needs sugar in the morning? The dates add enough sweetness to the muffins on their own, and then you bite into a tiny piece of fresh fig… it’s perfection, no sugar required.

To keep these muffins egg free, we used the ‘buttermilk’ trick. Take your room temperature dairy free milk (I like unsweetened oat milk) and add apple cider vinegar; let sit for 5 minutes. While the ‘buttermilk’ rests, bring ~1 cup of water to boil. Place the pitted dates in a bowl and pour boiling water over the dates; let rest for 5 minutes. Dice your fresh figs and set aside. Mix together your dry ingredients: oat flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and chai spice blend. (As a side note: just buy gluten free oats and blend into flour on your own… there is no sense in paying double the price for pre milled oat flour!)

Strain the dates. To a blender add: dates, ‘buttermilk’, avocado oil, orange zest and vanilla. Puree until smooth. With a wooden spoon or spatula, mix into dry ingredients. Add the orange juice and diced figs and fold into the mixture until incorporated (don’t over mix). Add the batter into lined muffin tins and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Happy Breakfast!

Yield: 9 muffins

Prep time: 10 minutes

Bake time: 20 minutes

Chai Fig Muffin Ingredients

• 1/2 cup oat milk, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup pitted, dried dates
• 1 cup diced fresh figs
• 1-1/2 cup oat flour
• 1-1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon chai spice blend
• 1/4 cup avocado oil
• 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

Chai Fig Muffin Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a muffin tin.
2. Add apple cider vinegar to room temperature oat milk; let sit for 5 minutes.
3. Bring 1 cup of water to boil. Place the pitted dates in a bowl and pour boiling water over the dates; let rest for 5 minutes and strain.
4. Dice fresh figs and set aside.
5. Mix together dry ingredients: oat flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and chai spice blend. Set aside.
6. In a blender, add strained dates, oat milk, avocado oil, orange zest and vanilla. Puree until smooth.
7. With a wooden spoon or spatula, mix into dry ingredients. Add the orange juice and diced figs and fold into the mixture until incorporated (don’t over mix).
8. Add the batter into prepared muffin tin and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes

I’m interested in trying these with some other fall fruit: perhaps fig and apple, or pear? How have you played with the recipe? Let me know- I can’t wait to hear all about your creations!