Pineapple and Mango Cupcake Muffins

Summer is finally here and what could be more summery than pineapple and mango?

I debated about whether these treats should be called cupcakes or muffins, since technically I guess cupcakes have frosting, but they are just so perfect as a snack or dessert, I hated to call them muffins and limit them to a specific time of day to be enjoyed.  Therefore, I have developed a new category of food:  the cupcake muffin!

And speaking of summer…

The cicadas are out in full force here and I am feeling like an expendable extra in a Hitchcock movie.

Logically, I know they can’t hurt me, but that part of my brain seems to have gone on vacation and the part that is left is telling me that running and screaming is the best course of action.

Taking the dog out requires me to don a hoodie, glasses and long pants despite the 90 degree weather.  It’s my DIY home version of a hazmat suit. I crack open the door an inch at a time to make sure there is not a ravenous horde of the nasty looking little suckers lurking on the door, doorframe, step or walkway, just waiting to swarm me.  The dog, meanwhile, sighs and rolls her eyes, and has even on occasion stamped her little foot in frustration.  She does not seem to comprehend the mortal danger we face in our very own yard.

Once out on our walk, she strolls along nonchalantly, sniffing all her usual spots while I duck and weave my way down the street in a manner that would make Mike Tyson proud…or more likely have him looking  for the nearest escape route.  I’m pretty sure most of the neighbors think I am either practicing for “So You Think You Can Dance” (and giving me a total score of zero) or that I have had waaaay too much caffeine and need to dial back on the morning coffee.

Once we finally get home, I shake out my hoodie and pat myself down like a TSA agent looking for a deadly safety pin that someone is trying to smuggle onboard.  Poor Chloe still can’t figure out why she has to stand at the door while her mother beats herself up.

All this is not without reason though (at least in my mind).  I have had two hitch a ride in the car with me; one casually sitting on my shoulder trying to direct me to the nearest cicada rave, the other flitting up and down the inside of the front window looking for love in all the wrong places.  This is not counting the three that have gotten into the house through the fireplace, throwing themselves against the screen when I am the only one in the room and then silently hiding whenever anyone else enters.  I suspect they are marshaling a cicada army and are getting ready to invade as soon as Tim leaves for work one day.

All in all, even though summer has just barely started and I’m excited about  all the fresh fruit and produce that is available, I’m kind of looking forward to fall when the cicadas are all safely tucked back underground for another seventeen years.

Ingredients for Pineapple:

• 1  1/2 cups pineapple puree
• 3 Tablespoons chia seeds (preferably white)
• 1  1/2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1  1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons monkfruit (or sugar)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups Bob’s Red Mill paleo flour
• 1  1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Ingredients for Mango:

• 1  1/2 cups mango puree
• 3 Tablespoons chia seeds (preferably white)
• 1  1/2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1  1/2-2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons monkfruit (sugar)
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 cups  Bob’s Red Mill paleo flour
• 1  1/2 teaspoons baking soda

Directions:

1. Place all ingredients in a high speed blender in the order listed (choosing either the pineapple or mango) and puree till smooth.  Allow the batter to sit 5 – 10 minutes for the chia seeds to absorb the liquid.
2. Using an ice cream scoop, put 1 scoop of the batter in each of 12 lined muffin tins.
3. Bake 20-25 minutes  (if you’d like, you can place a thin slice of the fruit on top for the last 5 minutes.)

Enjoy!