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Since the arrival of our new more-functions-than-I-can-imagine food processor, hubby has been churning out gluten free, Paleo approved muffins like a madman.  Yes, he fancies the new heavy machinery.  He also fancies the muffins.  And the muffins hubby bakes are GOOD.  He experiments with ingredient combinations – coconut flour, almond flour, nuts, berries, bananas, apricots, cranberries, strawberries, and even an avocado thrown in; always moist, delicious, the perfect breakfast or afternoon treat alongside a cafe con leche.

It’s been wonderful to be spoiled by someone else baking.  However, it’s also meant that I need to step up my game.

Roost’s beautiful “Cranberry & Almond Upside Down Cakes” seemed like the perfect contest entry into our unspoken “bake-off”.  I could glean some dried cranberries (in place of the fresh ones the recipe calls for) from my husband’s stash, gather a lemon off the tree, and zest an orange off another (our orange tree yields beautiful smelling yet awful tasting fruit).  As another deviation from the original, I added clementine slices to the fruit topping for an additional zing of flavor and also to replace moisture lost with the dried cranberry substitution.

Cranberry & Clementine Upside Down Cakes (adapted from Roost’s “Cranberry & Almond Upside Down Cakes”)

Ingredients (makes 1 dozen):

Muffin ingredients:

  • 2 1/2 cups almond flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 3 eggs
  • 1/2 cup almond butter
  • 1/2 cup honey

For the fruit topping:

  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries
  • 12 clementine wedges
  • 1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
  • 1 tablespoon freshley grated lemon zest
  • 1/4 cup honey

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F (170 degrees C).

Combine and whisk the dry ingredients for the muffin (flour, salt, baking soda, and spices).  In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients (eggs, almond butter, and honey).  Next, combine wet and dry ingredients, set aside.

Combine and toss all ingredients (except for the clementine wedges) for the fruit topping.  Lightly grease muffin tins; place one clementine wedge in the center of each tin.  Next, spoon a bit of the cranberry mixture into each tin, dividing the mixture equally.  Top each tin with muffin batter, smoothing out the mixture and covering evenly.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are a golden brown.

Yeah, hubby – bring it on!