From Cherie's kitchen: Makin' it vegan -- Mom's blueberry wheat germ muffins

It is possible to take a great, old family recipe and make it even better by eliminating the animal products it contains - and makin' it vegan.

This recipe for blueberry wheat germ muffins was a breakfast staple in the Wyatt house for years. I still have the original hand-written recipe card from my late mom, Marie.

Not only is this recipe a classic - the recipe card is a cool family "artifact."

A few simple substitutions were necessary.

The first is easy enough, I substituted vegetable margarine for butter.

Second, I replaced regular milk with soy milk. Soy can be substituted directly in any recipe that calls for milk.

Lastly, I replaced one egg with 1/2 banana, mashed.

Keep in mind that eggs perform different functions depending on the recipe. In cakes, for example, eggs serve as a leavening agent to make the cake light and fluffy.

In cookies and muffins, eggs add moisture and act as a binder to "glue" all the ingredients together.

The fewer eggs a recipe contains, the easier it is to use a substitute.

In this recipe I used 1/2 banana mashed. A quarter cup of applesauce will work too.

Enjoy!

Marie's Blueberry Wheat Germ Muffins
Makes 12 muffins.

Ingredients:

1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup wheat germ
1/2 banana, mashed
1/2 cup soy milk
1/4 cup vegetable margarine, melted and slightly cooled.
1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen. (If using frozen, rinse berries to thaw.)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Sift together into a mixing bowl the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.

Stir in the wheat germ.

In a small bowl, beat together the soy milk and mashed banana. Then, stir in the margarine.

Add this mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring just enough until they are moistened. Fold in the blueberries.

Spoon batter into greased muffin pan (or use paper cupcake liners.)

Bake 20-25 minutes, or until done.