Jelly-In-The-Middle Muffins - Vegan, Whole Wheat

Here in Laveen, we have quite a wonderful gardening group. If you are on Facebook you can find us there (https://www.facebook.com/groups/161227934003355/) talking about everything from desert native plants to exotic food plants, and occasionally recipes we make with them. We often share the food we grow, and although so far this season my garden has not has a lot of luck, I have high hopes for next season. And in the mean time, some of my neighbors sell or give away their locally produced foods. Today Patch made these awesome muffins and at my request she used the strawberry jam one neighbor gave me, and another kind from another, and locally produced cherry & fig preserves as well. They are SO GOOD!

Originally the recipe came from an old cookbook we have in the cupboard called Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook, but we altered it to be vegan since I'm allergic to eggs and milk doesn't seem to be reacting well with my stomach again these days. Right now Patch is also making a version with cheese and Jalepenos which I bet Milo could easily make vegan by using his Treese. I don't know if that's the right spelling, but it's a vegan "cheese" product he really likes :) Check out his Vegan Meal Adventures (https://www.facebook.com/keepingvegan) some time for some awesome recipes using it. In the mean time, here is the Vegan Jelly-In-The-Middle Muffin recipe Patch and I came up with:

Tips:
Start the chia seeds soaking before you do anything else, that way they are ready when you get to them in the recipe
Do not use baking cups on your muffin tin with these, spread veggie oil or veggie shortening (like the thick coconut oil) in the tin instead

Ingredients:
Egg Replacer:
3 Tablespoons water & 1 Tablespoon Chia seeds

Dry Ingredients:
1 & 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 & 1/4 teaspoons baking soda

Liquids:
3/4 cup Almond Milk (or your favorite milk replacement)
1/4 cup vegetable oil

Jelly:
12 teaspoons of your favorite jelly

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
Mix 3 Tablespoons water with 1 Tablespoon Chia seeds in small bowl and set aside for about 10 to 15 minutes to soak which will replace 1 egg (ground flax seeds can also be used for this)
Mix dry ingredients (1 & 3/4 cups whole wheat flour, 1/3 cup brown sugar, 2 & 1/4 teaspoons baking soda) and make a well in the middle
Mix egg replacer after it holds together in a consistency much like egg with 3/4 cup Almond Milk (or your favorite milk replacement) and 1/4 cup vegetable oil and pour all at once into the well in the middle of the dry ingredients.
Stir until mixture is just moistened (Do not over stir, batter will still be lumpy)
Lightly grease muffin tin (coconut oil might work for this, we use walnut oil,
Pour into muffin tin
Place 1 teaspoon of jelly on top in the center of each muffin, and it will sink inside as it bakes
Bake in a 400 degree oven about 20 minutes or until golden brown

Makes 1 dozen medium sized muffins (not the bite sized but not the large over sized ones either)
Edit: The butter you see out was used to grease the tin for the original batch which Patch made following the original recipe. Later, I helped her edit the recipe to make it vegan, and after that, she made a 3rd batch with jalepeno and cheese to have later with dinner.