My last pick from Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafe's Most Loved Sweets & Savories (Chronicle Books, June 2013) by Joanne Chang from Flour Bakery in Boston was Farmers' Market Salad for lunch.

This time, let's think breakfast for tomorrow.

Vegan Vanilla-Mixed Berry Muffins

We have a rule at Flour that if something is labeled “gluten free” or “low fat,” it has to be just as delicious to those who are not concerned about the label as to those who are. The same goes for our vegan items. We created this muffin to satisfy our growing number of customers who have converted to veganism, and it has as many non-vegan fans as vegan ones. In fact, most people don’t believe us when we tell them that it’s vegan. To the nonbelievers the proof is in the tin. In developing this muffin recipe, we realized that many vegan pastries make up for their lack of dairy and eggs by being super sweet and extra oily. We held back on the sugar and oil to create a scrumptious fluffy muffin that people of all dietary preferences will enjoy.

Makes 12 Muffins

2 2⁄3 cups/370 g all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
1 cup/200 g granulated sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp/210 ml vegetable oil
1 1⁄3 cups/315 ml plain soy milk
2 tbsp distilled white or cider vinegar
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup/130 g fresh or frozen raspberries
1 cup/150 g fresh or frozen blueberries
special equipment: 12-cup standard muffin tin

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C, and place a rack in the center of the oven. Line the cups of the muffin tin with paper liners or generously oil and flour them.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and 3⁄4 cup plus 2 tbsp/175 g of the sugar and stir until well mixed. In a separate bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, soy milk, vinegar, and vanilla. Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into the middle of the well. Stir with a rubber spatula until well mixed. Add the raspberries and blueberries and mix until the fruit is evenly distributed.

3. Spoon an equal amount of batter into each prepared muffin cup. Sprinkle the tops with the remaining 2 tbsp sugar.

4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the muffins are pale gold and the tops spring back when pressed gently in the middle. Let cool in the tin on a wire rack before popping them out. The muffins taste best on the day they are baked, but any uneaten muffins can be stored in a covered container at room temperature for 2 or 3 days. For the best results, refresh them in a 300°F/150°C oven for 4 to 5 minutes. vegan apple-cinnamon muffins variation: Omit the vanilla extract, raspberries, and blueberries. Mix . tsp ground cinnamon with the flour, baking soda, salt, and sugar. Peel, core, and chop 2 Granny Smith apples and fold them into the finished muffin batter. Proceed as directed.

(* Recipe from Flour, Too: Indispensable Recipes for the Cafe's Most Loved Sweets & Savories - published by Chronicle Books, June 2013- by Joanne Chang, reproduced with permission, all rights reserved...photos by Michael Harlan Turkell)