1 cup plain soy milk

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 very ripe bananas

cup canola oil

cup sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cups whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour

cup wheat germ

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

2 teaspoon baking powder

teaspoon salt

PREHEAT THE oven to 375F. Lightly grease a 12-cup m.u.f.fin tin with cooking spray.

Pour the soy milk into a measuring cup and add the vinegar to it. Set it aside to curdle.

Meanwhile, mash the bananas in a large mixing bowl. Add the soy milk mixture to the bowl along with the oil, sugar, and vanilla, and mix well.

In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, wheat germ, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt. Add this to the banana mixture and use a wooden spoon to gently stir the ingredients, until all the dry ingredients are just moistened.

Fill the m.u.f.fin cups three-quarters full and bake for 22 minutes. Remove from the oven and, once cool enough to handle, transfer to a cooling rack to cool the rest of the way. You can also serve them warm, if you like!

CARROT-PINEAPPLE SUNSHINE m.u.f.fINS.

MAKES 12 m.u.f.fINS.

TIME: ABOUT 40 MINUTES.

Bring some happy-fun-time-pineapple-carrot joy to your dismal-gray-sad morning with these tender widdle m.u.f.fins. They really are like a burst of sunshine!

cup vanilla soy yogurt (or any flavored yogurt, such as lemon or peach)

cup plain or vanilla soy milk

1 tablespoons ground flaxseed

cup canola oil

cup brown sugar

cup crushed pineapple, well drained (use canned only; reserve juice)

cup pineapple juice, reserved from crushed canned pineapple

cup finely shredded carrot (about 1 large carrot)

1 heaping teaspoon finely grated orange zest (from 1 large orange)

cup Thompson or golden raisins

1 cups whole wheat pastry flour or all-purpose flour, or a combination of both

1 teaspoons baking powder

teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground ginger

teaspoon ground cinnamon

teaspoon salt

These m.u.f.fins don"t rise very high, preferring to have a flat, crisp top instead. So don"t be afraid to fill each m.u.f.fin cup to the top, or even a little bit past that.

Fresh pineapple doesn"t work so well in this recipe, so be sure to use only canned, crushed pineapple. The enzymes in fresh pineapple can interfere with the leavening process and cause uneven baking.