So apparently there was a tropical storm - named "Cindy" lol - headed to us in New Orleans all week and neither Matt nor I had really any clue until about one day ago which was when the sky turned black and it got really windy [insert upside down smiley emoji here]. It was fine and uneventful, so we made muffins and took turns wrapping Fox in different blankets. It wasn't our first massive storm rodeo. Anyone want to hear a hurricane story from me that isn't nearly as tragedy filled as all of my Katrina stories? Yes?

One time in college I lived in a shoddy third floor college apartment (Matt moved into it too, eventually!) and the property managers who owned the building were basically slum lords and everything was falling apart and there was discolored beige carpet everywhere. Different life, y'all, different life. One August, maybe in 2012, tropical storm Isaac hit the city and I was pretty much the only person affected. Everyone was out partying (we do that here, yes it's a bad idea) or playing poker by candle light and I just went and stayed the night by my dad's house. It was overall a very fine experience until I went home and found out my living room ceiling had fallen in!(!!!)

I know this doesn't sound like it would be funny. But for some reason when I walked into my already disgusting apartment and saw the sky above me and the glass blown out of all four floor windows in my living room I started laughing. Like, really hard. I don't really have any explanation for it. But it had something to do with the combination of owning nothing of literally any value, a strong dislike for the company that owned the house, and the pure irony of me being the only person I knew who had anything more then a few missing roof tiles.

Anyway, my brother came over and we both had no clue what to do so we just started tearing up the carpet (?) and tossing it out of the (now open air) windows (?) onto the ground three stories below (?). I don't really know what was going on, it's fine, it worked itself out.

Last night's tropical storm experience was hands down much better. And it gave me extra muffin experimentation time! This recipe is loosely based on the recipe on the back of the Bob's Red Mill paleo baking flour package - because I've made that exact recipe before and it's so good. But, because we love our protein things, we're adding in some Bob's Red Mill vanilla protein powder. And some frozen blackberries. This protein powder is super great for baking and mixing into bars because it has little chia seeds in it and easily takes on the texture of whatever you're baking it into. Definitely digging it. The paleo flour + protein powder mix does lend a denser muffin, but it honestly kinda makes them perfect for a hearty morning treat situation. Especially with a glass of vanilla almond milk. Do that for sure. Check out the full recipe below, and I hope you get to enjoy them without having to deal with stupid bad weather!

Blackberry Protein Muffins with Almond Crumble

takes: 45 minutes // makes: 12 large muffin

2 3/4 cups Bob's Red Mill paleo baking flour
1 cup (about 4 1/2 scoops) Bob's Red Mill vanilla protein powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 eggs
3/4 cup coconut oil, melted
3/4 cup light agave
1 tsp almond extract
2 cups frozen blackberries, not thawed

for the almond crumble

3/4 cup flour (gluten free, paleo, or all purpose will work here)
1/3 cup unsalted butter, chilled and cut into 1/4" cubes
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sliced almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a muffin pan with parchment baking cups.

Make the crumble by combining the flour and butter in a mixing bowl and using either a pastry cutter or your hands to work the butter into the flour until the texture is course with small chunks of butter remaining. Add the sugar, salt, and almonds and mix to combine. Set aside.

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, agave, and almond extract. Add dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Fold in frozen blackberries and spoon into your prepared muffin tin. Top with a small pile of the crumble and bake for 20 - 25 minutes, until a fork comes out clean.

Thanks so much to Bob's Red Mill for sponsoring this post as part of their #FuelYourAwesomeness Campaign! All opinions are our own.