I love muffins. They're the perfect mid-morning snack and a great breakfast too when you're in the mood for something other than the typical oatmeal or toast (staples in our house). Up until about the age of 18, I was under the mistaken impression that all muffins were healthy. I would happily devour a blueberry muffin from Tim Hortons thinking I was making a really smart choice... hey, I chose the muffin instead of the donut! Wrong. Muffins can hide TONS of fat and sugar within their yummy, moist interior. In fact, my beloved blueberry muffin from Tim's contains 340 calories, 11 grams of fat and 25 grams of sugar... and really no nutritional value whatsoever! The donut might have actually been a better choice!
So I wised up to the fact that all muffins are NOT healthy, but that doesn't mean I still don't love them, so I am always on the hunt for good, nutritious muffin recipes. I've tried a few news ones lately that I thought I'd share... enjoy!
Flourless Banana Mish-Mash Muffins
*This is a fairly dense muffin and they don't rise much while baking. Wesley and I ate them with a dollop of greek yogurt and they were really yummy!
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup wheat or oat bran
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/4 cup blackstrap molasses
1/4 cup unsweetened coconut
2 ripe bananas
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp baking powder
1 egg
pinch of salt
pinch of cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tins or use muffin liners.
In a large bowl combine applesauce, egg, molasses, bananas and vanilla until smooth. Add cinnamon if desired. Mix in oats, bran, baking powder and salt. Fold in coconut. Fill muffin liners halfway with batter. Sprinkle with rolled oats. Bake for 20 to 25 min until edges are light brown.
Sweet Potato Muffins
*These are Wesley's favourite! I usually make them as mini-muffins (you get about 18).
1 cup rolled oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp nutmeg
3.4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup mashed, cooked sweet potato
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
3 tbsp canola oil
2 tbsp dried cranberries
1/4 cup milk (I use almond milk)
1 egg
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix the oats, flour, baking soda, baking powder and spices together in a bowl.
Add the mashed sweet potato, sugar, oil, cranberries, milk and egg together until the ingredients are all completely moistened - but do not overmix.
Spoon the mixture into greased muffin tins and bake until firm and golden (around 15-20 min).
Banana-Blueberry Muffins
*I made these yesterday as I was craving something sweet. They are sort of 'almost-but-not-quite' healthy. Very fluffy and moist!
1 cup whole-wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 ripe bananas
1/3 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup frozen blueberries
1.Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a bowl, whisk together flours, wheat germ, baking soda, and salt.
2.In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, mash bananas with a fork (you should have 3/4 cup); stir in milk and vanilla.
3.With mixer on low, alternately add flour mixture and banana mixture to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined. Fold in frozen blueberries.
4.Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 28 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Let cool in pan 10 minutes; transfer muffins to a rack to cool 10 minutes more.
I made these monster cupcakes for Wesley's first birthday party. It was a "little monster" theme - although sadly our camera battery died after about 10 min so you'll just have to take my word for it when I say it was really cute! I wanted the cupcakes to be healthy so I tried this recipe for "Baby's First Birthday Cake" and they turned out really well with just a simple whipped cream + cream cheese frosting.
Carrot Cupcakes
2 1/2 cups thinly sliced carrots
2 1/2 cups apple juice concentrate
1 1/2 cups raisins (optional)
2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 eggs
4 egg whites
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup wheat germ
2 tbsp baking soda
1 tbsp ground cinnamon
1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line muffins tins with liners (if I make these again I would also spray the liners with cooking spray... they were pretty hard to peel).
2. Combine the carrots with 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the juice concentrate in a medium size saucepan.
3. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer, covered, until carrots are tender, 15 to 20 mins. Puree in a blender of food processor until smooth.
4. Add the raisins and process until finely chopped. Let mixture cool.
5. Combine the flour, wheat germ, baking powder, and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 1/4 cups juice concentrate, the oil, eggs, egg whites, and vanilla; beat just until well mixed. Fold in the carrot puree and applesauce. Pour the batter into the prepared cake pans.
6. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 mins. Cool briefly in the pans, then turn out onto wire racks to cool completely. When cool, frost.
