pumpkin protein muffins

today i tried to make some pumpkin protein pancakes without following a recipe.  epic fail! it's embarrassing how badly they turned out and how horrible they tasted.  not even remotely palatable.  so there i was, on a rainy day, in my kitchen with not one extracurricular activity to have any particular person(s) to and an open can of pumpkin puree.  what more could a girl ask for?

pumpkin muffins, that's what.  a girl could ask for pumpkin muffins and these did not disappoint.  totes healthy and plenty palatable.

pumpkin protein muffins
printable recipe

1 3/4 cup quick cooking oats (i prefer "mom's best" brand)
1/4 cup vanilla whey
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup truvia baking blend
1 whole large egg
2 large egg whites
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1/2 cup low-fat yogurt (i used vanilla but plain would be just as good and greek, even better)
1/4 cup coconut oil (melted)
1 tsp vanilla

preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a muffin tin by using liners or spray.

using a food processor or blender, process the oats into oat flour.

in a small bow, mix all of the dry ingredients in exception to the truvia baking blend. set aside.

add all of the wet ingredients and the truvia blend to a larger bowl and mix until combined (fluffy).  add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until blended.

pour batter into prepared tin, filling each full.  the batter will be thick.

bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until tops are golden.

yields 12 muffins

whole wheat chocolate chip banana muffins

let me tell you something, if you like chocolate then these muffins are going to send you spinning.  oh. my. goodness.  they are amazing.  healthy *enough* for breakfast, rich enough for dessert.  the perfect muffin (in my very humble opinion).

seriously, for wheat muffins made with applesauce and bananas instead of fatty oils and only one egg, you really can enjoy them without the guilt of your typical chocolate chip muffins.

chocolate chip banana muffins

printable recipe

adapted via handle the heat

3 ripe bananas

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 egg

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 cup white whole wheat flour

1/2 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 cup chocolate chips

pre-heat oven to 375 degrees and spray muffin tin with non-stick spray.

mash the bananas in a large mixing bowl.  add the sugar, applesauce, egg and vanilla and mix together.  sift the flour, cocoa, salt, baking soda and baking powder over the wet ingredients and fold in until just combined.  fold in chocolate chips.

divide batter among muffin tin and bake for 20 minutes (or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean).

makes 12 muffins

Nutrition Facts whole wheat chocolate banana muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 221 Total Fat 6.4g       Saturated Fat 3.4g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 15mg Sodium 248mg Carbohydrate 41.5g       Dietary Fiber 4.2g       Sugars 27.6g Protein 3.1g Alcohol 0.1g Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 5% Calcium    2% Iron 3%

lemon poppy seed muffins

{next time, i'll try using wheat flour instead of AP flour and yogurt instead of sour cream}

lemon poppy seed muffins

printable recipe

via brown eyed baker

2/3 cup granulated sugar

zest and juice from one lemon

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3/4 cup sour cream (i used light)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp poppy seeds

pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and line muffin tin with cups or spray with non-stick spray.

in a small bowl, 

mix the lemon zest and sugar together with your hands until sugar is dampened and smelling of delicious lemon.  

in a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  stir lemon sugar into mixture.

in a medium bowl, combine melted butter, eggs, sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla.  

fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients until combined adding the poppy seeds before the last few stirs.  try not to over mix.  

spoon batter into muffin cups and bake for 18-20 minutes until tops begin to golden.

cool on rack.

yields 12 muffins

Nutrition Facts lemon poppy seed muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 217 Total Fat 9.9g       Saturated Fat 5.9g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 55mg Sodium 179mg Carbohydrate 27.7g       Dietary Fiber 0.5g       Sugars 12.7g Protein 4.3g Vitamin A 7% Vitamin C 4% Calcium    9% Iron 5%

blueberry coffee cake

blueberry coffee cake

adapted from whole foods

printable recipe

cooking spray

2 tbsp + 1 cup white whole wheat flour, divided

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbsp butter cut into small pieces

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground cardamom

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup non-fat plain greek yogurt

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

2 cups frozen blueberries

.25 cup almonds (i used slivered because it's what i had but next time i'll used sliced)

preheat oven to 350 degrees.  grease a 9" round cake pan with cooking spray and set aside.

put 2 tbsp of the white whole wheat flour, sugar, butter, cinnamon and cardamom in a small bowl and mix together with a fork or your fingers until well combined and mixture is in large clumps; set streusel aside.

combine remaining 1 cup of white whole wheat flour, all purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. 

in a medium bowl, whisk together yogurt, vanilla and eggs and then pour mixture into the dry ingredients.  stir until combined.  gently fold in 1 cup of blueberries (i made the mistake of mixing both cups of blueberries into the batter which made the cake a little too moist and therefore requiring a longer cook time).

spoon batter into prepared pan and sprinkle streusel over the top.  scatter remaining 1 cup of blueberries over the streusel and then top with almonds.  bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, 30-40 minutes.  once cooled, loosen edges of cake and transfer to a plate.  cut into slices and serve to daughter after assuring her there is not actually coffee in the cake.

yields 8 generous portions

Nutrition Facts whole foods recipe blueberry coffee cake Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 241 Total Fat 3.3g       Saturated Fat 0.4g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 45mg Sodium 302mg Carbohydrate 45g       Dietary Fiber 3.6g       Sugars 24.1g Protein 8.4g Alcohol 0.2g Vitamin A 1% Vitamin C 2% Calcium    12% Iron 7%

whole wheat banana blueberry muffins

whole wheat banana blueberry muffins

another tasty recipe adapted from a hint of honey

2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 eggs, whisked

1 1/2 cups ripe banana, mashed (i used 3 thawed from frozen bananas)

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 tsp vanilla extract

2/3 cup milk (i used skim)

1 cup frozen blueberries

preheat oven to 375 degrees.  lightly grease or line two muffin tins

in a medium bowl, whisk to combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt & cinnamon

in a large bowl, whisk to combine eggs, banana, sugar, applesauce, vanilla and milk.  add dry ingredients and stir until just combined.  gently fold in blueberries.

dived batter between muffin cups. (she made 12 large muffins.  i made 20).  bake for 18-20 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  cool on wire rack.

makes 20 muffins

Nutrition Facts whole wheat banana blueberry muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 124 Total Fat 0.7g       Saturated Fat 0.1g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 18mg Sodium 185mg Carbohydrate 27.5g       Dietary Fiber 2.2g       Sugars 14.1g Protein 3.1g Alcohol 0.1g Vitamin A 1% Vitamin C 4% Calcium    5% Iron 4%

pumpkin spice muffins

pumpkin spice muffins

adapted from myself

1 cup white whole wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon + 1 tsp for the tops

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp allspice

2 eggs

1/4 cup canola oil

15 oz can pumpkin pure

1 1/4 cup sugar + 1 tbsp for top

1 tsp vanilla

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and spray muffin pans with non-stick spray.

in a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients.

in a large bowl, cream the eggs, sugar, vanilla, oil and pumpkin.

fold drying ingredients into wet ingredients until combined.

fill each cup 2/3 full (makes approximately 18 muffins)

sprinkle tops with cinnamon sugar mixture (1 tsp cinnamon + 1 tbsp sugar)

bake 25-30 min or until toothpick inserted comes out clean

makes 18-20 muffins

Nutrition Facts pumpkin spice muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 146 Total Fat 3.7g       Saturated Fat 0.3g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 20mg Sodium 234mg Carbohydrate 26.5g       Dietary Fiber 2.1g       Sugars 15.8g Protein 2.7g Vitamin A 67% Vitamin C 1% Calcium    2% Iron 4%

whole wheat apple muffins

i think out of all the muffin recipes i've tried, this is definitely my favorite so far.

these muffins crumble in your mouth.  the buttermilk is the perfect addition (in my opinion).  yum.

whole wheat apple muffins

recipe adapted from cooking for seven 

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 cup (1 stick, 4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup brown sugar, divided
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 cup (8 ounces) buttermilk or yogurt
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped (i used 2 1/2 gala apples)

1) Preheat the oven to 450°F. Grease and flour or line with paper muffin cups 14-16 muffin cups and set aside).

2) Mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon, and set aside. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and add 3/4 cup of the sweetener of choice. Beat until fluffy. Add the egg and mix well; stop once to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mix in the buttermilk gently. (If you over-mix, the buttermilk will cause the mixture to curdle.) Stir in the dry ingredients and fold in the apple chunks.

2) Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, sprinkling the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar on top. Bake for 10 minutes, turn the heat down to 400°F, and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins for 5 minutes in the tin, then turn them out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 

Yield: 14-16 muffins

 she said "serve warm with butter" but, i didn't think butter was necessary.  i also forgot to put the remaining 1/4 cup sugar on top.  still good ... still delicious!

Nutrition Facts whole wheat apple muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 165 Total Fat 5.9g       Saturated Fat 3.6g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 16mg Sodium 168mg Carbohydrate 25.6g       Dietary Fiber 2.5g       Sugars 13.2g Protein 2.2g Vitamin A 4% Vitamin C 2% Calcium    5% Iron 5%

oatmeal blueberry applesauce muffins

make ahead for a perfect "on the go" breakfast.  these are good.

oatmeal blueberry applesauce muffins

via joy the baker

• 1 1/4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/4 cups oats
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 2 tbsp canola oil (I used the almond oil I had on hand)
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 3/4 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
• i added about 1/2 tsp of vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line a 12 cup muffin tin with paper cases or spray with nonstick cooking spray. I simple greased and floured a muffin pan, saving the paper.

In a large bowl combine flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. In a medium bowl combine applesauce, buttermilk, sugar, oil and egg. Make a well in dry ingredients and add applesauce mixture. Stir until just moist. Fold in blueberries. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full.

Bake for 16-18 minutes.

Nutrition Facts oatmeal applesauce blueberry muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 138 Total Fat 3.3g       Saturated Fat 0.3g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 15mg Sodium 165mg Carbohydrate 24.8g       Dietary Fiber 2.3g       Sugars 12.3g Protein 3.2g Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 7% Calcium    5% Iron 3%

carrot pineapple muffins

so yummy.  naturally sweetened, no added fat.  what more could you ask for?

i found this recipe here.  i wanted to try it right away! luckily, i happened to have everything on hand so i gave it a whirl and was pleased with the result.  one thing though, these either need to be eaten within 24 hours or individually wrapped and frozen or they start to taste weird after a couple of days.

carrot pineapple muffins


2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
3 Tbsp oat bran (i used whole oats and ground them in my food processor .. worked fine)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp salt
4 large egg whites
1/2 cup light agave nectar
1/2 cup skim milk
1 1/3 cups grated carrots
3/4 cups diced pineapple (i used fresh)
12 pineapple chunks for tops

1. preheat oven to 350 degrees. lightly spray a standard 12 cup muffin pan with vegetable oil spray.
2. sift together flour, bran, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger and salt into a medium bowl and make a well in the center
3. in another medium bowl, using a handheld electric mixer set at high speed, beat the egg whites with all the agave nectar until soft peaks form (see photo below).  {next time, i'll add a tbsp or two of the fresh pineapple juice to the nectar/egg mixture}. reduce speed to low and gradually beat in the milk.  pour into the flour well and stir with a wooden spoon just until combined.  stir in the carrots and the diced pineapple.
4. spoon the batter into the muffin cups, filling about 3/4 of the way full. top each muffin with a pineapple chunk.  bake the muffins until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when pressed with a finger, 20-25 minutes.  cool for 2 minutes, run a knife around the inside of the cups to release the muffins and remove the cups. serve the muffins warm or at room temperature.

yields 12 muffins

Nutrition Facts

pineapple carrot muffins

Serving Size: 1 serving

Amount Per Serving





Calories146





Total Fat0.6g





      Saturated Fat0.1g





      Trans Fat0g





Cholesterol0mg





Sodium133mg





Carbohydrate32.6g





      Dietary Fiber3.3g





      Sugars12.2g





Protein2.9g

vitamin A 40%	Vitamin C 7%
Calcium    1%	Iron 4%

apple zucchini muffins

cousin gwen posted another delicious recipe on her blog some time back.

husband asked me to make him some breakfast foods he could re-heat in the morning.  apparently, he's tired of toaster waffles.

being the good wife that i am, i whipped up another egg and sausage casserole (i used wheat bread this time around) and thought i'd give gwen's apple zucchini muffins a try.  don't hold your breath but, later this week i'm going to experiment with baked oatmeal.

anyway, these muffins are wonderful.  the apples are the perfect touch!

to some, the list of spices might be a bit overwhelming but i've been stocking up for some time now so i had everything on hand.  if you do not, i would guess cinnamon alone would be sufficient or apple pie spice.

i made a few changes to the recipe but i plugged both recipes in to the builder and the nutritional differences were minimal so, do what you want.

apple zucchini muffins
3 large eggs (i used 3/4 cup egg substitute)
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (i used 1 cup and eliminated the oil below)
1/4 cup oil
1 cup agave nectar (i used 1/2 cup of light agave and 1/2 cup of brown sugar ... i didn't want to use up all my agave!)
1 tbsp vanilla
2 red apples, cored and chopped
2 cups of zucchini, shredded
1 cup white whole wheat flour
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground allspice
chopped walnuts (optional)

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  spray muffin pan or cups with non-stick cooking spray.

1. mix wet ingredients excluding apples and zucchini
2. mix dry ingredients
3. combine both.  fold in apples and zucchini.

bake for 25 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

makes approximately 30 muffins
nutritional info includes walnuts (1/2 cup)

107 calories, 2.3g fat (.3g saturated fat), 0mg cholesterol, 143mg sodium, 20.1g carbohydrate, 2g fiber, 2.8g protein.

moist and healthy banana muffins

every sunday for the last two months i've tried different variations of muffin recipes.

my family loves muffins and i do too so i have been trying to find a recipe that results a balance of nutritious and delicious.  it's been hard.  considering i know very little about which ingredients serve which purpose in baking, substituting one thing for another has resulted in some really gross and sad muffins.  {if anyone can offer a lesson in baking, i'd love it!}

never fear!  i didn't give up and last week i turned out some pretty darn good tasting banana muffins. i threw some chopped walnuts in half of the batch (no one like nuts but me {don't laugh}) and served them up with my yummy fruit and yogurt mix.

anyway, i'm still looking for different muffin recipes that the family will like too.  i need to take another stab at some variation of pumpkin muffins and so far, all of the blueberry muffin recipes i've tried have been not-so-great by the time i substituted ingredients.  if you have any ideas that don't include chocolate and/or if you have a recipe for carrot pancakes that you've tried and liked, please send them my way!

4 ripe banana's (the browner the better, i keep a ziplock of super ripe banana's in the freezer)
1/4 cup egg substitute
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup brown sugar
1 tbsp agave nectar (i use light agave)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup white-whole wheat flour (king arthur)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp ground flax seed
chopped walnuts (optional)

pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  spray muffin cups with non-stick spray.
mash banana's with a fork.  add egg, sugar, applesauce, agave, vanilla and mix together.
in a seperate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground flax.
add wet to dry ingredients.  mix until combined.

recipe should yield 21 muffins (each cup 2/3 full).  fill the remaining three cups with water (2/3 full) for even cooking.

bake for 25 minutes rotating the muffin pan 1/2 way through cook time.

1 muffin; 120 calories, .06g fat (0g sat fat), 148mg sodium, 27.2g carbs, 1.7g fiber, 14g sugar, 2.3g protein