Tag: muffins

Oatmeal/7 Grain Chia Raisin Walnut Muffins

oatmeal whole grain cereal chia raisin muffins

Oh these muffins were fantastic! Surprisingly, rolled oats work well in place of flour in muffins. I also used Bob’s Red Mill 7 Grain hot cereal, but plain oat bran would work fine. Hmm, I also might try 100% rolled oats next time!

Muffins made from cereal are a quick & easy way to eat a healthy breakfast, especially when you have someone that generally doesn’t like hot cereal!

Like most muffins, these freeze well!

Oatmeal/7 Grain Chia Raisin Walnut Muffins Ingredients:

Makes 12 muffins

1 cup dry Bob’s Red Mill 7 Grain Hot Cereal
1 cup rolled oats
1 tsp salt
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 oz chopped Walnuts
1/4 cup Chia Seeds (I used Bob’s Red Mill brand)
1 cup Yogurt, Plain, Whole Milk
1 large Egg
1/4 cup Molasses
1 Tbsp Honey, optionally dissolved in 1/4 cup water
1/4 cup Olive Oil
84g Raisins (about 3/4 – 1 cup)

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350F
Whisk all dry ingredients (including nuts & chia seeds) in large bowl
Whisk wet ingredients in a large glass measuring cup
Mix wet into dry ingredients, then carefully mix in raisins
Divide into (12) paper-lined muffin pan(s)
Bake for about 18 minutes or until muffins are lightly browned & firm to touch
Remove from muffin pan(s) and allow to cool on rack
Enjoy!

oatmeal whole grain cereal chia raisin muffins

Nutritional Data

Calories: 214
Fat: 10g
Saturated: 1.6g
Poly-unsat: 1.8g
Mono-unsat: 3.8g
Cholesterol: 20mg
Sodium: 191mg
Potassium: 165mg
Carbs: 29g
Fiber: 4.7g
Sugar: 12g
Protein: 6g
Calcium: 12%
Iron: 8%

oatmeal whole grain cereal chia raisin muffins

Bob’s Red Mill Cereal Muffins with Peaches, Strawberries, & Raisins

I love making muffins using Bob’s Red Mill 7 Grain (or 10 grain) hot cereal. They’re similar to oat bran muffins, but so much better!

My husband enjoys eating muffins for an easy breakfast-on-the-go, and I always keep a batch in zip bags in the freezer for him. These muffins are especially great for those (like my DH) that do not like hot cereal! They make a great mid day snack too!

bob's red mill cereal muffins with peaches, strawberries and raisins

Here’s my recipe for muffins with peaches, strawberries and raisins:

Bob’s Red Mill 7 Grain Cereal Muffins with Peaches, Strawberries, & Raisins

Makes 18 muffins

Ingredients

  • 3 cups dry Bob’s Red Mill – 7 or 10 Grain Hot Cereal, or regular oat bran hot cereal
  • 1 tsp Kosher Salt
  • 3 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1/4 cup sugar or sucanat
  • 2 cups unsweetened Almond Milk (or any liquid equalling 2 cups: plain yogurt with water, regular milk, coconut milk, etc)
  • 1 large egg (or extra-large, jumbo, whatever you have on hand, muffins are so forgiving!)
  • 1/2 cup honey, preferably raw
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce, preferably organic
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp almond extract (optional)
  • 1 cup (not packed) raisins, preferably organic
  • fresh fruit: handful of strawberries, 2-3 peaches or nectarines, 3-4 plums, a cup of blueberries, etc.
  • Other optional ingredients like chopped nuts, seeds, etc.

Note: These muffins were sweet, so you can reduce the honey to 1/4 cup, which is what I will probably do next time I bake them.

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°
  2. In very large mixing bowl, whisk all the dry ingredients: cereal, salt, baking powder, sugar
  3. In large glass measuring cup, combine milk/water, eggs, honey, applesauce, and extracts
  4. Pour wet ingredients into dry, mix carefully, try not to overmix.
  5. Stir in fresh fruit
  6. Spoon into muffin tins lined with paper – I use my Good Grips Medium Cookie Scoop that I picked up from Amazon last year. It isn’t overly large, so I need to usually scoop twice, but it works really well without too much mess.
  7. Bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until tops are no longer soft and mushy to touch.

Mind you, I am NOT a baker, but I do like making muffins because they are so forgiving. I don’t have to measure quite as precise as other baked goods, like cakes and pies. I can throw a bunch of dry and wet ingredients together, and if the consistency is too dry, I add a touch more liquid.

bob's red mill cereal muffins with peaches, strawberries and raisins

Nutritional Data

1 muffin (from batch of 18)

Calories: 179
Total Fat: 1.7g
Cholesterol: 13.6mg
Sodium: 162mg
Potassium: 111mg
Carbs: 39g
Fiber: 4.8g
Sugar: 18g
Protein: 5g
Vit A: 2.7%
Vit C: 4.3%
Calcium: 7.4%
Iron: 7%

As I said, the sugars are on the high side. Reducing the honey to 1/4 cup, lowers the sugar to 14g. If you also reduce the raisins to 1/2 cup, the sugar is lowered to 12g. Start off reducing the sweeteners slowly, and your taste buds will get used to it.

Masa Harina Corn Jalepeno Muffins Recipe

masa harina corn jalepeno muffins

This recipe is slightly inspired from the Cornbread Muffins recipe found on page 124 in the Power Food Cookbook by Rachael Anne Hill and Tamsin Burnett-Hall. I used their recipe as a base, but put my own spin on the ingredients according to what I had on hand.

It’s all about adapting to your own pantry!

I didn’t have any milk (dairy or non-dairy) but I did have a carton of powdered buttermilk in the fridge, so I figured that would work. I also added 2 Tbsp of local raw honey and used less wheat flour, adding a mix of different corn flours, including masa harina, which I bought weeks ago to make tortillas (still on my list of things to do.)

The original recipe included chili peppers and corn! I still have a stock of frozen chile peppers from the summer CSA and there was a half bag of Trader Joe’s frozen organic corn. The original recipe called for 2 Tbsp of baking powder, and in my opinion, that is just way too much, so I cut it in half.

Masa Harina Corn Jalepeno Muffins Recipe

1 cup whole wheat flour (pastry if you have it)
3/4 cup stoneground cornmeal
1/4 cup corn flour
1/4 cup masa harina flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
5 Tbsp powdered buttermilk
couple of grinds of fresh ground pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
1 fresh chile pepper, deseeded, deveined & minced
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1-1/3 cups water (or use milk and skip the powdered buttermilk above)
2 Tbsp honey (optional)
1 egg, beaten
4 Tbsp (1/4 cup) olive oil

  1. Whisk the powdered flours, baking powder, salt and powdered buttermilk in a large mixing bowl.
  2. Add black pepper, cumin, chile peppers, and corn, then mix to combine
  3. In large glass measuring cup, melt honey in about 1/2 cup of hot water and stir; once honey is completely dissolved, add the rest of the water to equal 1-1/3 cups liquid.
  4. Whisk in egg, and oil, then pour liquids into dry ingredients. Stir together until just mixed.
  5. Spoon into muffin tins, then bake in preheated 360F oven for 15-20 minutes until risen, firm, and lightly browned.
  6. Transfer muffins to cooling rack.

I thought these muffins were delicious. I loved the texture of the corn kernels, and the chile peppers didn’t add heat, but did add yummy flavor.

They were delicious for dinner, paired with a fried egg and sides of homemade cole slaw & cranberry sauce.

corn muffins with fried egg & coleslaw & apple cranberry sauce

Recipe: Whole Wheat Rye Sesame Muffins

whole wheat rye sesame muffins

I haven’t been inspired (or had the time) to make any muffins or quick breads for months. But I’ve been craving desserts, so tonight, I decided to take to heart Michael Pollan’s Food Rule #39: Eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.

Which muffin recipe to make? I thought about peanut butter chocolate chip, blueberry, and oat raisin, but decided I’d like to try something new.

I searched through my Evernote recipes and found a lovely sesame seed muffin recipe. I loved that the recipe included a good amount of sesame seeds, but I wanted more whole grains, so I adapted it to my needs.

Here’s my modifications:

Healthy Low Sugar Whole Wheat Rye Sesame Muffins

Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

  • 1 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/3 cup rye flour
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder (aluminum free)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1/8 tsp (approx) freshly ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 cup sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 1 cup milk (I used So Delicious unsweetened coconut milk, but almond milk would also work very well, as well as plain yogurt)
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract (the good stuff, not imitation)

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°F
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together whole wheat & rye flours, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and sesame seeds.
  3. Whisk oil and egg together in a small glass bowl or large glass measuring cup until slightly frothy
  4. Mix in molasses, milk, and vanilla.
  5. Pour wet mixture into dry flour bowl and stir to combine. Try not to over mix.
  6. Scoop into 12 muffin tins lined with paper and bake for 14-20 minutes.

whole wheat rye sesame muffins

Notes:

  • The mixture is firm, so it’s easy to pile the batter high in the tin.
  • I think I’ll add more spice next time. The cinnamon and nutmeg was fine, but I think it needs more ginger and maybe even a bit of anise or fennel seed.
  • It was easy to scoop the batter into tins using my Oxo Good Grips Medium Cookie Scoop.
  • I slightly over-cooked the muffins, so next time I’ll bake for only 14 minutes. I bake in a counter-top convection oven.
  • These muffins are not sweet, so more sweetener can be added if that is what you like. We plan on topping with a dollop of jelly for tomorrow’s breakfast!
  • Raisins would be a great addition, as would some dark chocolate chips (leave out the spices).
  • The sesame seeds are yummy! I might increase the amount added next time. They add a touch of chewy sweetness to the muffin.

Nutritional Data

Each muffin is approximately 2 oz.

Calories: 165
Total Fat: 8.3g
Saturated: 1.7g
Polyunsaturated: .5g
Monounsaturated: 3.2g
Cholesterol: 16.3mg
Sodium: 225mg
Potassium: 53mg
Total Carbs: 17g
Fiber: 2.7g
Sugars: 4g
Calcium: 13.5%
Iron: 12.5%

Use the nutritional data as a guide; the info is not absolute, your results might vary considerably depending on the total weight of the finished dish.

UPDATE: For breakfast, we ended up melting some organic whipped butter on top of a sliced muffin. It was yummy. I’ll definitely add a bit more sweetener next time, or possibly some sweeter mix-ins like raisins or chocolate chunks, along with a bit more sesame seeds.

butter topped whole wheat rye sesame muffins

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Raisin Muffins – Recipe

I wanted to bake some muffins for my aunt when we visit next week, so I googled recipes for oatmeal raisin muffins, and found this recipe:

http://www.thekitchn.com/thekitchn/breakfast/recipe-quick-and-homey-oatmeal-raisin-muffins-126095

The author wrote that the recipe was adapted from the More-With-Less Cookbook so I rushed to put a copy on hold at the library to check it out. Reviews on Amazon are glowing, but there are a few negative reviews scattered as well, so it’s a great book to borrow before purchasing.

Whole Wheat Oatmeal Raisin Muffin recipe

inspired by thekitchn.com – makes 10-12 muffins

whole wheat oatmeal raisin muffins

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 cup oats – old fashioned or quick
  • 1/4 cup Wheat Germ (or additional oats)
  • 1 Tbsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup raisins
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 1/4 cup molasses
  • 6 oz container yogurt
  • water
  • 1 large egg
  • 1-2 tsp Sucanat or brown sugar (Optional for topping)

Instructions:

  1. Preheat oven to 375°
  2. Grease a muffin pan, or line with muffin papers
  3. Combine the flour, oats, wheat germ, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon together in a medium bowl.
  4. Add in raisins and stir to coat with flour mixture
  5. In a large measuring cup, pour 1/4 cup molasses and container of plain yogurt and add enough water so all liquids total 1 cup. Mix very well with fork or whisk so all ingredients are combined.
  6. Whisk the large egg with olive oil, then stir together with the yogurt mixture.
  7. Pour all liquids into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
  8. Scoop batter into prepared muffin tin and then optionally sprinkle a little bit of sucanat over each one.
  9. Bake for 15 minutes.
  10. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan for a minute or two. Then transfer each muffin to a cooling rack.

Enjoy!

whole wheat oatmeal raisin muffins

My Notes:

  • Sodium is pretty high, I assume due to the large amount of baking powder. I think I’ll reduce that next time, possibly by half.
  • I think it would be difficult to divide the batter into 12 muffin tins. I got 10, and they were just the right size. I think 12 would be a bit on the small size. It could be because I used a package of instant oatmeal instead of the old fashioned oats. Play it by ear.

Nutritional Data:

Calories 186
Fat: 7g
Saturated: 1g
Monounsaturated: 4g
Cholesterol: 22mg
Sodium: 328mg
Potassium: 130mg
Carbs: 28g
Fiber: 3g
Sugar: 10g
Protein: 5g
Calcium: 16%
Iron: 10%

Recipe: Ginger Lemon Muffins (Made with Fresh Ginger)

UPDATED 2011-05-11

These ginger lemon muffins were a big hit! They are light, healthy, and bursting with fresh zesty ginger flavor! The fresh ginger requires a bit more work, but it’s worth it!

ginger lemon muffins made with fresh ginger

Continue reading “Recipe: Ginger Lemon Muffins (Made with Fresh Ginger)”

Williams Sonoma Muffins & Quickbreads Book Review

I found the cook book Muffins & Quick Breads (Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library) at the library a few weeks ago; After browsing through the pages, I found so many awesome recipes I wanted to try. A lot of the recipes were lower in sugar, and I really loved that!

I searched for it on Amazon and was thrilled to find a used copy for less than $4. Yay! It was from a 3rd party seller, but “fulfilled by Amazon” which means it qualified for free shipping if your total order was $25 or more. There are lots of other 3rd party sellers also selling used copies for under $5 (including shipping).

I ordered it immediately! It arrived fairly quickly, and it was in very good shape. I couldn’t even tell that it was a “used” copy, it only had a few blemishes on some of the pages. Nothing big.

The big thing I did notice was that it was an older version than the copy from the library. I compared each page, and I did find some discrepancies in the flour weights (2 cups should be 10 oz or 315 grams) along with a few other ingredients like raisins. It wasn’t very difficult to hand corrected a lot of the recipes. So, all in all, I am very happy with the book.

I highly recommend this book if you are into muffins and quickbreads. Because I was so impressed, I found other older Williams Sonoma books from the library. I didn’t find any that made me want to order as quickly as this book though.

I did enjoy the Soups book as well as the newer Muffins book from 2003, but the recipes were much more sugary. I still am keeping several in mind for a future order.

The first recipe I baked was Blueberry Muffins (pg 36). Check out my recipe details. Yum!

I’ll be baking more recipes as autumn and winter move on!

Disclaimer:
I love reading cookbooks, like some people love reading novels! I am inspired by recipes, and enjoy learning ideas from cookbooks; I like putting my own spin on a recipe rather than exactly following it. Please keep in mind that my opinions might be completely different from the other home cooks.

Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

whole wheat blueberry muffins

I found the book Muffins & Quick Breads (Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library) at the library a few weeks ago and after browsing through the many recipes, I found so many that I was excited to try! A lot of the recipes were lower in sugar, and that was even better.

I searched for it on Amazon and was thrilled to find a used copy for less than $4. Yay! It was from a 3rd party seller, but “fulfilled by Amazon” which means it qualified for free shipping if your total order was $25 or more.

I ordered it immediately! I highly recommend this book if you are into muffins and quickbreads. Read my review for more details.

Continue reading “Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins”

Whole Wheat Oat Bran Raisin Muffins

Baked some yummy healthy muffins this afternoon! I’ve been dying to try some of the recipes from the book Tate’s Bake Shop Cookbook: The Best Recipes from Southampton’s Favorite Bakery for Homestyle Cookies, Cakes, Pies, Muffins, and Breads. I found it at the library months ago, and copied a few of the recipes I wanted to try.

My muffins were inspired by her Whole Wheat Quick Bread recipe.

Makes 11-12 large muffins

homemade whole wheat oat bran raisin muffins

Continue reading “Whole Wheat Oat Bran Raisin Muffins”