Individual “Banana Bread” Baked Oatmeal Muffin Cups

Personal Healthy Baked Banana Bread Oatmeal
Personal Healthy Baked Banana Bread Oatmeal

Individual Healthy Baked Banana Bread Oatmeal

I’m a big oatmeal fan. I often begin the day with a bowl of it. I also love oatmeal-filled baked goods like oatmeal muffins & breads and oatmeal cookies & cookie bars. My mom even made me my favorite oatmeal cake for my birthday this year.

A couple of years ago I discovered the joy of baked oatmeal, and have since then, gathered a wonderful collection of baked oatmeal recipes. The only problem with baked oatmeal is that it makes a rather big batch, that sometimes goes to waste, since I’m the only one who really loves it.

I’ve seen several recipes lately for oatmeal baked in muffin cups, making perfect single-serving portions, and decided to give it a go. With 2 very very ripe bananas on the counter, I thought a “banana bread” baked oatmeal would be fun to try.

I used the baked oatmeal recipe from my Simply in Season Cookbook as my starting point, swapping out the applesauce for mashed bananas and adding a bit of baking spice.

I loved the way the little personal-size baked oatmeal cups turned out and have enjoyed them for breakfast several times this week.

Individual Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal with Bananas, Strawberries and Almonds

Individual Banana Bread Baked Oatmeal with Bananas, Strawberries and Almonds

The rest I plopped in a Freezer-safe bag that I tucked into the freezer. Now, when the mood for baked oatmeal strikes, I can pull one out and heat it in the microwave for a couple of minutes!

Having healthy food ready and waiting in the fridge and freezer makes sticking with the Weight Watchers Plan so much easier and is one of the keys for helping me stay at goal.

Enjoy!

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Easy Healthy Oatmeal Recipes to Celebrate National Oatmeal Month

Eat Rolled Oats to Celebrate National Oatmeal Month

A goal for 2012 is to have more fun with food by planning some of our meals around our many National Food Holidays.  If you wanted, you could celebrate a different food practically every day of the year. And some lucky foods have whole months dedicated to them.

What better place to start than January, with National Oatmeal Month.

Eat Rolled Oats to Celebrate National Oatmeal Month

January is National Oatmeal Month

Oatmeal is good and good-for-you. In addition to being packed with thiamine, iron and fiber, it’s been shown to lower cholesterol, stabilize blood sugar, reduce your risk of diabetes and prevent breast cancer – just for starters. (Here’s a great article from Natural Health if you want to know more about the health benefits of oatmeal.)

Inexpensive and easy to make, oats are a great way to start the day – either in a steamy bowl of oatmeal or as the primary ingredient in homemade granola bars, muffins and breads or scones.

And there are lots of ways to add them to your diet throughout the day – as a substitute for bread crumbs in meat loaf or as part of a tasty sweet treat like oatmeal bars or cookies.

Here’s a great collection of recipes – including all my favorites – that call for oats with their associated Weight Watcher Points+ values.

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Skinny Banana Oatmeal Muffin & Bread Recipes with Weight Watchers PointsPlus Values

oatmeal muffin

I adore muffins, but they can be sugar and calorie disasters. My days of indulging in jumbo 400 to 500 calorie muffins are long gone. These days, I love collecting recipes for skinnier healthier muffin recipes and tips for making healthy muffins from scratch - like these healthy blueberry muffin recipes - so I always have one at the ready when I want it.

Oatmeal and bananas are two favorite healthy muffin and quick bread ingredients. And healthy banana muffins and healthy low fat banana bread are classics that I come back to again and again, especially when I have leftover bananas to use up.

Oatmeal Muffin

Skinny Banana Oatmeal Muffins

Here’s a roundup of banana oatmeal muffin and quick bread recipes from around the Web. I’ve included calorie information and calculated their Weight Watchers PointsPlus Values too. Enjoy!

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Slim & Healthy Ways to Cook Oatmeal for Breakfast

Oatmeal and bananas

If you’re looking for ways to add more whole grains to your diet, eating oatmeal for breakfast is a great place to start. Oats are cheap and easy to prepare and when done right, they are delicious. A bowl of oatmeal will keep you satisfied longer and won’t cause the blood sugar rush that so many sweetened cereals do.

Oatmeal and bananas

Slim & Healthy Ways to Cook Oatmeal

Oatmeal is so much more than a tasty, warming breakfast meal. Oats are naturally high in fiber, which helps keep blood-sugar levels stable and naturally lower cholesterol and rich in minerals like magnesium, antioxidants and B vitamins, which are essential for converting carbohydrates into energy.

Types of Oatmeal

There are several different types of oatmeal you can choose from:

Rolled Oats or Old-Fashioned Oats: are oats that have been rolled and flattened into flakes so they cook in just 5 to 10 minutes. Though I love a morning bowl of oatmeal, my favorite way use old-fashioned oats are in sweet baked treats like these banana oatmeal cookies and low fat chocolate chip oatmeal cookie bars.

Quick Cooking or Minute Oats: are rolled oats that are chopped into smaller pieces so they cook in about 1 minute. They also are a great replacement for bread crumbs in recipes like this yummy Paula Deen meatloaf.

Instant Oats: are oats that have been rolled even thinner and finer so they cook in seconds. They are usually pre-flavored and full of sugar, so they’re not the best choice when you want to eat healthier and lose weight. Look for a low sugar variety for when you are pressed for time.

Steel Cut Oats:  are also known as Irish oatmeal or Scottish oats. They have been cut into pieces instead of rolled and have a hearty, nutty taste and texture, but take longer to cook – about 30 minutes. You can shorten the cooking time to 5 to 10 minutes by soaking them overnight.

I’ve always liked oatmeal, but have really come to love it now that I’ve discovered steel cut oats. They have a much chewier, nuttier flavor that is satisfying and delicious.  The only downside is that they take about 30 minutes to cook, which can be difficult to deal with on a busy weekday morning.

For more about the different kinds of oats here’s a great Oatmeal 101 video from Dani Spies:

But there are ways to solve the long cooking time issue.  Here are three things you can do.
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Baked Oatmeal Recipes for Breakfast & Beyond with Weight Watchers Points

Baked Oatmeal
Easy Baked Oatmeal

Easy, Healthy, & Delicious Baked Oatmeal

Baked oatmeal for breakfast is nice change from your more typical oatmeal recipes for the stove top or microwave. It’s really easy to make. All you do is mix it up, bake it, and  then store it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat it. It also makes a delicious lunch, snack or dessert, since it’s more like a dense oatmeal cake or muffin than porridge.

I love to bake up a batch over the weekend and then enjoy it during the week for a quick and easy breakfast that keeps me satisfied until lunch.

Oats are good and good for you so the more ways you can find to eat them, the better.  They’re low in calories, high in fiber and full of vitamins B1, B2, and E.  The soluble fiber in oatmeal can help lower cholesterol and reduce your risk of heart disease too.

You can use oats in all kinds of dishes other than breakfast – from meatloaf like this Paula Deen meatloaf recipe to desserts like these low fat oatmeal chocolate chip cookie bars.

But baked oatmeal is a a current favorite.  The problem is that many recipes are packed with sugar and fat  - so if you want to eat healthy an/or are trying to lose weight  look for those that are lower in sugar and fat and packed with fruit.

My go to recipe for healthy baked oatmeal is from the  Weight Watchers New Complete Cookbook. It’s easy, healthy and delicious with 7 WW Points+. I’ve also gathered a wonderful collection of baked oatmeal recipes from around the web and calculated their points+.

Enjoy!

Easy Baked Fruity Oatmeal

Easy Baked Fruity Oatmeal

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Moist & Chewy Low Fat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Recipe

Moist & Chewy Low Fat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Do you have a soft spot for soft and chewy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and cookie bars? (I sure do.) Would you like to be able to indulge in a lighter healthier version that still tastes delicious?

Moist & Chewy Low Fat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Moist & Chewy Low Fat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

Well, here’s a recipe for healthier low-fat chocolate chip oatmeal cookie bars that turn out moist and chewy. I think you’re gonna love them.

They’re very easy to make and can be modified in lots of different ways. Next time I make them I’m going to add chopped walnuts and dried cranberries

Be careful not to over-bake these cookie bars.  Because they are low fat, they will not be moist if cooked too long so it’s probably best to pull them out as soon as you think they’re done.

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Healthy Homemade Granola Bar Recipe – 4 Points+

Homemade Granola/Energy Bars
Homemade Granola/Energy Bars

Healthy Homemade Granola/Energy Bars

Are you looking for a healthy homemade granola bar recipe? Here’s a great one with only 4 WW Points+.

This recipe makes delicious soft and chewy healthy granola bars (or energy bars) full of oats, dried fruit, and whole grains. They are not overly sweet – just lightly sweetened with the natural goodness of maple syrup – my favorite natural sweetener.

Try them once and I think you’ll want to make them again and again.

Not only are they healthy and delicious, they are easy as pie to make. They make an awesome in lunchbox treat and they also freeze well. I like to wrap individual bars in plastic wrap and place them in a zipper lock freezer bag so I can grab one when I need a snack.

If you love exercise and outdoor activities these homemade granola energy bars will keep you going for hours.

This recipe makes a cake-like soft and chewy granola/energy bar.

Healthy Homemade Granola Bars Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 20 minutes
Makes: 20 bars

Ingredients

1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup shelled sunflower seeds
1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup dried apricots
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup dried pitted dates
1/2 cup raw almonds
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F degrees. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan with cooking spray.

Place oats, sunflower seeds, wheat germ, flour, fruit, almonds, dry milk, and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse until everything is roughly chopped. Add maple syrup and eggs and pulse until everything is well blended.

Spread the thick batter evenly into the prepared pan and bake until lightly browned, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool on a wire rack on for 10 to 15 minutes.

Cut bars into 20 bars.

Once they are completely cool, you can store these fruity, nutty, chewy, healthy granola bars in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 bar): 133 calories, 5 g fat 5 gram protein, 20 g carbohydrates, 3 g fiber

This healthy granola bars recipe adapted from The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life by Ellie Krieger.

My Cooking Tips and Use What You Have Variations:

  • Don’t overbake or they can get dry.
  • Use whatever combination of dried fruit and nuts that you like best.
  • I sometimes add a mashed banana or 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce for a little extra moisture.

Links to more granola bar recipes around the web:

Toasted Oats Browned Butter Granola Bars – from Anna at Cookie Madness
Playgroup Granola Bars – found at All Recipes

You might also like…

Free Granola Bar Recipes Ebook – A collection of granola bar, granola cookie and granola recipes
Great Granola Bar Recipe – a great chewy crunchy granola bar with wonderful taste and texture
Homemade Granola Recipe – my favorite granola made with maple syrup

Great Granola Bar Recipe – 7 Points+

Granola Bars

Are you looking for a great granola bar recipe?

I think this one is a winner. It makes granola bars with great flavor and lots of texture.

Homemade granola bars mare a perfect snack any time of day. And they are so much tastier, healthier, and cheaper than the ones in a box.

If you’ve ever wondered about how to make granola bars – I’m here to tell you that it’s really easy and hope you decide to give it a try.

 

Granola Bars

Granola Bars Photo Courtesy Flickr - Jenn.B

Great Granola Bars Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 30 minutes
Makes: 12 bars

Ingredients

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
½ cup toasted wheat germ
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2/3 cup real maple syrup or honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup dried cranberries
½ cup chopped dried apricots
½ cup chopped pitted dates

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil and spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray and pull out a cookie sheet.

Toss the rolled oats, almonds, and coconut together on the cookie sheet and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned.

Transfer the mixture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the wheat germ.

Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Place the oil, maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Cook and stir for a minute, then pour over the toasted oat mixture.

Add the cranberries, apricots and dates and stir well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Wet your fingers firmly press the mixture evenly into the pan.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until light golden brown.

Cool for at least 2 to 3 hours before cutting into bars.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 bar): 253 calories, 11 g fat, 36 g carbohydrate, 5 g protein, 5 g fiber and 7 WW Points+

My cooking notes and use what you have variations:

  • This recipe can be modified in dozens of ways to suit your tastes. I am not a huge honey fan so I always make them with maple syrup.  But feel free to use honey or a combination of maple syrup and honey if you like.
  • Use the kinds of dried fruit and nuts you like best or have available.
  • Ground flaxseed can be used in place of the wheat germ

Links to more great granola bar recipes around the web:

Easy Granola Bars – found at All Recipes
Telluride Trail Bars – found at Family Fresh Cooking
Healthy Granola Bar Recipes - found at Best Ever Cookie Collection

You might also like…

How to Make Granola Bars – Tips, Tricks and How To’s for making homemade granola bars
Free Granola Bar E Book – a collection of of favorite granola bar recipes for you to download
Favorite Granola Recipe - A great basic granola recipe that can be modified lots of delicious ways
Healthy Homemade Granola Bars - makes soft chewy cake like granola/energy bars

Best Healthy Homemade Maple Granola Recipe – 3 Points+

Homemade granola
Homemade granola

Homemade Granola Photo Courtesy Flickr – Cuttlefish

Do you love gourmet granola but not the expensive prices? Why not make it yourself? It’s really easy to make granola at home. And a lot cheaper too. And by being in charge of the ingredients you include you can make it a lot more Weight Watchers friendly!

All you need is a great granola recipe to use as a template and some helpful tips and hints to guide you to granola making success. Mine is adapted from the great book, The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight and Eating Great, by cookbook writer Pam Anderson who lost over 40 pounds while indulging in wonderful recipes like this one.

The nice thing about homemade granola is that you can make it exactly as you like it. Lots of granola recipes call for honey, but I like maple syrup, so I use it instead. That’s one of the reasons I think this is the best granola recipe. (Of course you can use whatever liquid sweetener you like best.)

Helpful Tips & Hints for Making Homemade Granola

Use old-fashioned oats. For the best results, use old-fashioned (not quick) oats so they bake into a nice crisp, golden granola. Quick oats will create a powdery texture with an unpleasant raw starchy taste.

Use a little bit of water. It will help the cereal clump together . The water, when combined with the other liquid ingredients will mix with the wheat germ to create a tasty paste. Squeeze the cereal with your hands before baking to form small delicious clumps and clusters.

Use a combination of liquid and dry sweeteners. I’m not a huge honey fan so I prefer to use straight maple syrup. But if you like, use honey or a combination of honey and maple syrup. Mix the brown sugar with the dry ingredients to add great color and flavor.

Use a little salt. Just a little will help bring out the granola’s flavors.

Bake your granola at a low temperature (around 275).  So the cereal crisps up and browns evenly without burning.

Add the dried fruit partway through baking so it doesn’t dry out too much.

My Favorite Maple Granola Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 55 minutes
Makes: about 4 cups (16 servings)

Ingredients

2 cups old-fashioned oats (not quick cooking)
½ cup wheat germ
2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1/4 cup slivered almonds or chopped walnuts
1/4 cup coconut
¼ cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots

Directions

Make sure one of your oven racks is placed in the center of your oven and heat oven to 275 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl mix the oats, wheat germ, brown sugar, salt, almonds and coconut with a wooden spoon until well combined and set aside.

In a small saucepan bring the maple syrup, oil, water, and cinnamon to a simmer over low heat. Drizzle the syrup mixture over the oat mixture and stir until combined.

Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking pan. Squeeze the mixture a handful at a time to from small clumps.

Bake for 30 minutes. Stir in the dried cranberries and apricots and continue to bake until golden, about 20 minutes more or until a nice rich golden brown.

Remove from the oven and cool. Once completely cool, store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1/4 cup): 110 calories, 16.6 g carbohydrate, 3.9 g fat, 2.9 g protein, 2.1 g fiber and 3 Weight Watchers PointsPlus Value.

My Cooking Notes and Use What You Have Variations:

  • Use whatever combination of nuts, seeds and dried fruits you like best to total about 1 cup. Walnuts, almonds, pecans, cashews, hazelnuts, peanuts, coconut, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, raisins, dried cherries, or any other chopped dried fruit would work well, just adjust your PointsPlus values accordingly.
  • You can double the recipe, but split the mixture between two pans to bake it. Increase the cooking time if necessary until it is a nice golden brown.
  • For granola with even less fat, try substituting unsweetened applesauces for the oil.
  • A couple of tablespoons of your favorite nut butter stirred in with the maple syrup is a tasty addition.
  • Other flavorings that work well include ground ginger and vanilla.

Links to more great granola recipes

Convection Oven Granola – from Anna at Cookie Madness
Pumpkin Granola – from Two Peas and their Pod
Ina Garten’s Homemade Granola – found at The Food Network
Homemade Granola Recipe & Video – found at The Joy of Baking

You might also like…

A Great Granola Bar Recipe
My Favorite Healthy Easy Breakfast – Magical Healthy Yogurt Cream
Healthy Breakfast Cookie Recipes
Healthy Summer Muesli – A Great Summer Breakfast Cereal

Sources

The Perfect Recipe for Losing Weight and Eating Great
Great Granola (USA Weekend)

Healthy Banana Cookies with Oats and Chocolate Chips

Healthy Banana Cookies with Oats and Chocolate Chips
Healthy Banana Cookies with Oats and Chocolate Chips

Healthy Banana Cookies with Oats and Chocolate Chips

Are you looking for an easy healthy banana cookies recipe? I hope you’ll give these delicious healthy banana cookies a go.

They’re adapted from a recipe in Bethenny Frankel’s book, Naturally Thin: Unleash Your SkinnyGirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting.

If you are looking for tasty healthy banana cookies that are low fat, vegan and gluten free – this is the recipe for you.

In the name of full disclosure, because they are low fat, dairy and egg free – these healthy banana cookies are more like cake or muffin tops than traditional cookies made with lots of butter and eggs; but they’re still very good.

They’re the kind of cookies you can feel good about eating, since they’re filled with good-for-you wholesome ingredients.

I’ve made them twice and everyone who tried them thought they were good – especially my stepson who is allergic to eggs and gluten.

When using bananas in baking, the more overripe (almost black) the better because they are much sweeter. The original recipe called for soy milk and just 1 teaspoon of oil, I used 1 tablespoon of oil and coconut milk, since that’s what I had in the fridge. Use whatever non-dairy milk you like best. I’m sure rice milk or almond milk would work too but I’m a big fan of coconut milk at the moment.

The recipe calls for oat flour. You can make oat flour by pulsing rolled oats in your blender or food processor until it’s the consistency of flour.

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Grandma’s Muffin Recipes

Grandma's old-fashioned muffins
Grandma's old-fashioned muffins

Grandma’s homemade muffins

I’m a big fan of grandma’s recipes, especially for old-fashioned homemade muffins like grandma used to make. They are usually quick, easy and delicious and so much better for you than the kind you buy today, which seem more like big cupcakes than the muffins from my childhood.

Most of the muffins you get today are bigger, richer and sweeter than those that were eaten just a few decades ago. For example, it’s been reported on one of the calorie count websites that a Costco blueberry muffin has 610 calories, 32 g carbs and 71 g of fat which gives it a Weight Watchers PointsPlus value of 16! (The others are even worse.)

It makes me cringe when I realize I used to buy a dozen of these babies, wrap them individually, and place them in the freezer for a quick and easy grab and go breakfast.

Interested in a little American muffin history?

History of Muffins

Muffin recipes have a long history here in the US. (I didn’t realize how far back they went  until I was scanning my old facsimile of the 1896 Boston Cooking School cookbook recently and discovered more than 15 recipes for muffins in it. Most of them were plain and varied by the type of flour used – white, rye, corn or graham – and the amount of sugar and eggs used.)

You’ll find lots of muffin recipes that call for nuts, dried fruit, berries, chopped meat, cheese and vegetables in old cookbooks from the first half of the 20th century. It appears that they were a thrifty way to use up bits of leftovers back then.

And they showed up much more often on the breakfast and lunch table than they do these days, unfortunately. As author of one of my old cookbook’s said, “Muffins are very nice as a quick hot bread for most any meal, probably more suited to breakfast or lunch. There are both fancy and plain muffins, quick and not so quick – all of which are fun to make.”

In the last few decades the variety of muffin flavors have expanded, along with their size. Today muffins are often 3 to 4 times bigger than they were just a few years ago. You can verify this by making a batch of muffins from an old cookbook and then comparing them with those served at your favorite coffee shop.

Today there are actually cookbooks available that tout titles like 750 Best Muffin Recipes: Everything from breakfast classics to gluten-free, vegan and coffeehouse favorites. (I did a search for muffin cookbooks on Amazon.com that brought that back over 2,000 results. Talk about America’s love affair with muffins!)

As I continue to explore ways to simplify eating, cooking and living and spend time with old cookbooks, I find myself drawn to the simple old muffin recipes of the past.

I’ve scoured my grandmother’s recipe files and my old cookbooks from the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s and come up with this great collection of old muffin recipes.

Most old recipes are written in an annotated style, without a lot of the detail you get in more modern recipes. You can tell they were written by women who knew how to cook for women who knew how to cook, in a kind of cooking shorthand.

Most old muffin recipes also include instructions for sifting the flour and/or sifting together the dry ingredients. This isn’t usually necessary today, since most flour comes pre-sifted. But because the flour does settle, it’s important to fluff it up well with a whisk or fork before lightly spooning it into your measuring cup. If you don’t do this, you run the risk of using too much flour which will cause your baked goods to turn out too dry.

I hope you have fun reading and reminiscing as you peruse this collection of old recipes.


Grandma’s Old-fashioned Muffins

Berkshire Muffins Recipe

2/3 cup milk, scalded
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1/2 cup cooked rice
1/2 cup flour, sifted
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 egg, separated
1 tablespoon melted butter

Pour hot milk over cornmeal and let it stand for 5 minutes. Add rice. Mix and sift dry ingredients. Combine with cornmeal, rice and egg yolk, well beaten, than add melted butter. Fold in stiffly beaten egg white. Bake in hot oven (425 degrees F.) about 25 minutes.

Yield: Makes 8 muffins.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 143 calories, 2.6 g fat, 26.1 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 3.6 g protein, 4 WW PointsPlus Value


Doughnut Muffins Recipe

1 egg
1/3 cup cooking oil
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
1 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)
1-1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup sugar

Using a fork, beat egg in mixing bowl. Add oil and milk and extracts if using. Continue beating with fork. Sift flour, measure and sift with sugar, baking powder, salt and nutmeg. Add to mixture and stir with fork, very lightly. Turn into 12 greased muffin tins. This will make 12 medium-sized muffins. Sprinkle each muffin with a mixture of sugar and cinnamon and put a dot of butter or margarine on top of each. Bake at 400 degrees about 20 minutes.

Yield: Makes 12 muffins

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 156 calories, 6.8 g fat, 21.3 g carbs, 0 g fiber, 2.4 g protein and 4 WW PointsPlus Value.


Graham Gems Recipe

1-1/2 cups graham flour*
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons molasses
1 cup sour milk or buttermilk

Mix in the order given. The graham flour is not sifted. Measure by spoonfuls into cup. Turn into mixing bowl. Add sugar, salt and soda. Mix well, then add molasses and butter milk or sour milk.

There are no eggs in this recipe. Turn into gem pans or muffin tins. Bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. (Recipe yield is not specified.)

*one cup of graham flour is approximately equivalent to 2/3 cup white flour, slightly less than 1/3 cup wheat bran, and 1-1/2 teaspoons wheat germ.


Maypo Muffins Recipe

Maypo was the original maple flavored oatmeal cereal. We ate it regularly during the winter when I was a kid. This Maypo muffins recipe appeared on the side of the box and became a favorite with Mom and Nana. I was so excited to find this recipe noted in one of my grandmother’s old recipe books because I had been searching for it everywhere.

(The Maypo muffin recipe advertised by the manufacturer must have been updated in the 1980s or 1990s because it calls for egg whites, honey and less oil. Why would anyone put honey in a maple flavored muffin? Maple syrup, maybe. Honey, definitely not! One can only wonder what they were thinking. So glad my grandmother had the good sense to jot down the original recipe in her old cookbook)

3/4 cup Maypo
1-1/4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup milk
3 tablespoons melted shortening or vegetable oil

Whisk together the dry ingredient in a bowl. Whisk together the wet ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the wet ingredients into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix gently just until moistened. Pour into greased muffin pan and bake in preheated 400 degree F oven for 20 minutes.

Yield: 9 “large” muffins

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 178 calories, 6.1 fat, 26.8 g carbs, 1.4 g fiber, 4.3 g protein and 5 WW PointsPlus Value


Oatmeal Muffin Recipe

1 cup rolled oats
1 cup low fat buttermilk
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup white flour
1/2 cup sugar or packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 egg

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Mix together the oats, buttermilk and butter and let sit in a warm place to soften while mixing the rest of the ingredients. Sift together all the dry ingredients. Add egg to oatmeal mixture and blend well. Mix in dry ingredients. Pour batter into greased muffin pans. Bake 18 minutes.

Yield: Makes 12 muffins

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 178 calories, 8.8 g fat, 22.1 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 3.2 g protien and 5 WW PointsPlus Value.


Squash Muffin Recipe

1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup cooked mashed squash
1-3/4 cups flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons melted shortening or oil

Beat egg and sugar, add milk and squash. Sift flour, measure and sift with dry ingredients. Combine with beaten egg mixture. Do this lightly. Add shortening. Turn into greased muffin tins.

Bake at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins

Yield: 12 muffins

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 138 calories, 5.3 g fat, 19.8 g carbs, 0.8 g fiber, 2.8 g protein and 4 WW PointsPlus Value


More Muffin Recipes

Banana Nut Muffins
Basic Muffin Recipe
Easy Muffin Recipes
Healthy Blueberry Muffin Recipes
Healthy Muffin Recipes and Muffin Making Tips
Pumpkin Muffins
Whole Wheat Muffin Recipes

Old Fashioned Healthy Muffin Recipes

Healthy Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

I made my first batch of healthy muffins back in the 1970s. The recipe came from a magazine (I don’t remember which one; Seventeen, perhaps?). The ingredients included orange juice, cornflakes and raisins.

I’ve enjoyed making muffins ever since, probably because they are so easy to make and everyone appreciates them warm from the oven. It also helps that most muffin recipes call for common ingredients most people keep on hand – flour, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk and butter or oil – that can be stirred together in minutes.

The truth is that most any muffin you make at home is going to be much better for you than the kind you find in supermarkets, bakeries and coffee shops because the portion size will be smaller and the amount of sugar and fat much less.

Some of the most healthy muffin recipes can be found in old cookbooks where butter, fat and sugar were used more sparingly (probably because of their expense) and portion sizes were smaller.

Even though muffin making is easy, there are a few important tips to keep in mind…

Muffin Making Tips

  • Most easy muffin recipes can be stirred together by hand in a large bowl.
  • For the best results mix together the dry ingredients well with a fork or wire whisk. The goal is to fluff the flour up so it is well aerated which will help create lighter more tender muffins.
  • When combining the dry and wet ingredients, mix just until blended because over mixing will cause your muffins to be heavy and tough.
  • If some of your muffin cups are empty, add water to them to prevent your muffin pan from buckling.
  • Don’t let the baked muffins sit in the pan too long or they will become soggy.
  • Well made muffins are golden brown with slightly rounded bumpy tops. They are tender and light to fairly dense and moist inside and easy to remove from the pan.
  • Most any recipe for a large  (9×5-inch) loaf of quick bread can be turned into 12 (2-1/2-inch) muffins. Just evenly distribute the batter among the muffin cups and bake in a preheated 375 degree F oven until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean, somewhere between 20 and 25 minutes.

Sometimes things go wrong when baking muffins.  Here are some common muffin making problems and cures…

Muffin Trouble Shooting

  • Pale muffins usually mean the oven was too cool.
  • Peaked and/or smooth topped muffins indicates the batter was mixed too much.
  • Tough and heavy muffins means too much flour was used and/or the batter was mixed too much. (Be sure to fluff your flour well and then lightly spoon it into your measuring cup before leveling it off with the flat side of a knife.)
  • Uneven texture with large holes/tunnels indicates too much mixing
  • Dry muffins usually means you used too much flour, your oven was too hot or they were baked too long.
  • Sticking usually means the pan was not properly greased
  • Muffins that are dark on the outside but underdone in the middle indicates that the oven was too hot.

Healthy Muffin Making Ingredients

  • all purpose flour
  • whole wheat pastry flour
  • rolled oats
  • ground flaxseed meal
  • nuts
  • granulated sugar
  • brown sugar
  • honey
  • maple syrup
  • molasses
  • butter
  • canola oil
  • olive oil
  • eggs
  • milk
  • buttermilk
  • plain yogurt
  • spices
  • salt
  • vanilla
  • citrus zest

You don’t need any special ingredients to make muffins, beyond your standard baking tools and a muffin pan.

Muffin Making Kitchen Tools & Equipment

  • mixing bowls
  • muffin pans
  • cooling rack
  • measuring cups
  • measuring spoons
  • wire whisk
  • rubber or silicone spatulas
  • wooden spoons
  • grater/zester
  • kitchen timer
  • oven mitts
  • toothpicks (for checking doneness)

Healthy Muffin Recipes

I love baking and eating healthy muffins and collecting healthy muffin recipes.  Here are some of my current favorites, each with Weight Watchers PointsPlus values of 4, 5 or 6.


Whole Wheat Applesauce Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 20 to 25 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

I’ve found that using half all-purpose flour and half whole wheat flour is the best way to reach a happy healthy balanced with many muffin recipes. You get the benefits of whole wheat flour without having your muffins turn out too dense and heavy.

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, for sprinkling on top if desired

Directions

1. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a muffin pan.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, flax seeds, cinnamon, allspice, baking soda and salt.

3. In a second bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, egg, applesauce, oil and vanilla until well blended.

4. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir just until blended.

5. Divide the batter equally among the cups of the prepared muffin pan. Sprinkle with the turbinado sugar if desired.

6. Bake in the preheated oven until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted in the center  of the muffins comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven and let the muffins cool in their pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and place them on the wire rack to cool.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 224 calories, 10.2 g fat, 30.7 g carbs, 1.2 g fiber, 2.9 g protein and 6 WW PointsPlus Value

Recipes for whole wheat banana muffins and whole wheat pumpkin muffins


Oatmeal Muffin Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Soak Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

Like eating a bowl of healthy oatmeal in muffin form!

Ingredients

1 cup buttermilk
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 large egg
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Combine the buttermilk and oats in a bowl and let soak for 30 minutes before proceeding with the recipe.

2. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a standard muffin pan.

3. Add the egg, sugar and melted butter to the buttermilk mixture and stir until well blended.

4. In a small bowl stir together the flour, baking soda, and salt until well combined then add this mixture to the mixing bowl with the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.

5. Distribute the batter evenly among the cups of the muffin pans.

6. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven and let the muffins cool in their pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and place them on the wire rack to cool.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 175 calories, 8.9 g fat, 20.2 g carbs, 1.1 g fiber, 3.5 g protein and 5 WW PointsPlus Value

Variation: For toasted coconut muffins, stir 1 cup toasted coconut into the flour mixture and proceed with the recipe as directed.

Oatmeal Muffin


Healthy 8-Grain Muffin Recipe

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Soak Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 15 to 20 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

A healthy and delicious way to bump up your whole grain intake. These eight grain muffins are great for breakfast or a healthy lunchbox snack.

Ingredients

1-1/4 cups buttermilk
1 cup 8-grain or other mullti-grain hot cereal
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Combine the buttermilk and cereal in a large bowl and let soak for 20 minutes before proceeding with the recipe.

2. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a standard muffin pan.

4. In another large bowl stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt until well combined and set aside.

5. Whisk the egg, brown sugar, oil and vanilla into the cereal mixture until well blended.

6. Add the cereal mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just blended.

7. Distribute the batter evenly among the cups of the muffin pans.

6. Bake for 18 to 22 minutes or until the tops are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven and let the muffins cool in their pan on a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and place them on the wire rack to cool.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 152 calories, 7.0 g fat, 19.4 g carbs, 0.6 g fiber, 3.1 g protein and 4 WW PointsPlus Value


Irish Brown Bread Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 26 to 20 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

Great muffins to serve with soup for lunch or supper. We enjoyed the recently with steaming bowls of split pea soup.

Ingredients

2 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat germ
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup dark molasses
1/4 cup butter, melted

Directions

1. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a standard muffin pan.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, wheat germ salt and baking soda until well combined.

3. In a medium bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, molasses and butter until well blended

4. Add the buttermilk mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just blended.

5. Distribute the batter evenly among the prepared cups of the muffin pan. Using the tip of a sharp knife, cut and X across the top of the batter in each cup.

6. Bake in preheated oven for 16 to 20 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned and the muffins sound hollow when tapped.

7. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 164 calories, 4.4 g fat, 28.0 g carbs, 0.9 g fiber, 3.4 g protein and 4 WW PointsPlus Value


Our Best Bran Muffins

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 12 muffins

This classic recipe for bran muffins dates back to 1926, when it first appeared on the box of Kellogg’s All-Bran Cereal. It’s the muffin my roommate, Amy, and I made most often and college and one I still get a craving for every now and again.

Ingredients

1-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sugar
1-1/2-cups Kellogg’s All-Bran cereal or Bran Buds cereal
1 cup milk
1 large egg
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a standard 12 cup (2-1/2-inch) muffin pan.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar until well combined and then set aside.

3. In a large bowl, stir together the All-Bran cereal and milk. Let stand 5 minutes, until cereal is softened. Add the egg and oil. Beat well.

4. Add the flour mixture, stirring only until combined.

5. Portion the batter evenly among the prepared cups of the muffin pan.

6. Bake in preheated oven until they look done and toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven and let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then remove them from the pan and transfer them to a wire rack to cool.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 muffin): 171 calories, 7.3 g fat, 25.6 g carbs, 2.9 g fiber, 3.5 g protein and 5 WW PointsPlus Value

Variations: 3 cups Kellogg’s Raisin Bran cereal or All Bran flakes cereal may be substituted for the All-Bran cereal.

Orange Berry Muffins: Decrease sugar to 1/4 cup. Substitute orange juice for milk and stir in 1/2 cup dried cranberries with the flour mixture. Bake about 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out clean.


More Great Healthy Muffin Recipes

7 Healthy Blueberry Muffin Recipes – a collection from my files and from around the web
Banana Mocha Macadamia Nut Muffins – a great breakfast muffin for banana and coffee lovers
Banana Nut Muffins – simple, moist and delicious
Basic Muffins – a richer more cake like basic muffin recipe with more sugar, butter and eggs
Bran Muffins – a collection of recipes from my files and from the web
Cottage Cheese Muffins – simple muffins with the added protein of cottage cheese
Easy Muffin Recipes - a great collection of easy muffin recipes that all begin with one master recipe
Healthy Apple Pecan Muffins – with whole wheat flour, applesauce, apples and cinnamon
Healthy Company Muffins - full of wholesome ingredients including oats, apples and carrots
Irish Soda Bread Muffins – soda bread flavors in a simple muffin
Pumpkin Muffins – spicy and not too sweet with raisins and nuts
Whole Wheat Muffins – whole wheat banana and whole wheat pumpkin chocolate chip

Do you have a favorite healthy muffins recipe you’d like to share?

750 Muffin Recipes Cookbook

Banana Oatmeal Cookies – 2 Points+

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Skinny Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Easy Banana Oatmeal Cookies

Banana oatmeal cookies are the kind of cookies you can eat for breakfast without feeling too guilty since they are full of good-for-you breakfast ingredients like oatmeal, bananas and walnuts. (Especially if you have them with fruit and some Greek yogurt.)

They’re a perfect way to use up overripe bananas tool. (It’s best to use really ripe bananas for baking because your cookies, breads and muffins will turn out sweeter, moister and better tasting.)

If you like banana bread, but are looking for something a little different you will love these oatmeal banana cookies. Or if you prefer, here’s low fat gluten free vegan healthy banana cookies recipe for you.

This cookie dough needs to chill at least 10 minutes and up to 6 hours to let the dough firm up before baking.

The recipe specifies old-fashioned oats, which will produce the chewiest cookie. You can substitute quick-cooking oats, but your cookies will be less chewy.  Just be sure not to use quick cooking oats!

Banana Oatmeal Cookies – 2 Points+
 
Prep time

Cook time

Total time

 

Author:
Recipe type: Cookies
Serves: 36

Ingredients
  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • ¼ cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted and cooled slightly
  • 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
  • 1 cup mashed really ripe bananas (2 to 3 medium)
  • ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 2½ cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
  • 1 cup chopped nuts, optional

Instructions
  1. In a medium size bowl whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg until well blended and set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Beat in the mashed bananas, applesauce, egg, and vanilla, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula if necessary to make sure everything is well blended.
  3. Stir in the flour mixture with the mixer on low speed or with a wooden spoon just until combined. Stir in the oats and nuts (if using) just until combined.
  4. Cover the dough and place in the refrigerator for at least 10 minutes (or up to 6 hours) to firm up. (If the dough is too soft, the cookies will spread too much.)
  5. When you are ready to bake the cookies, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. For best results line cookies with silicone liners or parchment paper. Alternatively, you can use ungreased cookie sheets.
  6. Drop cookie dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared cookie sheets about 3 inches apart.
  7. Bake the cookies until their edges are golden brown, but they are still soft on top, about 15 to 17 minutes. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on cookie sheets for several minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack with a spatula and allow them to cool completely before storing.

Notes
Nutritional Estimates Per Serving without Nuts (1 cookie): 75 calories, 2 g fat, 13 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 2 g protein and 2 PointsPlus value. (Calories increase to 86 and pointsplus stay the same with nuts.)

Source:  Mom’s Big Book of Cookies

Links to More banana cookies from around the web…

Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Cookies from Baking Bites
All Natural Banana Oatmeal Cookies found at Cookie Madness

You might also like…

Low Fat Banana Cookies with Dates & Coconut
8 Healthy Breakfast Cookie Recipes
Healthy Low Fat Banana Cookies with Oats and Chocolate Chips
Healthy Muffins
Banana Mocha Macadamia Nut Muffins

Healthy Breakfast Muffins

Healthy Muffins

Healthy Muffins

If you prefer healthy muffins you can feel good about serving for breakfast, I hope you will give this recipe a try. They are officially called “Company Muffins” in the Simply in Season, where I first came across them last week.

If you are not familiar, Simply in Season is a World Community Cookbook, where the recipes are organized by season.In addition to wonderful simple wholesome recipes, the cookbook has ideas for buying and cooking wholesome, fresh locally produced food, a fruit and vegetable guide, as well as reflections and anecdotes on the meaning and place of food in our lives. I picked up my copy several years ago in a Ten Thousand Villages shop and have been enjoying it ever since.

As soon as I read the ingredient list and realized I had everything I needed to make this muffin recipe, I’ve been thinking about them.

Yesterday waking up with more energy than usual, I decided to bake them in mini muffin pans so they could be enjoyed both for breakfast and as a teatime snack!

These muffins are kind of like carrot cake muffins, apple muffins, whole wheat muffins and oatmeal muffins all combined into one. They turned out moist and tasty with just enough sweetness and plenty of spice from the generous amount of cinnamon.

We enjoyed them yesterday for breakfast and I reheated some this morning to share with colleagues from a from a business development workshop I am taking with my coach and friend, Life Coach Erin.

Since everyone who has tried them enjoyed them, I look forward to making them again.

Healthy Breakfast Muffins

Makes 18 muffins or 36 mini muffins

Ingredients

1/2 cup / 125 ml flour
1/2 cup / 125 ml whole wheat flour
1 cup / 250 ml oat bran or rolled oats
3/4 cup / 175 ml brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large tart apples (peeled, cored and shredded)
1 1/2 cups / 375 ml finely shredded carrots
1/2 cup / 250 ml chopped walnuts or 1/2 cup / 125 ml flaxseed meal
1/2 cup / 125 ml raisins or dried cranberries
2 eggs
1/2 cup / 125 ml milk (I used coconut milk)
1/4 cup / 60 ml oil (I used a blend of extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and sesame oil)

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and grease your muffin pans.

In a large bowl, combine the flours, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder and salt, stirring until well blended. Add the shredded apples, carrots, walnuts and raisins and stir until they are coated with the flour mixture and then make a well in the center of the mixture.

In a small bowl, stir together the eggs, milk and oil. Pour into the flour mixture and stir until everything is just moistened. Fill muffin pans about 3/4 full. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes for regular muffins and 12 to 15 minutes for mini muffins.

Remove from the oven and place on wire racks to cool slightly.  After 5 minutes or so remove the muffins from the pans and allow to cool completely before storing or enjoy while warm.

Nutritional Estimates Per Serving (1 mini-muffin): 71 calories, 3.1 g fat, 9.8 g carbs, 1 g fiber, 1.6 g protein and 2 WW PointsPlus value.

More Healthy Muffin Recipes for You: