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muffins that won't break the calorie bank

I found this fantastic muffin recipe during my maternity leave, when I had time to surf the web and bake – on the same day, no less!  Over time, I have adapted it to my family’s tastes.  It’s a very basic recipe, chock full of goodness but easy on sugar and fat.  I’m not much of a sweets eater (if we’re being honest here, I prefer snacks of the salty variety) but my husband, J, has an enormous sweet tooth!  Homemade muffins are infinitely healthier than the store-bought variety if you choose the right recipe, so once in a while I’ll indulge J and whip up a batch of these easy treats.  The other day, my sister – who is an amazing self-taught chef – made me a batch while I was catching up on some dishes and we were chatting in the kitchen.  She insisted on sparing me a second dirty mixing bowl and combined everything in one bowl, forgetting the milk!  By the time she remembered and added it at the last step, the muffins were overmixed.  Out of the oven came twelve chewy oatmeal pucks.  You can avoid this mistake and make yourself twelve delicious, moist muffins if you just FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS!  Sorry, sis…  When they come out right, they’re not just delicious, they’re a great small meal for an adult or child with a glass of milk or soymilk.

banana oat muffins

yields 12

• 1-1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 cup oats
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 3/4 cup low-fat milk
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed bananas, about 3 bananas (frozen or ripe to overripe)
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and lightly grease muffin tin.  2. Combine flour, oats, sugar, powder, soda and salt.  3. In separate bowl, beat egg lightly, then add milk, oil and vanilla.  4. Stir in banana until just combined.  5. Stir flour mix into wet mix until just combined – do not overmix.  6. Pour into muffin tin and bake 18-20 minutes.

Nutrition Information: (per muffin) 214 calories; 7.8 g fat; 5.4 g protein; 32.8 g carbohydrate; 3.7 g fiber