Healthy Carrot Oat Muffins

For my kids, homemade muffins are one of the best snacks to have on hand.  I love baking up a batch of healthy fresh muffins to begin the week so that we have them for breakfasts and lunch snacks.  



These muffins are healthy, dairy free and whole wheat.  And if using Maple Syrup instead of honey they are vegan too!



I was not feeling like grating carrots but really wanted a carrot muffin. So I decided to try using the food processor to do the job!  Guess what?  It worked brilliantly!

The batter came out nice and thick but mixed easily together.  I so love an easy muffin recipe.  Mis all the dry ingredients, then the wet ingredients and combine.  DONE!  

I decided to make a batch of BIG muffins and a batch of BABY muffins too!  Easy for Fraser to eat and it also meant Gord won't be cutting up a big muffin (for Fraser) on the cutting board and leaving the crumbs behind for me!  

Healthy Carrot Oat Muffin Recipe

Makes 15 muffins (or 12 muffins and 12 mini muffins) 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups whole Wheat Flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. baking soda
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ¼ tsp. ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp. ground cloves
• ¼ tsp. ground ginger
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• ½ cup plus 2 tbsp. Almond milk
• ½ cup pure maple syrup (or honey) 
• 3 Tbsp melted coconut Oil
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups peeled, grated carrot* (about 2 medium)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tins with paper liners and set aside.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole-wheat flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.
3. In a large bowl, combine the eggs, applesauce, milk, maple syrup (or honey), melted butter (or coconut oil), and vanilla. Whisk until well combined.
4. Pour the dry ingredients into the bowl of wet ingredients and stir until just combined. Fold in the grated carrots.
5. Divide the batter evenly between muffin cups, filling each cup almost to the top. Bake until a tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 18-20 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes before removing muffins to a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Storage: The muffins freeze very well. If kept air-tight in a zip-top plastic bag, they will stay fresh in the freezer for 2-3 months. Defrost on the counter or in the microwave before enjoying. Muffins will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days.

*I used my food processor to make grating the carrots quick and easy. A box grater works well too but boy is it easy to put them in the food processer and much less mess! 

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Asher and I made these Apple Cinnamon Muffins for his snacks and school this week (and Mommy's too).

I was so proud of Asher for wanting to help cut up the apples, he was so good at it too! The apples were cut into perfect little chunks and it was pretty great for me cause in my opinion that's the worst part of making apple anything! The peeling, the cutting.... blueberries are way easier!!

Then he also scooped the batter into the muffin tins after he lined each of the cups for me.  Once they were in the oven he offered to wash the bowl, and dry it as well as turn on the dishwasher for me!

I mean WHAT A MAN!

He tells me he wants to be a chef when he is like daddy (grown up).  We discussed that he would be able to go to school to learn all he needed to know to be a chef when he was older and that he could come home and teach mommy everything he learned each day... or that we could both go to school together!  That would be fun (for me)!

The muffins were ready just before he was ready for bed tonight so he tried one out for his bedtime snack and he approved!

Here is the recipe for our Apple Cinnamon Muffins

Ingredients

1/2 cup of coconut oil
3/4 cup organic cane sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/4 cup milk

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup rolled oats

1 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon Himalayan sea salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups chopped apples

Instructions

1. Mix all dry ingredients together in a medium-size bowl
2. In a mixer beat that coconut oil and cane sugar together and until creamy
3. Then mix the egg and vanilla together with the coconut oil and sugar.
4. Add the dry mixture into the wet mixture and stir until just combined but don't over mix. 
5. Add in the apples. 

Optional Topping

1/4 cup coconut palm sugar

1/4 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 tablespoons coconut oil

Mix until crumbly and add to the top of each muffin before baked

Bake until golden brown for about 20 minutes on 350 degrees.  

Here are Asher's muffins ready to go for school
tomorrow.  In the little reusable bag I found
at the Parksville market this summer!

Little Push 5 Day Challenge: Real food Day 2

Snacking is the biggest challenge for so many of us.  But if we are prepared with healthy options in the fridge and cupboard it becomes so much easier to make the healthy choice and remain satisfied too. 

This is a list of my Top 10 Real food Snacks:

1. Apple with Peanut Butter

2 Greek yogurt with Berries

3. Organic popcorn

4. Avocado on whole wheat toast

5. Shakeology Smoothie

6. Cottage Cheese with fruit

7. Nuts and dried fruit

8. Veggies & hummus

9. Cherry tomatoes

10. Cheese and Triscuits

Lately my evening snack, which by the way is my most challenging time of the day, has been a couple tablespoons of homemade peanut butter and an apple. 

What are your Favourite Healthy snacks?