Blueberry Zucchini Muffins

I love adding grated vegetables to baked goods. The zucchini in this recipe makes the muffins super soft and the sweetness of the blueberries give a slight tartness, making these the perfect bite for breakfast or a snack!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 c. oil
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 c. grated zucchini, drained
2 c. blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pans with paper liners and set aside. In a large bowl, mix the sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla with a spatula. Slowly add in the dry ingredients until the batter comes together evenly. Stir in the blueberries.

Fill the prepared baking cups about 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes until the top slightly bounces back when gently pressed down.

Banana Chocolate Chip Espresso Muffins

The hint of espresso in these banana chocolate chip muffins sends them over the top! This is definitely my favorite banana muffin recipe that I have made so far, and if you are from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, they also resemble the ones from Babycakes (only not dry).

Ingredients:

4 small bananas, very ripe, mashed
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 stick margarine, melted
1/4 c. coconut milk, light
1 egg
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. instant espresso powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12 cup and 6 cup muffin tin with non stick cooking spray and set aside (or 2 12-cup tins, mine made around 15 muffins total). In a large bowl, combine the eggs, sugars, margarine, coconut milk and egg together. Add in the dry ingredients and stir until everything is combined well. Mix in the chocolate chips.

Divide among the baking cups, about 3/4 of the way full. Bake for 20-23 minutes until the tops are golden brown and bounce back slightly when gently pressed on. Allow to cool about 10 minutes before removing from the pans and letting cool fully on a wire rack.

Banana Sweet Potato Bites

These muffin resembling bite size goodies are perfect for a sweet treat or snack any time of the day. They have no flour or sugar (unless, like me, you add mini chocolate chips to some) and are great for between meals when you need a little something to tide you over.

Ingredients:

1 medium sweet potato
1 medium banana
1/4 c. almond butter, crunchy
2 eggs
1/4 tsp. cinnamon (optional)
*White chia seeds and mini chocolate chips

Poke the sides of the sweet potato all over with a fork. Place on a paper towel and microwave for 6 minutes. Cut the sweet potato in half to cool for a few minutes before trying to handle. Scoop the flesh into a large bowl. Add in the banana and mash together. Add the peanut butter, eggs and cinnamon and mix everything until incorporated well. Spray mini muffin tins with non stick cooking spray and fill the cavities 2/3 full. Top with chia seeds or mini chocolate chips and bake in the oven for around 18 minutes. Let the muffins cool in the tin for about 5 minutes, then transfer to a drying rack to cool (or try a few warm!)

Banana Applesauce Muffins

If you can do something as simple as stir things in a bowl, this recipe is for you. All it takes is preheating the oven, filling up muffin liners and using a timer. These banana applesauce muffins are easy to make and are done and ready to eat in less than a half an hour!

Ingredients:

1 large banana
1/2 c. sugar
1/4 c. applesauce
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1-2 tsp. white chia seeds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake tin with liners. In a medium size bowl, mash the banana with a fork. Add the sugar and stir together. Add the remaining ingredients, minus the chia seeds.

Divide the batter between 10-12 muffin liners, top with a small amount of white chia seeds and bake in the oven for 20 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Let cool before storing.

Mini Beer Bread Cheese Curd Muffins

 

Well, football season has ended for the year (I don't actually watch football, I just like to make awesome appetizers that you would serve if you actually HAD people over to watch football....but anyways..), and the Superbowl was yesterday. I made these cute little bite size beer bread with Wisconsin cheese curds on top! (And no, I am not from Wisconsin, nor do I like the Packers..... my husband and I as sad as it may be, although they did do good this year, are both Lions fans.) These bite size morsels are absolutely delicious with a honey mustard dip!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. dill cheese curds, broken into small pieces (or use normal cheese curds and 1-2 Tbs. fresh dill)
12 oz. beer (someone left a Keystone at our house, use whatever you want to get rid of)
1 pouch beer bread mix (I used pampered chef)
1 Tbs. margarine, melted
2 Tbs. chives, freeze dried or fresh
2 tsp. garlic salt

Spray a 24 cup (or 2, 12 cup) mini muffin tin with non stick cooking spray. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix the beer, bread mix, margarine, chives and garlic salt together. Fill the muffin tins about 2/3 of the way full with the batter. Place part of a cheese curd in the center of each cup and press down slightly. bake for 10-12 minutes until the bottoms are slightly golden and the cheese is melted. This recipe makes around 50-52 so spray the tins again and repeat the filling and cooking process until the batter is gone.

I served this with a honey mustard sauce. I combined 1 1/2 Tbs. champagne mustard, 1 1/2 Tbs. course or stone ground mustard, and 2 tsp. honey. Double, triple or quadruple depending on how big of a crowd you are serving this for.

Raspberry Almond Chia Muffins

This past Friday I went raspberry picking with one of my good friends out in the subdivision that I live in. The rain has been so sparse lately that I didn't expect a lot to be out but there was quite a bit, and definitely enough to make some baked goods with. I love wild raspberries and blueberries for that matter because they may be tiny, but they have SO much more flavor. This is definitely in the top 10 muffin recipes that I have made so far!

Ingredients:

1 stick margarine, softened
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. sour cream, light
3 tsp. chia seeds
1 c. wild raspberries (or store-bought big ones)
1/4 c. slivered almonds (plus a few for the top)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In an electric mixer, combine the margarine and sugar until creamy. Add in the eggs and vanilla. Slowly add the dry ingredients until the combination is mixed well. Stir in the sour cream, raspberries, almonds and chia seeds with a spatula. Line a muffin tin with 12 paper liners. Divide the batter evenly among the 12 cups. Add a few slivered almonds on top. I also added some coarse sugar (sugar crystals). Bake in the oven for 23-25 minutes until the tops are golden brown and the batter is fully cooked. Transfer out of the pans and let cool fully on a wire rack.

(Makes 12 muffins, 6 WW points per muffin.)

Blueberry Chia Muffin Bread

 

Blueberry bread and banana are my two favorite kinda of bread in the entire world. I have just recently in the last year started to love chia seeds, in both pudding form, and crunchy form, and thrown into random breads and cookies. This blueberry bread with chia seeds on the inside and out, is a great combination. It also has the texture of a muffin, rather than a soft bread, so one slice is very filling for breakfast!

Ingredients:

1 c. sugar
1 stick salted butter, softened
2 eggs
1 c. milk, 1% or almond
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 1/2 c. blueberries
2 Tbs. chia seeds (plus more for top)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 inch glass loaf pan and set aside. In an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar together. Add in the eggs and milk and mix until you reach a smooth consistency. Add the dry ingredients in and mix until just combined. Stir in the blueberries and chia seeds with a spatula.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth out the top. Sprinkle the top with about a tablespoon or so of chia seeds. bake for 55-60 minutes or until the top is firm golden brown. Cool 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool fully.

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

Ingredients:

1 1/2 c. flour
2/3 c. sugar
1/2 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg
1/2 c. unsweetened applesauce
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. milk, 1%
1 tsp. vanilla
1 medium size zucchini, grated
2/3 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line 18 muffin tins with paper liners (or spray with non stick cooking spray) and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the egg, applesauce, oil, milk, and vanilla together. Add in the zucchini. Stir in the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and mix until everything is combined well. Add the chocolate chips and fold into the batter. Divide evenly among the prepared muffin tins and sprinkle with more chocolate chips or mini chocolate chips on top. Bake for 20-22 minutes until the tops bounce back when touched. Let cool on a wire rack, then store in an airtight container.

King Cake Pull-Apart Muffins

Ingredients:
1 container Pillsbury French Bread dough
1/2 stick margarine, melted
1/3 c. sugar
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1 c. powdered sugar
Juice from 1/2 of a lemon
1 Tbs. water (give or take)
Green, Purple and Yellow food coloring

Unroll the French bread dough out onto a flat surface. Cut into 6 long strips, then coming from the other side, cut again to form squares. Brush the melted butter on each piece of dough using a pastry brush (or you can use a spoon, pour a small amount, and use the back side of the spoon to spread out). In a small bowl, combine the cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar. Sprinkle evenly on the top of each piece of dough (do not use all of the sugar). Spray a 12 cup muffin tin with non stick cooking spray. Grab one piece of the dough in one of the 6 rows. Stack the remaining pieces in that row on top of each other. Place sideways in the muffin tin. Repeat for the remaining 5 rows. Pour the remaining butter on top of the muffins. Sprinkle the tops with the leftover cinnamon sugar blend. Bake in the oven for 20-22 minutes. Remove from the oven and let sit for 5-8 minutes in the pan before trying to remove. Place on your serving tray.

Meanwhile, get 3 small bowls out. Add 1/3 cup of powdered sugar to each bowl. Add 1 drop of green to one bowl, yellow to another, and purple to the remaining. Using half of a lemon, squeeze about 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon lemon juice in each bowl. Add a very small amount of water to each bowl, just until you get the right consistency to able to drizzle on top of the muffins. Drizzle all three colors on top of the muffins and let set slightly before serving.

Mini Chocolate Chip Banana Muffin Tops

Ingredients:

1/4 c. margarine, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
2 bananas, mashed
1 c. flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4-1/3 chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In an electric mixer, combine the butter and sugar until creamy. Add the egg, vanilla and bananas. Then add the dry ingredients. Spray a mini muffin top pan with non stick baking spray. Pour batter 2/3 of the way full and top with 3 chocolate chips. Bake for 6-8 minutes until the tops are golden brown. Cool fully on a wire rack.

Jelly Doughnut Splenda Muffins

Ingredients:

1/4 c. margarine
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1/2 c. Splenda
1/3 c. Splenda brown sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 2/3 c. flour
1 c. almond milk
1/4-1/3 c. sugar free strawberry jelly


Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line 12-15 cupcake tins with paper liners. In an electric mixer, beat the butter, oil and both sugars until smooth. Add eggs and continue to beat. Add the baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, salt and vanilla. Add the flour and milk alternating. Divide into the baking cups and bake for 15 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes, cut a hole on the tops of the muffins and fill with 1/2 tsp. of the strawberry jelly.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins with a Vanilla Glaze

Ingredients:

1 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1/2 c. milk, 1%
2 eggs
2 Tbs. butter, melted and cooled
1 apple, peeled cored and chopped (I use Golden Delicious)
2 Tbs. sugar

1/2 c. powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. milk, 1%

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients together with a whisk. Add the eggs and milk, and stir with a spatula until well combined. Add the melted butter, apple and sugar, and stir everything together. Divide among 8-9 muffin cups lined with paper liners. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Let cool fully on a wire rack.

Combine the powdered sugar, vanilla and milk in a small bowl. Drizzle over the cooled muffins.

Coffee Cake Muffins with Cinnamon Sugar

Ingredients:

1 3/4 c. flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 c. oil
3/4 c. sugar
1 egg
3/4 c. milk, 1%

Parkay butter spray (or melted butter)
2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together the oil, sugar, egg and milk until well combined. Stir in the flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon with a spatula until everything is mixed well. Divide among 12 muffin cups lined with paper liners. Bake for 17-20 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack. While the muffins are still warm, spray the top with 1 or 2 sprays of butter, and dip upside down into the cinnamon sugar mix. Let cool fully.

Blueberry Oatmeal Flaxseed Muffins

Ingredients:

1/2 c. oats
1/2 c. buttermilk, lowfat
1 1/2 Tbs. margarine, melted
1 egg
1/3 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. heaping flour
1 1/2 Tbs. ground flaxseed
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. blueberries, plus another 1/2 cup - cup or so for top

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line muffin tins with paper liners and set aside. Combine the oats and buttermilk together, stir, and let sit for 15-20 minutes. Add the melted butter, egg, brown sugar and vanilla and stir until well combined. Add the dry ingredients and stir together. Fold in the blueberries.

Divide evenly among 8 muffin cups. Top each with 4-6 blueberries. Bake in the oven for 16-18 minutes until the tops are firm. Let cool fully on a wire rack.

(Makes 8-10 muffins, if 8 muffins, 3 WW points each)

Strawberry Flaxseed Muffins

Ingredients:

3/4 c. flour
3 Tbs. milled flaxseed
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 c. milk, 1%
1 egg
2 Tbs. oil
1/3 c. strawberry preserves

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix the dry ingredients together. Add the milk, egg and oil. Mix until well combined. Mix in 1/4 c. of the strawberry preserves. Fill muffin tins that have been lined with baking cups about 3/4 of the way full. Top each with 1/2-1 tsp of strawberry preserves. Bake for 26-29 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack or serve slightly warm.

This recipe only makes 6-9 muffins (depending on how much you fill the cups). Mine made 9, and they are 3 WW points each.