Banana Maple Muffins

Personally, it irks me when I read a food blog that claims to provide a "low-fat" and "guilt-free" muffin recipe but fails to deliver. As someone who takes nutrition seriously, when I see 1/3 cup oil (read: 75 grams of fat) in such a recipe, I know it's because of carelessness. I'm all for healthy fats in a well-balanced diet, but we can get those from other places than our "guilt-free" morning muffins.

I'm not sure if I can call these whole wheat. Truthfully, I'm using a mixture of white all-purpose and whole wheat flour because I'm a bit scared of the texture of a muffin made with 100% whole-wheat flour.

I'm using my yogurt/applesauce trick again (plus 1 tbsp of butter) in order to give these muffins some delicious texture. Additionally, since there's no crumb topping, these guys are going to be nice and light. Each muffin has only 190 calories and 1.5 grams of fat. I'm pretty darned proud of these muffins from a nutritional standpoint. The sweetness, and a good chunk of the calories, come from pure maple syrup. It's definitely a splurge, since I don't usually keep any in, but it definitely makes a difference in the flavor of these muffins.

Banana Maple Muffins

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsps baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 large mashed bananas
1 cup pure maple syrup
1 egg
1/4 cup applesauce
1/4 cup fat free greek yogurt
1 tbsp butter, melted
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

I love muffins because the directions are so easy. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line your muffin tray. Whisk together all of the dry ingredients until well combined. In another bowl mix the mashed bananas, maple syrup, egg, applesauce, yogurt, butter, and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Scoop into the muffin tin and bake for about 18 - 20 minutes or until the pass the toothpick test.

Having tried the recipe, and having failed to take any pictures, I'm not yet 100% happy with them. It might be some displeasure with the texture of banana muffins in general, but I think I may try the 100% whole wheat approach next time. And rather than mashing the bananas, I'll chop them and fold them into the mixture last. More experiments to come...