Morning Glorious Muffins

These are some of my favorite muffins!

They are loaded with carrots, shredded apples, raisins or dates and whole wheat flour. Sometimes I even add Chia seeds. :) Try them! You won't be disappointed.

Here's the recipe.

Whole-Wheat Sweet Dough

This recipe is wonderful. It is half whole-wheat flour so it is much healthier than traditional sweet doughs, but it is still light and fluffy. I've used it for cinnamon rolls and sticky pull-aparts, neither of which are healthy, but at least they are a bit healthier this way. Not only are they healthier, but also we genuinely prefer the heartier flavor. There is also a fair amount of sugar in this recipe, and I often add quite a bit less and still have good results.

1 1/2 Tbsp. yeast

1/4 c. warm water

1/4 c. butter

1/2 c. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 c. hot milk or water

2 eggs, well beaten

2 1/2 c. white flour

2 1/2 c. whole-wheat flour

1. Place yeast into warm water to proof.

2. Mix butter, sugar and salt with the hot milk; set aside to cool.

3. Add yeast to beaten eggs and tehn add the cooled milk mixture.

4. Add flour and mix well. Knead for 5-10 minutes.

5. Form into a ball; cover and set aside to raise until doubled in size.

6. Roll out onto floured board and add desired ingredients to make many different kinds of sweet rolls.

For cinnamon rolls, I divide the dough in half, roll into a rectangle and then sprinkle with sugar, cinnamon, and sometimes raisins or dried crans. Then roll up the rectangle, cut into about 1 1/2 inch slices and place into a buttered pan (9x13 or two 9-inch cake pans). Let rise again and then bake at 375 for 20 to 22 minutes. I usually put some foil over the tops to prevent them from getting too brown.

Glazed Apple Cake

This recipe is sooooo good. Dangerously good. The kind of good that is just the perfect amount of hearty and sweet that I have a really hard time staying with just one serving. Bake up some fall flavor today!

With the glaze, this recipe is an excellent cake. For a delicious snack or breakfast bread, leave off the glaze.

Ingredients:

6 Tbsp. softened unsalted butter or butter substitute

6 Tbsp. brown sugar

1/4 c. molasses

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/4c. applesauce

1 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. whole-wheat flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp. ground cloves

dash of ground allspice

2 apples, peeled and diced (reserve cores and skin)

1/2 c. granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325; grease and flour a 5x9-in loaf pan.

2. Use an electric mixer to beat together the butter and brown sugar until fluffy--about 4 minutes. Add the molasses; beat. Add eggs, beating after each one. The mix in the vanilla and applesauce.

3. Next add all the dry ingredients. Stir the dry ingredients to combine, then beat into the wet ingredients.

4. Stir in the diced apples and pour into loaf pan. Bake until a toothpick comes out clean, about 60 to 70 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

5. For the glaze, combine the sugar, 1/2 c. water and then apple cores and skins. Bring to a simmer and cook until syrupy, about 10 minutes.

6. Remove the cake from the pan and drizzle the glaze over the top and sides of the cooled "cake."  

Enjoy!!

Note: This recipe was adapted from a recipe in Whole Living magazine.

Dairy-free dessert: Lemon Cake

Not super healthy, but dairy-free and super delicious. The cake as a great lemon flavor and is nice and rich. It's one of those cakes that are better without frosting, which definitely helps the health factor.

Ingredients:
1 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. whole-wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
4 large eggs
scant 1 c. sugar
2 Tbsp. almond or soy milk
1/2 c. light olive oil
6 Tbsp. dairy-free margarine, melted
juice and zest of one large lemon

1. Preheat oven to 350. Lightly oil one 9" cake pan. Lightly flour the pan, tapping out the excess flour, and set aside.
2. In a medium-sized mixing bowl, sift together the flours and baking powder. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar until the mixture is pale yellow in color. Add the non-dairy milk alternative of your choice, olive oil, melted soy margarine, lemon juice and zest, whisking until well combined. Add the dry ingredients, stirring until just combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, about 30-35 minutes. Immediately turn cake out onto a wire cooling rack and allow the cake to cool.
4. Either frost with the dairy-free frosting of your choice eat as is! a sprinkle of powder sugar looks nice on it.

Print the recipe

Fruit Icee

A perfect way to beat the heat on these last days of summer!

Directions:

Chop up ice cubes in a blender or food processor. You may have to do only a few ice cubes at a time.

Transfer to a ramekin or cup.

Now for the "syrup:"

Here, I used cantaloup and a bit of honey, but the possibilities are endless--watermelon, honeydew, raspberries, strawberries, etc. Just blend it up until it has the consistency of thick juice.

Pour over your ice and enjoy!

Dairy-free dessert: Blueberry Crisp

Not all together super-healthy, but I'm on a dairy-free diet since my breastfeeding baby is allergic. I've been looking for good desserts (dairy-free desserts are hard to come by!!)

This one was delicious though!

Ingredients:
4 c. blueberries
1/3 c. flour
1/3 c. oats
1/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. mayo
1/4 tsp. cinnamon (I shoot for 1/3 tsp. just for consistency sake.) :)

1. Wash the blueberries and place them in the bottom of a 9x9-in casserole dish.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients, add the mayo and mix to make coarse crumbs. (The mayo replaces butter that would be found in a regular recipe).
3. Top the berries w/ the oat mixture; bake at 350 for ~35 minues until the top is golden brown.

Note: Thanks Miranda!

Jello-Filled Cantaloupe

What a fun healthy treat for kids! I took a cantaloupe, halved it, removed the seeds and then filled it with jello and strawberries. I used Knox brand gelatin and white grape juice (and followed the recipe for "Knox Blocks" on the package, using just one packet of gelatin), but dyed it red because my daughter really wanted red jello. Once the gelatin was dissolved, I added frozen sliced strawberries (which really added to the flavor). Then, before pouring the mixture into the prepared cantaloupe halves, I chopped a little off the bottom of the cantaloupe to help it stand flat. Refrigerated until set, sliced it and enjoyed a fun family treat!

Orange Coffee Cake

This coffee cake is a fun and delicious variation on the traditional coffee cake, not to mention much lower in fat and sugar. It's moist texture and mellow orange flavor make it great either for dessert or a special breakfast. We love it at our house, and I recently took it to a baby shower brunch and it was much-enjoyed by everyone.

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

Cake:

3/4 c. regular or quick oats

scant 1/2 c. granulated sugar

1 1/4 c. flour (I use ~ 1/2 whole wheat flour with great results)

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 egg

3 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 c. orange juice

2 tsp. orange zest

1 tsp. vanilla
Streusel:

2 Tbsp chopped walnuts

3 Tbsp. dark brown sugar

3 Tbsp. regular or quick oats

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 and lightly coat a 9-inch-square baking dish with vegetable oil spray.

2. Whisk together the wet ingredients (egg, oil, juice, orange zest and vanilla). Add the sugar and mix well. Process the oats in a blender until a medium-fine texture. Add the processed oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the wet ingredients. Mix to combine.

3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Mix the ingredients for the streusel topping sprinkle evenly over the batter.

4. Bake until the topping is browned and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 to 35 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: This recipe was modified from the American Medical Association Family Health Cookbook.

Scrumptious Sweet Potato Cupcakes

My daughter wanted to make some cupcakes today, and I realized that I had never made any cupcakes before! I had an amazing recipe from a friend of mine, so today we tweaked it a bit to up the nutritional value and gave it a whirl. They were almost as good as the original and SOOOO much healthier! Further modifications could be made to make them even healthier, but this version still tasted like cupcakes. :) Here's what I tried today.

Ingredients

1/2 c. butter, softened

1/2 c. applesauce
1 c. sugar

3 eggs

2 c. mashed sweet potatoes

1/2 tsp vanilla
1 c. all-purpose flour

1 c. whole wheat flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350. Line twenty-four muffin cups with paper bake cups; set aside.
2. Cream the butter. Add the applesauce and sugar; beat on high speed until light and fluffy, about two minutes.

3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed between each addition until combined.

4. Add sweet potatoes and vanilla, beating until combined.

5. Add the four, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Combine.

6. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups. Bake about 20 minutes or until the tops spring back when touched. Cool on a wire rack.

7. Frost the cupcakes with this frosting. Use the variation with orange juice concentrate, cream cheese and a bit of vanilla.

ENJOY! They are mouth-wateringly delicious.

Healthy Banana Cookies

No sugar and no added fats (unless you add nuts)! AND amazingly good. I consider these an especially great treat for little kids. They are especially fun for a toddler/preschooler to help you cook because the measurements don't really matter so much. I let my 2-year-old measure EVERYTHING by herself (which she thought was wonderful) and they still turned out. Enjoy!

3 ripe bananas
2 cups rolled oats
1 cup dried fruit such as chopped dates, cranberries, raisens, chopped apricots
1/3 cup applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg
Optional add-ins:
flaked coconut
honey
wheat germ
chopped nuts
chopped apples

1.Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2.In a large bowl, mash the bananas. Stir in oats, dried fruit, applesauce, spices, and vanilla. Mix well, and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.
3.Bake for 15-20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly brown.

Grapefruit Clementine Fool

This dessert is one of those healthy-because-it's-low-sugar-but-not-healthy-because-it-is-high-fat desserts; it just depends on how you personally define "healthy." I worry more about refined sugars than I do about fats, so I don't think this one is too bad. The texture is wonderfully fluffy and smooth and it tastes very fresh--it was an instant success at our house. Make good use of all the delicious citrus fruits available now and whip it up!

1 1/2 c. orange juice

1 envelope unflavored gelatin

1 1/4 c. heavy cream (you could probably use low-fat Cool Whip instead)

scant 1/4 c. sugar (or OJ concentrate)

1 tsp. vanilla

2 pink grapefruits, peel removed, sectioned and cut into thirds

2 clementines, peeled, sectioned and cut into thirds

1. Place 1/2 c. orange juice in a saucepan; stir in gelatin and allow to stand for 1 minute. Stir over low heat for a few minutes until the gelatin dissolves. Cool to room temperature. Stir in remaining 1 c. of juice and pour into a large bowl. Refrigerate until partially set.

2. Remove juice mixture from the fridge. Beat for 2 minutes until frothy.

3. In another large bowl, beat the cream, sugar and vanilla on medium-high until soft peaks form. Gently fold whipped cream into the gelatin mixture. Fold in the grapefruit and clementine pieces.

4. Spoon mixture into 6 dessert dishes. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. To serve, you can garnish with more citrus sections or a sprig of mint.

Note: I originally got this recipe from the Family Circle magazine.

Ultimate Citrus Smoothie

Soooo good! We loved this zippy citrus concoction, and it's the perfect time of year to make it! I got the recipe from Sunset magazine and didn't follow the recipe very well (we made it on the spur of the moment and didn't have the precise ingredients) but it was still delicious. Makes 2 servings.

Actual recipe:

1 frozen banana

1/2 c. tangerine juice

1 1/2 to 2 Tbsp. Meyer lemon juice

1-2 Tbsp. honey

1/2 c. low-fat Greek yogurt

1/2 to 2/3 c. ice cubes

What I actually did:

1 frozen banana

1 orange

1 clementine

Juice from 1/2 of a lemon

Big squirt of honey

3/4 c. plain yogurt

5 ice cubes

Put in a blender and mix!