oh dear god, i wrote at least five intros for this week's entry - really, life shouldn't be this hard, i might be overthinking this one...
we are going to go over a specific recipe to utilized my favorite boxed muffin/bread mix from trader joe's. doesn't sound earth-shattering, huh? by going over this one recipe, i hope to open some minds to the concept of taking advantage of boxed mixes...but saying "to hell with" the directions and making yourself some seriously healthy, delicious, convenient and cheap muffins for the whole week. once you see it work with this mix, start to branch out and experiment with others.
we are going to go over a specific recipe to utilized my favorite boxed muffin/bread mix from trader joe's. doesn't sound earth-shattering, huh? by going over this one recipe, i hope to open some minds to the concept of taking advantage of boxed mixes...but saying "to hell with" the directions and making yourself some seriously healthy, delicious, convenient and cheap muffins for the whole week. once you see it work with this mix, start to branch out and experiment with others.
i've long since realized there are baking mixes out there that are pretty darn healthy and even vegan!...until you look at the directions and they tell you to add 2 eggs and 1/2 cup of oil and milk...don't you love how the nutritional info for the mix alone looks great, then they have the "prepared" info next to that, and that looks like crap? those are the 3 items we are going to conquer - oil (or butter), egg and milk - there's a replacement for each of these fatty items that will blow your mind (and make this whole recipe healthy and vegan!) keep these items stocked in your home and you get the ease of the mix, but the healthy ingredients and homemade vibe (and it's breakfast for a week - so cheap!!) - i'm telling you, it is, in fact, kinda earth shattering.
ingredients:
-1 package trader joe's spiced apple bread mix
-2 tbsp flax meal, mixed with 6 tbsp lukewarm water - used in place of eggs
ingredients:
-1 package trader joe's spiced apple bread mix
-2 tbsp flax meal, mixed with 6 tbsp lukewarm water - used in place of eggs
(see "hints" bellow for flax meal tips)
-4 tbsp unsweetened applesauce - used in place of oil
-1+1/4 cups plain soymilk - used in place of dairy milk (or lowfat dairy milk, or almond milk)
-1/3 cup oats, blended in food processor (yup, just plain old oatmeal oats)
what to do:
1. get your oven preheating to 400 degrees and get your little paper muffin cups in your muffin tins.
2. in a small container, mix the 2 tbsp flax meal with the 6 tbsp water - do this first so it gets time to set while you prep the rest of the recipe. you'll notice when you go back to use it in 5 mins, it's turned to a goo...perfect.
3. blend the oats in your food processor. you want them broken up, but they don't have to end up as fine as flour. the point to this addition is that it bulks your recipe up a little (it's sweet enough, it can stand being diluted a little) adds some fiber, and gives your muffins a chewier, heartier texture. the larger you leave the oats, the chewier and more noticeable they'll be...though if you were to leave them whole, they're a bit too chewy if you ask me.
4. combine the oats and muffin mix in a large bowl.
5. add the milk, flax and applesauce - mix but don't over-mix. don't you hate when it says that? mix it until everything is just combined - no big flour deposits, etc. the thing is - the more you continue to mix it beyond that, the tougher your end product will be. and keep in mind, you're going to be "mixing" it a little more when you spoon it into the muffin tins, so take it easy - nice big combining swirls of the spoon or spatula.
6. spoon mix into your muffin tins/cups. fill them 3/4 of the way, so pretty close to the top, just make sure they're not right up to the brim. should fill around 14 average muffin cups (real muffin size, these are not going to be gigantic coffee shop monstrosities)
7. bake them for around 20 mins. take them out at 20 mins and stick a clean knife straight down into one - if it comes out clean, you're done.
8...your done. don't forget to turn your oven off so you don't burn down your home, take the muffins out of the tins to allow them to cool faster. store them in an airtight container unrefrigerated and they'll be good for 5 days or so, refrigerate them to keep them for an entire week. you made about 14 so have 1 for breakfast and take 1 to work for a healthy snack and the timing is perfect for your week.
hints:
-as promised - let's chat about flax meal - it's ground flax seeds, so it's got heart healthy fats - better than the cholesterol-heavy eggs they replace in baking and provides the gooey texture your recipe needs. go ahead and get a bag of it - you can use it in any other muffin mix in lieu of eggs (just refrigerate it after opening the bag). it can add a very slight nutty flavor to lighter recipes like blueberry muffins - hardly noticeable and it works! i even use it in chocolate chip cookie recipes...but that's a whole other entry! buying that 1 bag will probably run you ~$6, but it will last a while!
the general rule is: 1 tbsp of flax mixed with 3 tbsp water = 1 egg
if for some crazy reason you don't end up liking this easy baking idea, flax is still really good for you - to use it up, add a tbsp to your oatmeal in the morning (omit any butter...come on, be good)
this may be dumb, but i have to say - obviously, flax is only used to replace eggs in baking...scrambled flax goo does not work for brunch.
-note - in this recipe i use applesauce instead of butter - obviously the flavor blends into the whole concept of the spiced apple muffin! trader joe's also makes a great banana bread mix that i make muffins out of, so i use a ripe, mashed banana instead of the oil the box calls for...see how this whole creativity thing works?!?! these are viscous, moist items so they serve as good fat substitutes. i've also done canned pumpkin in spiced recipes. here's how the banana bread recipe would look:
-1 box of trader joe's banana bread mix
-2 tbsp flax + 6 tbsp water - in place of 2 eggs
-1/3 cup mashed banana - in place of 1/3 cup oil
-3/4 cup water or soymilk - in place of 3/4 cup water
this is a sweeter mix also, so you could add the 1/3 cup oats and increase the milk/water to 1 cup
-both of the mixes i recommend are from trader joe's, i like them because they are really affordable, delicious and the mix itself is vegan. they are both "bread" mixes, but end up making good, hearty muffins - no, they're not going to be like the fluffy, super sweet, cupcakey, buttery "muffins" you might buy in a cafe...but did you hear those adjectives?! yeah, you shouldn't be eating that as breakfast. bonus - these muffins end up being smaller portions and very light calorie/fat wise, so you get to round out your breakfast by smearing a little peanut butter on one, grabbing and apple and having your coffee as well, with no guilt! (by making them in muffin cups they're pre-portioned for better control, and they travel easily, so you can grab and go in the morning)
nutritional facts
this spiced apple recipe yields about 14 muffins, so per muffin:
calories: 134
fat: 0.8g
saturated fat: 0.1g
cholesterol: 0mg
sodium: 328mg
carbohydrates: 29.3g
fiber: 1.5g
sugar: 13.8g
protein: 2.8g
vitamin A: 1%
vitamin C: 0%
calcium: 5%
iron: 7%
-4 tbsp unsweetened applesauce - used in place of oil
-1+1/4 cups plain soymilk - used in place of dairy milk (or lowfat dairy milk, or almond milk)
-1/3 cup oats, blended in food processor (yup, just plain old oatmeal oats)
what to do:
1. get your oven preheating to 400 degrees and get your little paper muffin cups in your muffin tins.
2. in a small container, mix the 2 tbsp flax meal with the 6 tbsp water - do this first so it gets time to set while you prep the rest of the recipe. you'll notice when you go back to use it in 5 mins, it's turned to a goo...perfect.
3. blend the oats in your food processor. you want them broken up, but they don't have to end up as fine as flour. the point to this addition is that it bulks your recipe up a little (it's sweet enough, it can stand being diluted a little) adds some fiber, and gives your muffins a chewier, heartier texture. the larger you leave the oats, the chewier and more noticeable they'll be...though if you were to leave them whole, they're a bit too chewy if you ask me.
4. combine the oats and muffin mix in a large bowl.
5. add the milk, flax and applesauce - mix but don't over-mix. don't you hate when it says that? mix it until everything is just combined - no big flour deposits, etc. the thing is - the more you continue to mix it beyond that, the tougher your end product will be. and keep in mind, you're going to be "mixing" it a little more when you spoon it into the muffin tins, so take it easy - nice big combining swirls of the spoon or spatula.
6. spoon mix into your muffin tins/cups. fill them 3/4 of the way, so pretty close to the top, just make sure they're not right up to the brim. should fill around 14 average muffin cups (real muffin size, these are not going to be gigantic coffee shop monstrosities)
7. bake them for around 20 mins. take them out at 20 mins and stick a clean knife straight down into one - if it comes out clean, you're done.
8...your done. don't forget to turn your oven off so you don't burn down your home, take the muffins out of the tins to allow them to cool faster. store them in an airtight container unrefrigerated and they'll be good for 5 days or so, refrigerate them to keep them for an entire week. you made about 14 so have 1 for breakfast and take 1 to work for a healthy snack and the timing is perfect for your week.
hints:
-as promised - let's chat about flax meal - it's ground flax seeds, so it's got heart healthy fats - better than the cholesterol-heavy eggs they replace in baking and provides the gooey texture your recipe needs. go ahead and get a bag of it - you can use it in any other muffin mix in lieu of eggs (just refrigerate it after opening the bag). it can add a very slight nutty flavor to lighter recipes like blueberry muffins - hardly noticeable and it works! i even use it in chocolate chip cookie recipes...but that's a whole other entry! buying that 1 bag will probably run you ~$6, but it will last a while!
the general rule is: 1 tbsp of flax mixed with 3 tbsp water = 1 egg
if for some crazy reason you don't end up liking this easy baking idea, flax is still really good for you - to use it up, add a tbsp to your oatmeal in the morning (omit any butter...come on, be good)
this may be dumb, but i have to say - obviously, flax is only used to replace eggs in baking...scrambled flax goo does not work for brunch.
-note - in this recipe i use applesauce instead of butter - obviously the flavor blends into the whole concept of the spiced apple muffin! trader joe's also makes a great banana bread mix that i make muffins out of, so i use a ripe, mashed banana instead of the oil the box calls for...see how this whole creativity thing works?!?! these are viscous, moist items so they serve as good fat substitutes. i've also done canned pumpkin in spiced recipes. here's how the banana bread recipe would look:
-1 box of trader joe's banana bread mix
-2 tbsp flax + 6 tbsp water - in place of 2 eggs
-1/3 cup mashed banana - in place of 1/3 cup oil
-3/4 cup water or soymilk - in place of 3/4 cup water
this is a sweeter mix also, so you could add the 1/3 cup oats and increase the milk/water to 1 cup
-both of the mixes i recommend are from trader joe's, i like them because they are really affordable, delicious and the mix itself is vegan. they are both "bread" mixes, but end up making good, hearty muffins - no, they're not going to be like the fluffy, super sweet, cupcakey, buttery "muffins" you might buy in a cafe...but did you hear those adjectives?! yeah, you shouldn't be eating that as breakfast. bonus - these muffins end up being smaller portions and very light calorie/fat wise, so you get to round out your breakfast by smearing a little peanut butter on one, grabbing and apple and having your coffee as well, with no guilt! (by making them in muffin cups they're pre-portioned for better control, and they travel easily, so you can grab and go in the morning)
nutritional facts
this spiced apple recipe yields about 14 muffins, so per muffin:
calories: 134
fat: 0.8g
saturated fat: 0.1g
cholesterol: 0mg
sodium: 328mg
carbohydrates: 29.3g
fiber: 1.5g
sugar: 13.8g
protein: 2.8g
vitamin A: 1%
vitamin C: 0%
calcium: 5%
iron: 7%
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