Healthier Banana Blueberry Muffins

I like making things in muffin tins. Sweet muffins, egg muffins, pizza muffins or any other kind of muffin you can think of. Muffins are so easy to grab when you need to run out the door. How about making them a little healthier by using whole wheat flour and adding some oats and flax?

Enjoy your breakfast my friends!

 

Healthier Banana Blueberry Muffins
12 servings

1 cups whole wheat flour
1/4 cup large flake oats, ground
1 tablespoon flaxseeds, ground

3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 milk
1/4 cup orange juice
2 bananas, mashed
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup blueberries
1/4 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350F and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, ground oats, ground flax, baking powder, baking soda and brown sugar. Your family will never know there's oatmeal and flax in here.

In a seperate bowl, combine the oil, milk, orange juice, egg and vanilla with a fork until well combined.

 

Now, combine the wet and dry ingredients with a wooden spoon, being careful not to over mix.

Finally, stir in the berries and nuts.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. Let the muffins cool. I like muffins when they're completely cool, but you can eat them warm if you like them that way.

Small Batch Brown Sugar Cookies

Tonight I decided to try making a cookie without eggs and the result was delicious! When I first took them out of the oven (and let them cool slightly) they were crispy on the outside and chewy in the middle. As I let them sit they got crispier but the flavour of these cookies is so fabulous that it doesn't matter! Normally chewy cookies are what I like, but I think this cookie could be one of my new favourites.

 

 

I'm adding this new photo December 30th 2012.

I made this recipe again but I tried to double it for Christmas. I think I may have measured something incorrectly because they were completely different from the first time (as shown above). They were delicious though, and I wish I knew what I did wrong so I can do it again! The inside was like a chewy Pillsbury cookie, and the outside was kind of lacy and crisp.

 

Small Batch Brown Sugar Cookies
Servings: 15 cookies

Ingredients
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
extra brown sugar for rolling (optional)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 375F and line a cookie sheet with parchment.

In a medium bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with a wooden spoon. I only beat it for about 30 seconds. Add the dry ingredients and mix to combine.

Using a small cookie scoop, make balls of dough and roll them in extra sugar if you want to. I rolled some in sugar and left some without it but really couldn't tell the difference once they were baked. Place them about 2" on the prepared baking sheet (they will spread out a lot) and flatten them slightly with your fingers.

Bake for about 10 minutes or until the edges start to turn golden. You'll have to leave them on the baking sheet for at least a minute to firm up before transferring to a wire rack.

Linking to

 

 

My Mom's Traditional Bread Stuffing - Crazy Cooking Challenge

We usually eat turkey twice a year in my family. Thanksgiving and Christmas of course. Well, here in Canada we've already celebrated our thanksgiving (in October), and my mom has informed me that she won't be making a turkey for Christmas this year. WHAT??? She said that she wants to try stuffing chicken breasts instead since they'll cook faster. The turkey always takes the longest and we end up eating really late because of it. But phew, for a second I thought she wasn't going to give us stuffing. She will, it'll just be inside the chicken instead of the turkey.

My mom has always makes the same stuffing and I love it. Lots of sage in there. I guess the flavour is a bit strong for some people, but not for me. Bring it on! One thing about my mom, is that she prefers to use dried herbs, but you could always use fresh if you like. She also uses water, but I would say chicken stock would be even better!

You may need to make more or less depending on the size of your bird. This amount will stuff a 15-20lb turkey. I think that's what we usually get.

And don't forget to eat your veggies too!

I like the part of the stuffing that's sticking out of the turkey. It gets nice and crispy.

My Mom's Traditional Bread Stuffing
8-10 Side Servings

Ingredients
10 slices white bread
3 celery stalks, diced
1 large onion, diced
1/4 cup butter
1 teaspoon dried sage (or more)
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
Salt
Pepper
Water or chicken stock

Directions
You can let your bread dry out for a few days before the big event, or toast it on 300F oven for 15-20 minutes until its dry, but you don't need to get it too brown. Definitely try not to burn it! Once dry/toasted, break it into bite size pieces and set aside.

Over medium heat, fry the celery and onions in butter for about 8 minutes or until softened. Stir in all the spices and cook for another minute. Now, stir in the bread.

A little at a time, start adding the water or stock. You want it to come together, but not to be really gloopy because it'll continue to absorb liquid once it's in the bird in the oven. Allow your stuffing to cool completely before stuffing your turkey. You can also place the stuffing in a casserole dish and cook it on the side for 20-30 minutes. But you'll need to add more liquid or it may be too dry.