(Photo Credit; pamelasglutenfreerecipes.com)
A tasty option you and your kids will enjoy!
Healthy oatmeal muffins are a suitable and nutritious breakfast for the whole family. These yummy gluten-free muffins are made with whole-grain oats and contain no processed sugar, no flour, and no oil. Muffins are a quick, tasty breakfast choice, but the amount of sugar and fat found in most muffin recipes puts them in the junk food category.
This healthy muffins recipe surpasses regular muffins in three ways: toasted oatmeal replaces bleached white flour. Bananas keep the muffins moist, no oil or butter needed. Honey (or maple syrup) replaces the unhealthy white sugar. Toasting and filing the oats results in a smooth muffin with a slightly nutty flavor. The fruits and honey or syrup provide enough sweetness to tempt even the pickiest ones. Yes, we’re talking about kids and their love for everything chocolate!
Ingredients
2 ½ cups of old-fashioned oats (1.5 cups ground, 1 cup whole)
2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats for muffin tops
2–3 large bananas (1 cup mashed or 1 cup applesauce)
2 large eggs
1/3 cup of honey or syrup
3/4 cup of milk
2 teaspoons of real vanilla
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
Instructions
Pre-heat oven to 325°F to toast oats and place oats on a baking sheet.
Toast until lightly browned, mixing once about 4 to 6 minutes. Let cool to room heat.
Divide oats into portions of 1 ½ cups, 1 cup and 2 tablespoons
Turn oven heat to 350°F degrees to bake the muffins.
Put 1 ½ cups of oats in a food processor and blend until they reach a severe, flour-like consistency.
Mix bananas well, they should have no lumps.
Add eggs, honey, milk, and vanilla. Mix to blend and then add dry ingredients, including the ground oats and one cup of whole oats. Allow these to rest for ten minutes to soak the oats.
Fold in ½ cup of fruits, raisins, or nuts, then scoop into muffin tin, well greased or lined with parchment muffin wrappers.
Sprinkle muffin tops with the two tablespoons of reserved oats, press gently to make sure they stick.
Bake at 350°F for 20 -25 minutes, as the tops should bounce back when lightly pressed.
Additional:
To create more variations to your healthy oatmeal muffins, you can add 1/2 cup of fresh or frozen fruit or 1/2 cup of chopped nuts. You can also add an extra teaspoon of cinnamon, some nutmeg, or even pumpkin pie spice.
A few great add-ins include fresh or frozen blueberries, raspberries, or diced fresh apple. You can add dried cranberries, mixed berries or apricots (diced) and raisins, walnuts or pecans (chopped), and unsweetened shredded coconut.
