Today we have our second installment of Cooking Through Stacy’s Stash. I’m tackling muffins today. Why? Because muffins are just delicious. And why should you have to give up muffins just because you want to eat healthy? Well, you shouldn’t.
I agree with Bill Cosby – muffins are just a way to eat cake for breakfast without feeling guilty. Amen brother, amen.
It’s easy to healthify your muffins (ps – healthify is NOT a word. Bummer.). Today I’ll show you how and give you a fabulous recipe to boot. It’s your lucky day. I hope you have butter on hand. And if you don’t…well, you need an intervention.
Our cookbook this week is the Taste of Home Cookbook. I might just have an obsession with Taste of Home. For real. I kept every single magazine I had from them until I moved. It was HUGE amount. I could have been on Taste of Home Magazine Hoarders. But when we moved, I had a hard time justifying the space in our storage unit when I could easily get the recipes online.
I would spend hours looking through those magazines – over and over. Hours. HOURS I SAID! Until now I didn’t realize how attached I was to those little boogers. And I sold them at a yard sale. Pity. I’m having strange heart palpitations right now, so I better move on.
Anyway, I really love this cookbook. The recipes are fabulous. The pictures are awesome. The recipes are fabulous (did I say that?). Man – I miss those stinkin’ magazines.
I chose this recipe for Berry Cream Muffins…because I have this thing for muffins. And apparently muffin tops since that’s what I would have if I ate as many as I wanted. I guess that’s why I took the leftovers to mom’s house. Out of sight out of mind…except for those stinkin’ magazines. Bummer.
This recipe called for all-purpose flour, white sugar, and canola oil…all of which I do not use. It was also a recipe for 24 muffins. Why yes, I would enjoy eating 24 muffins, I would also enjoy fitting into my pants. Ahem. So, I scaled it back to 14 and worked with the baking powder amount. Yeah, I know 14 is a weird muffin amount – but I’m weird so it fits.
I used white wheat flour (hard white wheat, ground), sucanat, and melted butter in place of the other stuff. And man, it’s a winner – a winner indeed.
I used raspberries because I had some in the freezer on the verge of freezer burn. But you can use whatever berries you like…well, there are some exceptions to that rule. Don’t use holly berries, for example.
This recipe reminded me that I don’t like raspberries – they have all those little seeds and they stick in my teeth. *Shudder* Regardless, I didn’t have a hard time wolfing down these puppies.
The melted butter instead of canola oil worked great! We don’t use canola oil, but instead we use healthy fats like butter, coconut oil, and palm shortening. We all need more butter in our life. Shew – that was spiritual right there.
Berry Cream Muffins
Original Recipe from
Taste of Home
- 2 cups white wheat flour (hard white wheat, ground)
- 1 cup sucanat (or brown sugar)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 cups berries (if frozen, do not thaw – if large berries, chop)
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup sour cream
- ½ cup melted butter (one stick)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- In a large bowl, combine flour, sucanat, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Stir in frozen berries so that the flour coats them. This will keep them from sinking in the muffin tins and sticking.
- In another bowl, combine eggs, sour cream, melted butter, and vanilla.
- Stir into flour mixture. Only stir until moistened to avoid tough muffins.
- Fill lined muffin cups.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.
- Remove from tins to cool completely.
Yield: 14 muffins
Hi, I was inferring if there is a way to Pin this recipe? I don’t see a pin button. Am I blind?
Hey Julie – it’s on my photos. 🙂 Scroll over any photo and you should see it pop up in the upper left.
I love TOH also. I have both cookbooks you have chosen so far for this series. I can’t wait to see what you cook up next!
Hmmmm, the next one is an eBook. 😉 We’ll see if you have that too. It would be REALLY funny if you had all the ones I have!
I have a bunch of TOH recipes pulled out and in a binder to try. I also have 2 of their cookbooks and am thinking of getting their newest one.
I also made muffins last night, blueberry, but from my Better Homes & Garden recipe book. Muffins are one thing I can be sure that my sone will eat for breakfast. These are healthier than the last ones I made, but I’ll still make those too.
I love the BIG ones they put out every year with all the contest winners. 🙂
Do you think plain yogurt would work in place of the sour cream? These look delish!
Yes, that’s an excellent substitution!
“Dad is great! He gave us chocolate cake!”
We love muffins around here too! The kids and I will have to try these soon 🙂
LOL Sara, you make me laugh!
Still have my TOH stash. Need to pull them out again.
You lucky thing.
These look so delicious! I wish I could eat ’em, but because of blood sugar levels and how our family needs to lose weight, we can’t have any forms of flour or sugar right now. So, it’s stevia all the way, baby! 🙂 If you ever come up with an even healthier version that uses other low-carb flours and stevia, let us know!
I’m still experimenting with low carb flours….we’ve cut back DRASTICALLY on flour and sugar – so these were a treat. 🙂
I plan on making these tonight for breakfast tomorrow (pack them for work and school for the kids). Since i don’t have any Sour cream on hand i’m going to sub home made greek yogurt…fingers crossed.
Thanks for this!
That should work jim dandy fine!
Ah, Taste of Home recipes…I had to purge my magazines a few years ago, sad day. My mom just gave me one of their cookbooks and my children have spent hours and hours picking recipes to try. Homeschoolers, go figure! Home Ec?Check! I won’t have to make dinner for the next four Saturdays. WooHoo TOH!
I am always checking out yard sales for the big books they put out. 🙂
I love Taste Of Home and I have that same cookbook and yes I have a bunch of those magazines too! I have not tried this recipe yet so I’m looking forward to trying it out.
It’s so good! Glad to meet a fellow TOH lover. 🙂
I love that you make the healthy changes for me. I am always hesitant to make substitutions. One day I hope to be as weird as you! (But not in a stalker kind of way!)
LOL 🙂 That made me laugh. And I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi – “white wheat flour”, is that different from plain ole’ white all-purpose flour? Also, here I’ve been using canola for years thinking it’s one of the healthier oils…I take it no? 🙁
Thanks!
Yes, white wheat flour is very different from white all purpose. It’s the store equivalent of fresh ground white wheat berries…it’s just the type of wheat. I get better results using it than whole wheat flour – not as dense. Check this out – King Arthur Flour.
I was fed the canola oil lie too. 🙁 The best post I’ve read on the evils of canola oil is from Kitchen Stewardship. Basically, it’s a new type of oil so we like to go with traditional fats instead.
I have both blue and black berries in my freezer, but since tonight is breakfast night for our fam, I think I’ll surprise hubby with blueberry…since that’s HIS fave…thanks again, Stacy! 🙂
🙂 Sounds yum!
Ooh! We love muffins around here. I’ve been healthifying ours for a while now and I love that our boys (and my hubby!) love them even when they’re healthy! I will definitely be making these…soon. I don’t have any sugar right now which leads me to this question…Do you think using raw sugar (sugar in the raw brand) is ok? That’s what I’ve been using but did read somewhere that it’s not good either.
And to continue with my crazy “we love Stacy’s recipes” kick I’ve been on…I fixed your berry cobbler for Monday night. When my husband saw it he said, “Did you have to use blueberries?” (On Sunday, someone at church had made some blueberry dessert and he didn’t care for the blueberries in it) Well, I had already bought blueberries and strawberries to make the cobbler. All of that to say after one taste, he changed his tune! 🙂 It was soooo good! As I was scooping everyone some out, he said, “make sure there’s enough for me t take to work tomorrow!”
We’re having cheeseburger pie for supper tonight. 🙂
🙂 You just make me smile all over my face! Thank you!
I have also read that “sugar in the raw” isn’t really sugar in the raw. I stick with sucanat, honey, maple syrup, stevia, and coconut sugar. 🙂
Thanks, Stacy. Where do you get your sucanat? And do you just use Stevia from the store? I’m trying to learn as much as possible.
I like Sweet Leaf stevia – liquid and powder. And I buy that from Vitacost.
If you have a local Bread Beckers pick up, they have the best price I think. I find mine at a local bulk Amish store. 🙂 But I have ordered from Bread Beckers in the past.
Since I am a raspberry lover (only one of us at this house) and I have some hanging out in the freezer I will give this recipe a try. I don’t have any wheat flour on hand but will white work?
Yep! That’s what the original recipe called for. 🙂
Making these tonight w/strawberries. Can’t hardly wait to try them. Thanks Stacy! I’ve been a baking fool lately and working very hard at replacing all the “bad” foods. My family hasn’t noticed a difference. Woot!
I bet they will rock with strawberries! I’m using blueberries next time! 🙂
I love it when I have all the ingredients on hand! These look delicious–will try tonight!
🙂 I hope you enjoy! What berry will you use??
They are in the oven right now! I did a few with strawberries and the rest with blueberries.
I hope they were delicious! 🙂 We love them!!