Edible & Technical Apples

Well, it's the weekend & I am having a great one so far! I am synching my new iPhone 4S as I blog this so I am super stoked! I am a gadget iFreak for those of you that don't know! Especially Apple products! I LOVE THEM! The edible apples of the world & the technical apples of the world..... all make me smile!

So, I have a friend who is doing the Paleo diet & she let me borrow one of her Paleo recipe books where I found some awesome looking recipes! I used the one called Paleo Apple Muffins as the base for this recipe but made a few small changes & added in some protein so they wouldn't technically be "Paleo" approved now but let me tell you..... 

they are iDelish!

Apple Pie Protein Muffins with a glass of cold Almond Milk

 I love that the apples in them are left chunky & not all blended in! 

That really reminds me of a homemade apple pie!

Anywho, since I have a lot of other Apple-ing to do today, I'll make this short & sweet & maybe it's something you will want to try for breakfast in the morning! They are packed with good for you carbs & pair well with a cup of hot coffee or of course a glass of cold almond milk - like I had mine! I also think one would be really good served warm on top of some apple cinnamon flavored Greek yogurt! 

Apple Pie Protein Muffins

iYum! ;)

Apple Pie Protein Muffins

2 & 1/4 C almond flour (could use oat flour)

4 Egg whites

1 Apple - peeled & diced into small chunks)

1 Ripe Banana

1/4 C Applesauce (natural, unsweetened)

1 Scoop Vanilla Whey Protein Powder

1/3 C H20

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 tsp Salt

2 tsp Apple Pie Spice

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 C Stevia

*Preheat oven to 350. Mash banana in a small bowl & set aside. Add all other ingredients & mix well by hand. Then add the mashed banana & mix well again. Batter will not be super thick but more like a cake batter. Pour into muffin tins sprayed with non stick spray & bake until toothpick comes out clean! Make sure not to over bake so they will be moist & crumbly! 

Enjoy! 

*I am not adding nutritional content on these because I didn't make the full recipe & the nutritional content will vary depending on the type of flour you use, the type of protein powder you use (if you use any) & how full you like your muffin tins. I only came out with 8 muffins because I like mine full & I didn't make the full recipe. If you use My Fitness Pal, you can create a new recipe with the ingredients you use & it will figure nutritional content for you! I LOVE that app! :)

Banana Power Muffins

Hey Fall y'all! 

This is my absolute favorite time of year!  It's been a little while since I blogged &

I truly miss blogging as often as I was but lately I have just had so many other things that have taken priority in my life & you all know how it is... there just aren't enough hours in the day to do everything you need to do much less time enough to 

add on the fun things you want to do! 

I have still been making some great, healthy foods though! Last week I started the Body Earned program by James Wilson & it's getting me back to a place of stricter accountability which is good since I had taken a little break off from exercising due to my knee. I find that for me, I am so much more mindful of things I eat when I am working out hard in the gym on a routine than when I am taking time off....... I still eat healthy, I just notice that I don't do as well on monitoring my calories & such as I should. So, anyway, I am glad to be back & am LOVING the Body Earned program so far! I think what I love most about it is it's such active circuits that change every week & I am done in an hour! I LOVE that part! And believe it or not..... I am learning to love my cardio! Gasp! I know right?!  I do my cardio but I am not a cardio lover per say...... not normally but this program only calls for 20 minutes of HIIT 4 days a week & I can handle that! I have even been doing a 5th day of cardio....... so I am pretty proud of myself! :)

Anyway..... onto the ooooey gooooey stuff! ..... FOOD!!!!!!

So, I am really concentrating on my calories & macros with this program. Paying special attention to my carbs since I struggle with those. It is a learning process to find out what works specifically for my body. I have a deep, irrevocable love for bananas & I crave one every day! But they have a lot of carbs in them so I thought it's be wonderful to be able to satisfy that sweet banana craving daily without the guilt that comes from eating just one banana! So, of course, I thought banana muffins! Perfect to go with a protein shake after my morning  workout with half the carbs plus added protein & fiber! I haven't made any in awhile but I always think about banana muffins & bread in the Fall so I thought it was high time to pull out my favorite banana muffin recipe & give jazzing it up healthy style a whirl!

They came out totally to die for & made my house smell oh so good!

 

Banana Power Muffins

Banana Power Muffins

You will need:

2 C Oat Flour

1 scoop vanilla whey protein powder (I use MRM Rich Vanilla)

1/2 C natural applesauce

1/2 C Stevia in the Raw

3 egg whites

2 bananas - mashed

1/4 C unsweetened Almond Milk

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla 

~ 1tsp Brown Sugar Splenda & 1 Tbsp Stevia in the raw mixed together in a small bowl & set aside.

*Preheat oven to 350
*Grind oats into flour first in your Ninja (or other blender) then add remaining dry ingredients & blend. Add all wet ingredients & mix well. I stop blending after a 30 seconds or so & scrape flour off the sides then blend some more to make sure all ingredients get mixed in!
Pour batter into regular sized muffin tins until they are almost full (I like my muffins big!) & it makes 10 good sized, fluffy muffins! Don't forget to check your muffins & don't let them over cook! If you are new to clean baking, things bake a lot faster & are easy to over cook until they are tough or chewy so take out as soon as you notice they are fully risen & a toothpick comes out clean! Sometimes I even take baked things out when the toothpick comes out with just a little bitty bit of ooey gooey goodness on it so they'll be perfect! Depends on your taste preference but just don't overcook!
*Last but not least, while hot, I spritz the tops with no calorie butter spray, (not clean but it's fine in small doses) then sprinkle the tops with the Brown Sugar Splenda & Stevia blend to totally up the YUM factor! ;)
*Each little of figure friendly, Fall comforting muffin comes to 104 calories, 1.5 grams of fat, 16 net carbs & 5 grams of protein!
~~~ One banana has between 26 & 32 carbs  depending on it's size! So, if you are watching carbs this is a great replacement that will satisfy a banana craving with half the amount of carbs! You can't beat that cause carbs add up fast! Especially with fruit! I will have one on the side with my scrambled 1 egg & 3 whites for breakfast or post workout with my chocolate protein shake! Pre & post workout are the best times to eat fruit! Especially the ones higher in sugar & carbs!  :)

Healthy Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

How many times have you seen the words healthy & donut in the same sentence?? If you are like me..... it's a first! I came across a recipe for donut muffins on Pinterest that wasn't exactly healthy & it, of course got my cooking wheels turning & even though I was looking for a new healthy banana bread recipe, I knew I had to skinny-fy these & see how good it came out! Turns out it was a good decision! These little muffins are so sweet & yummy! 

Perfect for breakfast to go along with eggs or for satisfying a sweet tooth!

 Have one warm with a glass of almond milk.... 

& you have a delightful & figure friendly comfort treat!

They are so pretty too! :)

Healthy Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

Healthy Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

1 & 1/2 C oat flour

3/4 C Stevia

2 egg whites

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 C natural no sugar added applesauce

3/4 unsweetened almond milk

1 &1/2 tsp vanilla

* Then you need 1 tsp cinnamon & 2 Tbsp Stevia mixed together to roll them in when they are done!
*Preheat your oven to 350. Grind your oats to flour consistency then add all other dry ingredients & mix well. Add wet ingredients & blend then pour into 9 regular sized muffin tins filling about 3/4 of the way full. Bake until golden & a toothpick comes out clean. While they are still warm but not so warm that you burn your hands, roll them in the cinnamon/Stevia mix. (You could also just sprinkle it over the tops.) Eat one while it's hot! (You know you want to!) & let them cool before storing them in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
*Nutritional content per muffin - 60 calories, 1 gram of fat, 10 carbs & 3 grams of protein!

SWEET!