get your healthy on

Over the past week and weekend, as I was creating our meal plan for this week and making the grocery list, I was thinking about how sick I am of oatmeal. I'm the kind of person that can only eat the same thing every day for a limited time, then I need to switch it up or I will just stare at the damn oatmeal and starve myself rather than make it and force myself to eat it. 

Starving yourself is kinda frowned upon when you're pregnant, so I needed another option.

 I've been seeing different recipes for healthy breakfast muffins floating around the net and figured I should try one out. I do love me some muffins! You guys, there are so many different recipes out there. So I just picked one. Based on nothing else but the fact that I had most of the ingredients in my fridge and pantry already. And by most ingredients, I mean that I didn't have the most important ingredient (er, supply, tool, item?): a muffin tray. 

Yeah, I know. 

Who lives on their own for 3 years and doesn't have a stinkin' muffin tray? Well, that would be me. You see, I had always thought of getting one so that I could make muffins and cupcakes and such...but I never did. And when I would find a box of cupcake mix in my pantry, I would end up just making the batter with fake eggs (leftover from my Vegan wannabe days) and eat the batter itself. 

So I needed a muffin tray - and I didn't buy one. But how did you make muffins, Heather? Well, I went to my parent's house, is what I did (this is my solution to just about everything)! Plus, my mom had all of the other ingredients that I would have had to pick up at the store myself (hey, these are budget-friendly muffins too if you use someone else's stuff!). 

 I actually made these myself though, instead of employing my poor mom...so there's that. 

Hella Healthy Breakfast Muffins

(recipe from Hello Giggles) 

1/2 cup oatmeal

1 1/2 cups flour

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

1/4 cup vanilla protein powder

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 cup chopped nuts (I used sunflower seeds instead)

1/2 cup raisins (dried cranberries would be lovely too!)

(optional: sprinkle of dry chia seeds - I didn't use these - Kroger never seems to have them!)

(optional: 1/2 cup sugar - I did use this - the muffins are not very sweet even with the sugar)

1 banana, mashed

1/2 cup applesauce

1 egg

1 apple, diced

1 tsp. cinnamon (this was not in the original recipe...I added it and was so happy I did!)

 

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl and stir it up!  

 

3. Combine wet ingredients (including the apples) in a separate bowl and stir until well mixed.

  

    

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until everything is coated.

 

  5. Pour the batter into a greased muffin tray and bake for about 20 minutes or until the muffins are just starting to brown on top (this is where I effed up a bit, in my usual fashion: I used muffin paper cups - don't do this unless you like to eat paper...the paper sticks to the muffins, but they are still edible so it's ok, I just wouldn't do it again. Just do what the recipe says, ok?).

 

These muffins are the perfect compliment to my morning grapefruit and are actually pretty dense and filling! You should get 12 muffins from this recipe - which is the perfect supply for 2 weeks worth of breakfasts. And did I mention they are yummy and make me feel super healthy? Cuz they are and they do.