The Juggling Act, Plus A Good-for-You Spiced Applesauce Muffin Actually Tasty Enough to Eat!

If you’ve ever seen the classic circus act of somebody juggling three balls with the left hand and spinning a large dinner plate on a pole with the right, you’ll have a picture of what's happening here at Kitchenlane right now.

One of the balls being juggled is this blog, which I’m constantly (happily) creating recipes, pics and stories for. Ideas and posts are always bubbling up and taking shape as I try to have something worthy here every time you visit Kitchenlane. Like this applesauce muffin recipe, for example--which I’ve been experimenting with (and eating for lunch with a nourishing soup) for the past week.

Another ball in the air is all the work-related activities—like tending to Facebook, Twitter, e-mails, article assignments, various culinary committee tasks, and tax paperwork (yikes!).  And ball three—that’s all the personal stuff, like finding time for a hubby, spoiled dog, grandkids, friends, and maintaining a house.

So what’s that big whirling plate? That’s my next cookbook, a humongous 500-page manuscript that’s been in progress on and off for five years and is now “in production,” publishers’ lingo for becoming a book. In December a copy editor went over it word by word, making corrections, formatting, and raising questions for me to answer. And then, I spent nine long, mind-bending days correcting, rewriting and following up on good questions like, “How can this recipe serve 16 if you cut it into 12 bars?” Now, nearly every day some more steps are required to keep the plate spinning and efforts on track toward my eagerly awaited book (which is now pre-listed on Amazon, here—woohoo!). It’s an exciting time, but, whew, my head is spinning along with the plate!

All this is to explain the little lulls between posts and to let you know that I’m peddling up the hill as fast as I can! Now on with today’s recipe.

Good ‘n Healthy  Spiced Applesauce-Raisin Muffins

I recently read in the Harvard Health Letter that though people tend to think of muffins as much more healthful than, say, doughnuts, the gigantic, sumptuous-looking ones typically found in coffee shops and bakeries are often fattier and more calorie-laden than the average glazed doughnut. Even the low-fat muffins aimed at health-conscious customers often aren’t really nutritious, the article points out, because to compensate for the reduced fat they increase the salt and sugar. The article notes that an even greater failing of these so-called healthy treats is that they usually don’t incorporate any whole grains and contain little fiber. Experts now feel that these issues are much more important than merely avoiding fat, especially if it’s low-saturated, heart-healthy fat such as olive oil, corn oil or canola oil.

Since I’ve been taking steps to eat more healthfully, I decided to create a nutrition-wise muffin that my hubby and I could eat with lunch or as snacks. (And which I could also share with you.) This recipe incorporates whole grains in the form of whole wheat flour and oats, plus more fiber from applesauce and raisins.  It calls for a fairly modest amount of a “good,” fat; provides some high-quality protein from fat-free yogurt and an egg; and cuts back a bit on the usual amount of sugar and salt found in muffins. Note that the honey isn’t added because it’s particularly nutritious (it's not), but because it boosts flavor and helps keep the muffins moist.

In case you’re wondering why I didn’t add more whole grains and reduce the sugar and fat as drastically as some recipes circulating around, it’s because I want the results to be tasty, too. I learned while writing a number of heart-healthy cookbooks that if recipes are stuffed with too much fiber and stripped of too much of their normal sugar and salt, they will come out looking and tasting like hockey pucks.  And at my house, nobody will eat hockey pucks no matter how wholesome they are!

These are good for breakfast, with a bowl of soup for lunch, or as a snack with a glass of milk or a cup of tea.

Tip: Whole wheat pastry flour yields tenderer muffins than regular whole wheat flour and, fortunately, is becoming easier to obtain. I found bags of the Hodgson brand, which worked great, stocked on my local supermarket shelves. Whole Foods and smaller health food stores are other good places to look.

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour (if unavailable, substitute regular whole wheat flour)

3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose white flour

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Generous 1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsweetened applesauce

1 6-ounce carton plain nonfat or low-fat yogurt

1/4 cup corn oil, canola oil or other flavorless, low-saturated fat vegetable oil

1/3 cup clover honey or other mild honey

1 large egg, or 3 tablespoons liquid egg substitute

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup dark, seedless raisins or golden raisins (or a combination)

3/4 cup quick-cooking rolled oats (not instant oats)

            Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease 15 or 16 standard-sized muffin tin cups or coat with non-stick spray. 

            In a large bowl, thoroughly stir together the sugar and cinnamon.  Measure out 1 1/2 tablespoons of the mixture and set aside for garnish. Thoroughly stir the whole wheat and white flours, baking powder, allspice, baking soda, and salt into the large bowl with the remaining sugar.  In a medium bowl, thoroughly whisk together the applesauce, yogurt, oil, honey, eggs, and vanilla until evenly blended. Add the raisins and oats let stand 5 to 10 minutes so they can thoroughly hydrate. Stir the applesauce-raisin mixture into flour mixture, mixing gently just until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened and incorporated; don't over-mix or the batter may toughen.  

Using a 1/4-cup measure or large spoon, immediately divide the batter among 15 or 16 muffin cups; the cups should be fairly full. Sprinkle the muffin tops with the reserved sugar-spice mixture, dividing it equally among them.

            Bake in the middle third of the oven for 15 to 18 minutes or until the muffins are tinged with brown on top and springy to the touch; a toothpick inserted into the thickest part of a center muffin  should come out clean. Cool on wire rack 3 or 4 minutes; gently run a knife around cups and remove muffins from their cups. Let stand until cooled. These can be kept airtight for up to 3 days or frozen, airtight for longer storage. Let return to room temperature before serving.

            Makes 15 or 16 standard-sized muffins. 

Another muffin you may like--Cranberry-Pear with Crystallized Ginger. In that recipe the pears and cranberries provide the fiber.