Healthy Blueberry Muffins

Blueberries are not my favourite fruit. I often find blueberry muffins in cafes quite dull. But Sylvia loves them and so does E. We bought a couple of punnets last week and weren’t eating them very quickly so I decided to make muffins but not like the plain ones you frequently find on sale.

I make muffins regularly enough that my two favourite muffin cookbooks are now missing in action. So I searched the web and decided to adapt a recipe for Cranberry and Oat Muffins. I recently bought some LSA – a ground mix of linseed (flax), sunflower seeds and almonds – that I don’t have a clue how to use so I am putting it into baking. I also added some molasses because I love the depth of flavour it gives.

I made the muffins while watching Love, Lust and Lies (a fantastic documentary by Gillian Armstrong that follows the lives of three fortysomethings). They tasted amazing warm out of the oven late at night. The next morning I worried they were a bit dense and heavy but the jammy juicy blueberries gave them the lift they needed.

One reason for making the muffins was to be able to offer Sylvia a healthy(ish) snack. Quite a few were crumbled to bits and the berries spat out. Finally she enjoyed one yesterday morning. It was a sunny morning so we sat outside after hanging out the washing. I tried reading the paper with a pen beside me ready for some Sudoku. Sylvia managed to scribble over the article I was reading until I could barely decipher the text. So I got out her textas so she could do some drawing. It is one of her favourite things to do right now.

Munching on a muffin was just what was needed to complete a relaxing morning. Maybe Sylvia chose to eat some of one because she had a day where she ate quite well. She had two small tins of baked beans for lunch and a sausage roll for afternoon tea when we visited our neighbours for the second grand final in two weeks. Ostensibly we were there to watch the footy but it was such a lovely day that we sat outside with the kids and ran inside occasionally to check the score.

The last muffin was eaten this morning just before heading out to the city but I will leave that story for another post. But I will tell you that these are wonderful low-sugar, low-fat muffins full of texture and flavour. Great for a quick breakfast, for lunchboxes or for snacks. Definitely a recipe I will return to next time I have surplus blueberries.

Previously on Green Gourmet Giraffe:
This time last year: Nicki’s Nana’s Chulent
This time two years ago: Lentil Salad and the Dream Festival

Blueberry Oat Muffins
adapted from Allrecipes
Makes 12 muffins

• ¾ cup rolled oats*
• ¾ cup plain flour
• ¾ cup wholemeal flour
• ¼ cup wheatgerm*
• ¼ cup LSA (ground linseeds, sunflower seeds and almonds) or more wheatgerm
• ¼ cup packed brown sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 350ml buttermilk (I used 200g tub of yoghurt topped up with milk to make 350ml)
• 1 tbsp molasses (or treacle or maple syrup or honey)
• ¼ cup (60ml) canola oil
• 1 medium egg
• 125g (I punnet) fresh blueberries

* The recipe suggested toasting the oats for 10 minutes and also toasting the wheatgerm. I didn’t do this because I wanted a quick recipe.

Preheat the oven to 190°C. Grease or line (with paper cups) a 12 hole muffins pan.

Mix the dry ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Lightly whisk the wet ingredients (except blueberries) in a large jug or small bowl. (I used a jug to mix the milk and yoghurt and added the remaining wet ingredients to it.) Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix till combined. Gently stir in blueberries.

Spoon muffins mixture into prepared muffins pans. I found they were quite full but didn’t rise a lot. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and a skewer comes out cleanly when inserted in the middle. Cool on a wire rack.

On the Stereo:
Least complicated: Indigo Girls