Sorry Whole Foods, but I Won’t Be Needing You Anymore: Morning Glory Oat Muffins

One of the many perks of living with my parents when I first moved to D.C. was the Morning Glory muffins that would magically appear in the cabinet on Saturday and Sunday mornings.  They are my favorite muffins ever– they are so moist, so flavorful and so huge.  Because I only ate them on Saturday and Sunday mornings, for months I blamed the  lingering upset stomach I got every time I had one on hangover tummy.  Then one day I had one having not drank too much the night before.  Same stomachache!  I thought about how greasy my hands were after eating these muffins (think, ‘too greasy to use a computer’) and finally had to drop the denial and admit that it was the massive amount of oil in these babies that was upsetting my stomach.

This shouldn’t have been a shocker.  I’ve written before about my love for muffins and my heartbreak upon learning that my favorite muffin at Dunkin’ Donuts had more fat and calories than a McDonald’s Quarter Pounder with cheese.  True story:

Gross.

But Whole Foods has two things on Dunkin’ Donuts: a) they don’t post their nutrition facts (I would not be surprised if their Morning Glory muffins are upwards of 600 calories) and b) their morning glory muffins are really freakin’ good.  Like, worth the stomachache good.

Still, I decided it was about time I try to make a healthier version (these Honey and Goat Cheese Stuffed Fig Muffins and these Oatmeal Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins are proof that healthy muffins can be delicious.

I browsed tastespotting.com for a recipe (they have 34 recipes for morning glory muffins) and decided on the one below, probably because they looked so much like my Whole Foods favorites.  These are just as moist, but they get their moisture from the apples and carrots, not from oil.  These muffins aren’t just a low fat alternative, they actually have a great deal of nutritional value (see below).  They aren’t quite as sweet as the originals, but they taste great and I’m betting the stomachache won’t ensue!

Morning Glory Oat Muffins

from Honey & Jam

Ingredients:

1/2 cup golden raisins
1 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup old fashioned oats
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups carrots, peeled and grated
1 large apple, grated
1/2 cup shredded coconut, unsweetened
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 tbsp flax seed meal (optional)
3 large eggs
2/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsweetened almond milk or orange juice (I used mixture of fresh squeezed and milk)
turbadino sugar, for topping

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line it with papers and spray the insides of the papers. 

In a small bowl, cover the raisins with hot water, and set them aside to soak while you assemble the rest of the recipe.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the carrots, apple, coconut (reserve a bit for topping), nuts, and  flax seed meal, if using.
3.  In a separate bowl, beat together the eggs, applesauce, vanilla, brown sugar and almond milk. Add to the flour mixture, and stir until evenly moistened. Drain the raisins and stir them in. Divide the batter among the wells of the prepared pan, filling almost to top.
4.  Sprinkle with turbadino sugar and reserved coconut.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until domed and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes in their pan on a rack, then turn out of pans to finish cooling.
6. The chef noted that these get better with time and to let them sit for a few hours or even over night.

*Makes 12 muffins

Nutrition: 235 Calories, 36 carbs, 8 grams fat, 5 grams protein, 4 grams of fiber

*Next time I might make them bigger– I think this would make 8-9 large and in charge muffins, although I may need a bigger muffin pan!

Johanna