Christmas Morning Muffins

My mom made these awesome little muffins every Christmas morning for as long as I can remember - it was the only time she made them and they were always all gone by the time the last present was opened.

This year I made them as the birthday snack Moses took to preschool (yes, he is almost four!) and as one of the goodies for a friend's baby shower I hosted. Definitely a big hit with 3 year olds as well as 30 year olds. Give them a try:

Ingredients:
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

Topping:
butter
cinnamon
white sugar

1.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line mini muffin pans (seriously, you have to use the minis - big ones just wouldn't be the same) with paper bake cups.

2. ) Combine dry ingredients and mix well. In a separate bowl beat the egg and add the remaining ingredients, mix till smooth.

3.) Add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients and mix just till moistened. This is the critical step - if you over-mix your muffins will be chewy!

4.) Spoon batter into prepared muffin pans and bake about 8 minutes or till golden. (Makes about 36 mini muffins.)

5.) When muffins have cooled, dip the top of each one into melted butter then into a mixture of cinnamon and sugar. They taste best if eaten right away but definitely keep for a few days if you can keep your hands off them long enough! Yum!

Your Husband Probably Won't Like These...

At least, he won't if he's anything like my husband. It's not that they taste bad. They just taste... healthy. And I LOVE stuff that tastes healthy, so I'm sharing this super fast and easy (and low-fat) muffin recipe with you. (Wow, not a very great sell, was it?) I got the recipe from Women's Health but found their version to be a bit dry, so I changed it up a bit, and here's what I ended up with:

APPLE CINNAMON OAT-BRAN MUFFINS

Ingredients:

1/2 cup oat bran
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
4 Tbsp canola oil
1/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp apple sauce
1/4 cup sugar

1.) Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray muffin pan with non-stick spray
2.) Combine dry ingredients and whisk together.
3.) In separate bowl, combine eggs and oil, and beat till smooth. Add sugar and applesauce to egg mixture, stir together. Pour into dry ingredients and mix together.
4.) Put in muffin tin, bake about 17-22 minutes.
5.) Enjoy!

And I'm not the only one around here who likes these...that's right Daddy - more for us! :)