Muffins- by request

I've had a few requests asking for muffin recipes and since I am the MUFFIN QUEEN (among other things, and man- that almost sounds dirty...) I decided I would give up my secret. That is right folks...I'm about to share with you my muffin secret...(whoa, that time it definitely sounded dirty).

I go onto google, type in muffins and click HERE!

Not all that exciting I know, but seriously, I've made almost ALL of these muffin recipes and have LOVED THEM ALL. I was trying to decide if I was just going to share the link, or if I was going to type *cough cut&paste cough* them all into a post and claim them to be mine, but alas, I'm an honest person, so I shared the link. Besides, I don't want to people from Joy of Baking hunting me down and suing me for all that I have (which is very little...). So- click on the above link and enjoy the numerous recipes- tested and tried by yours truly- and try them out over the following weeks for breakfasts and snacks.

That all being said, I thought I would share some of my secrets on how I make things healthier and more filling. I like healthy and I like filling food, and if I can combine that into one yummy morsel of goodness (read: muffin) then perfect.

Instead of an egg:

• use only the egg white to cut the cholesterol
• in cakes/muffins- substitute 1 banana for 1 egg, or 1 tbsp milled flax seed and 3tbsp water
• 2tbsp of corn starch = 1 egg

Instead of oil/butter:

• using the same amount of pureed fruits (apple sauce) instead of oil/butter. You can also use 1/2 & 1/2 (read: half oil, half applesauce)

Instead of All Purpose White Flour:

• use half whole wheat flour, and half regular white flour. NOTE: in personal experience (having tried and eaten lots of attempts) don't substitute whole wheat flour for white flour 100%. Whatever you are making will be too dense, and very dry...or in other words yucky.
• If a recipe calls for 2 cups of flour, use 1 cup white flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour and then use whatever you would like for the last 1/2 cup. Things like bran, milled flax seed, ground nuts, coconut flour etc are all great options.

Instead of white sugar:

• substitute brown sugar (1:1) in any recipe. This will add moisture and more flavour. Also- it is lighter, believe it or not. 1 cup of white sugar weighs 8oz whereas 1 cup of brown sugar equals only 6oz.
• use honey/maple syrup instead of sugar, but for every cup of sugar use only 3/4 cup of honey/maple syrup. Keep in mind, that using this will add more moisture to whatever you are baking so you might need to add more flour or dry ingredients...

Instead of milk:

• using soy milk, rice milk or almond milk are great substitutes to regular 1% or skim milk.
• if a recipe calls for buttermilk but you don't want to dish out the $4 for 1L of it, use 1tbsp vinegar/lemon juice for every 1 cup of milk. Mix and let stand for 5 minutes = voila, buttermilk.
• you can use powdered milk and some water
• also yogurt can be a good substitute (again, you might want to water it down a bit, but that is based on personal preference)

Ok, there you have it folks...my secrets. I did some searching around to see what else I could find that I could link for you and Joy of Cooking has a great substitution list for you...so click here.

Frugally Yours,
Erin B.

I also have another blog, click here to check out the daily photo uploads...part of the 365 Project that my BFF/SIL and I are doing together. Her photos = awesome. My photos = LAME. Enjoy!