Strawberry Muffins

These were taken off the lid of a StonyField Farms yogurt container.  They also have a website, which I haven't perused in a while full of great recipes.  You may be seeing more of their recipes soon!  We love yogurt, and really can't keep enough of it in the house.  I love that these muffins use whole wheat flour as well-- it speaks to my fiber lovin' heart!  These were moist, delicious, and gone in a flash!

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 eggs
1 cup Stoynfield lowfat plain yogurt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chopped strawberries

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12 muffin tin or line it with paper baking cups. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar and baking soda. In another bowl, stir together eggs, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla until blended. Toss the strawberries with the flour mixture. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until the flour is just moistened. The batter will be lumpy. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. Bake for 20 ? 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Yields 12 muffins. 

Peach-Nectarine Muffins

I love peaches and nectarines and can't wait for their season to get here.  Unfortunately (or fortunately) my kids don't seem to share the same love affair I have with them.  Weird kids, I know.  So, last season, I found this recipe to use up some of the hoards of nectarines I had on hand before they spoiled.  I found the recipe on allrecipes.com.  The recipe was good unaltered.  It could be "healthed-up" a bit, however, by using whole wheat flour (or at least half all purpose and half whole wheat) and perhaps trying to use light vanilla or plain yogurt or applesauce in place of the oil. Otherwise, it is super yummy as written, and has been a great treat for everyone here!

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 large ripe peach - peeled, pitted and diced
• 1 very ripe nectarine, pitted and diced
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Grease 8 muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add vegetable oil, egg and milk; mix well. Fold in diced peach and nectarine. Fill each muffin tin to the top with muffin mix. Sprinkle a little brown sugar onto the top of each uncooked muffin.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes. Check muffins regularly after 15 minutes of baking. Serve warm or cool.

Cream Cheese Carrot Muffins

These muffins were quite literally almost gone before leaving the oven! Okay, not quite, but I'm pretty sure the kids were putting names on each of them to make sure they'd get some.  Another great recipe from Full Bellies Happy Kids.  When I make them again, I will try substituting Oikos yogurt for the oil (or any yogurt I have lying around) and MAYBE (if i'm feeling daring at all) decrease the amount of sugar in them.  Otherwise completely, perfectly, YUMMY!

1 can (15 ounces) sliced carrots, drained
1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1-1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon each ground allspice, cloves and nutmeg
egg
1/3 cup canola oil
FILLING:
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar

1. Preheat oven at 350°.
2. Place carrots in a food processor; cover and process until smooth.
3. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt and spices.
4. In a small bowl, whisk the pureed carrots, egg and oil; stir into the dry ingredients just until moistened.
5. Fill 12 greased muffin cups one-third full.
6. In a small bowl, beat the filling ingredients until smooth.  Drop by tablespoonfuls into the center of each muffin.
7. Top with remaining batter.
8. Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack. Serve warm. Refrigerate leftovers.
Yield: 1 dozen.