Spiced Apple Cider and Banana Muffins

Want a yummy, healthy muffin?  Here you go.

We have some apple cider and I have lots of very ripe bananas, but what really got me with these is that they are pretty healthy and I was able to use some yogurt that I have and need to use.  I changed up quite a bit a recipe that I found at the Eating Well website.  The recipe called for apple butter, but I used banana and I cut a little bit of the oil in the recipe.  You can get the recipe from Eating Well on their link.  But here's my muffins.

Spiced Apple Cider and Banana Muffins, by Katrina Smith, adapted from Eating Well, Winter 2004

Streusel:

2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons whole wheat flour

1 tablespoon butter, cut into small pieces

2 tablespoons finely chopped walnuts

Muffins:

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup all purpose flour

1  1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

1 large egg

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup very ripe banana, mashed (2 small bananas)

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

1/3 cup spiced apple cider

1/3 cup nonfat Greek Yogurt

2 overflowing tablespoons canola oil

1/2 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Line muffin cups with paper liners or spray with cooking spray.  I made 11 regular muffins and 12 mini muffins and lined them with paper liners. 

In a small bowl, combine the streusel ingredients.  Mix the butter in with your fingers until well combined. 

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg and brown sugar until smooth.  Then whisk in the bananas, syrup, apple cider, yogurt and oil.  Fold the wet ingredients into the dry with a rubber spatula just until combined.  Scoop the batter into the muffin cups.  Sprinkle with the streusel (I only put streusel on the 11 bigger muffins.)

Bake the mini muffins for 10 minutes and the larger ones for 14 minutes.  Cool in muffin pan for a few minutes.  Then remove from pan and let cool on a wire rack.

Have some hot apple cider with one of these!  I made Wassail from this recipe at Allrecipes.  I only made half the recipe.  Love the smell of it brewing on the stove!

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Sam's new favorite pasttime---

Completely dismantling the couch downstairs and then sitting and watching Max and Ruby or Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.  It isn't very fun to put back together, almost like a puzzle, but doggonit, he's CUTE!

He's so proud of his accomplishment!

Then there's Bob.  Our friend, Bob.  He's pretty proud here, too, after all, he's got Hostess Sno Ball BOB Cakes named after him! ;)