The fact that these are low calorie doesn't mean that they're healthy! But versus other blubbery muffins these are a great substitute. Now here's the thing, if you really want a low calorie muffin, don't make them as big as they are here. Meaning, fill your muffin cups up 1/2 of the way (or 2/3) with batter rather than over filling it. I just think they're prettier with a muffin top, but I consider each muffin as 2 servings.
Did some research and found tips and tricks on how to get the perfect muffin top:
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and then reduce the temperature to 375 as soon as the muffin pan goes in . Initial high heat reacts with baking powder to give a nice rise the first few minutes of baking.
- Eggs, blueberries, bananas, buttermilk, and applesauce should all be room temperature when they go into preparing the batter
- Get the muffin pan with the batter in the oven as soon as possible!
Ingredients:
1 cup gluten-free unbleached flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large and ripened banans, mashed
1/3 cup apple sauce
3 tbsp low-fat buttermilk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg, slightly whisked
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup gluten-free unbleached flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
3 large and ripened banans, mashed
1/3 cup apple sauce
3 tbsp low-fat buttermilk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg, slightly whisked
1 cup fresh blueberries
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Place cupcake liners into a muffin pan and grease them with nonstick cooking spray (butter flavor). Sprinkle some extra flour onto the greased paper liners to make sure the muffins don't stick. In a mixing bowl, add both flours, baking soda, baking powder, and cinnamon, and whisk together really well. In a separate bowl, add the buttermilk, vanilla extract, egg, applesauce, mashed bananas, and light brown sugar, and mix together really well (remember to only begin making batter when your ingredients have gotten to room temperature). Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mix and incorporate lightly, don't over mix the batter. If you notice your batter isn't thick, add more flour, if it's too thick add a little buttermilk. You can play with the recipe to get it to your liking. I prefer a thicker batter versus a runny one. In another bowl, add the fresh blueberries and cover them with about a tablespoon of flour (preventing the batter from turning purple). Add the blueberries into the batter and slightly fold them in. Fill each muffin cup as much as you can if you want a high rise muffin. If you're looking for a reasonable serving size I suggest filling it 1/2 way. Place the pan in the oven and then reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Cook for 15-20 minutes, all depending on how much batter is in each muffin,