Applesauce Muffins

I was interested in finding something that would take a short amount of time and produce a good quantity that I could devour for breakfast or snacks. So what better than some muffins? Especially those made from applesauce. Quoting the cookbook I got the recipe from: "These delicious, low-fat muffins ... don't use eggs or butter, which eliminates a great deal of unhealthful fat and all of the cholesterol" (The Cancer Survivor's Guide). Also, these bad boys have 4.8 g protein and 4.5 g fiber to get you going.

Recipe: Applesauce Muffins

Servings: 10

Time (approx): 25-30 minutes

Equipment:
- muffin pan (12 holes)
- muffin paper cups (optional)
- measuring cups
- measuring spoons

Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1/2 cup fortified soymilk or other nondairy milk
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon light molasses
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup raisins


Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Lightly mist 10 muffin cups with vegetable oil spray.

2. Combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, nutmeg, and salt in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly.


3. Combine the applesauce, soymilk, oil, molasses, and vinegar in a large bowl and mix thoroughly. Add the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Stir in the raisins.


4. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them about three-quarters full. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.


5. Stored in a covered container in the refrigerator, Applesauce Muffins will keep for up to three days. If longer storage is needed, freeze the cooled muffins in heavy-duty zipper-lock bags for up to one month. Defrost at room temperature or in a microwave.




Now, when I made this I changed up the recipe a little bit. Instead of soy milk I used vanilla rice milk, maple syrup instead of the molasses, and opted to use half the amount of raisins because I only put them in half of the muffins I made so I can try one with and one without the raisins. Also, the way that I divided my batter made me 11 muffins. (And, I'll just put this out there, I was short on the muffin cups, so six have the little paper cups and five were just baked straight in the pan that I sprayed with a little cooking spray.)