It can be quite monotonous, at times, planning the weekly meals around my work schedule.  I would like to say I try to stay mindful of healthy food options and sometimes it helps to try new things, get new ideas to break up the routine. 

I always love finding recipe ideas that I can share with everyone that are tasty options to vary from the easy convenience of unhealthy food that seems to surround us.  The one I would like to share with you today is for apple-cinnamon muffins that can be brought along as a breakfast treat to work, or really any time.  I found this recipe in Women’s Health Magazine back in 2008.

Apple-Cinnamon Oat-Bran Muffins

Ingredients: 1/2 cup oat bran, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup ground flaxseed, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 egg beaten, 4 tbsp canola oil, 1/3 cup applesauce, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup chopped pecans.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together bran, flour, flaxseed, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and oil until smooth.  Stir in applesauce and sugar.  Combine mixtures and fold in pecans.

4. Spoon batter into paper-lined muffin cups. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched.  Cool on a wire rack.

These have about 3 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein and about 147 calories each.  It is a nice alternative in comparison to say, a bagel and cream cheese or store-bought blueberry muffin.  These are a good source of fiber and I think they are a great recipe, however, I would like to throw in my own personal take.  There is a lot of supporting evidence that canola oil is not the healthiest of choices.  Now, if you take the time to look, you will find that canola is in a lot of the foods on the shelves at the grocery store and used at home quite often too.  I’ve determined that canola oil is one of the things that I personally am going to avoid.  If you find that you do not want to use canola oil in recipes such as this one, there are a number of substitutions that can be used.  Instead of canola oil, use olive oil, butter or coconut oil at this temperature.

I might test this one out on my co-workers this week and see what type of response I get.  If you try it out, I would love to hear your feedback as well.  Have a wonderful week!