School will be in session again soon. To add to your repertoire of healthy snacks for the kids, here is a nutritious muffin for breakfast or to tuck into a lunch box.
Carrot Bran Muffins
375 ml (1 1/2 cups) whole-wheat flour
375 ml (1 1/2 cups) natural bran
75 ml (1/3 cup) brown sugar
50 ml (1/4 cup) ground flaxseed
10 ml (2 tsp) baking soda
7 ml (1 1/2 tsp) ground cinnamon
2 ml (1/2 tsp) salt
1 ml (1/4 tsp) ground cloves
1 ml (1/4 tsp) ground nutmeg
250 ml (1 cup) finely grated carrot
2 eggs
375 ml (1 1/2 cups) 2 per cent milk
50 ml (1/4 cup) unsweetened apple sauce
50 ml (1/4 cup) canola oil
30 ml (2 tbsp) lemon juice
Preheat oven to 200 C (400 F) and prepare a 12-cup muffin pan with baking spray.
In a mixing bowl, combine whole-wheat flour, bran, brown sugar, flaxseed, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg.
Toss grated carrot into this dry mixture.
In a separate bowl, beat eggs thoroughly. Add milk, apple sauce, oil and lemon juice to beaten eggs. Continue beating until thoroughly combined.
Combine mixtures until just mixed. Do not over mix.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan, dividing evenly. Bake for 20 minutes.
Let cool slightly in pan before lifting muffins to a cooling rack.
Makes 12 muffins.
Nutritional information per muffin: 180 calories, 8 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 40 mg cholesterol, 25 g carbohydrates, 6 g protein, 6 g fibre.
Source: Splenda Brand Brown Sugar Blend.