I'm not going to lie: I eat six times a day.
There is, of course, a method to my madness. Based on personal experience I can tell you that eating a little bit every couple of hours helps to keep hunger at bay, and therefore helps you to eat less over the course of any given 24 hour period. The idea is to eat smaller meals/snacks more often. When it comes to snacking I try to mix it up...fruit, veggies, yogurt, granola bars...and muffins.
Muffins are the best. They're just a little bit sweet and full of fibre, and super healthy when you make them yourself. And, most importantly from the perspective of someone who lives alone, they freeze very well.
Why would anyone want to freeze a muffin? Well, it is a fact of baking that those things you've created lose their freshness over time. This can be a problem when combined with the fact that muffin recipes make 12 muffins at a time...meaning that in order to eat all the muffins before they get stale I would have to eat two muffins a day for the entire week.
I love muffins, but not that much.
To prevent muffin overload, I freeze the entire batch as soon as they've cooled. Then whenever I'm in the mood for a snack I just pop one out of the freezer, microwave for 30 seconds, and before I know it I'm eating something delicious, satisfying, and healthy.
In order to keep myself from getting bored with any one variety of muffin I have several recipes in my rotation. Some come from cookbooks, some from my mother, and others from the internet. But what they all have in common is a set of basic ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, eggs, and oil. Where the recipes differ is exactly what they use to fill all of these slots...all-purpose or whole wheat flour, the addition of bran or oatmeal, white or brown sugar, oil or milk (or fruit/veggie puree). If you keep the basics on hand, all you will need to do for any recipe is buy the little things that make the recipe unique, making your life a lot easier.
The specific muffin recipe I'm going to share with you today is the one I've made the most recently...pistachio chai. The batter is flavored with chai tea, then topped with roasted pistachios and a sweet glaze.
Ingredients
-1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
-1/2 cup brown sugar
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/4 tsp salt
-2 or 3 chai blend tea bags (more tea=more chai flavor)
-1 cup buttermilk
-1/4 cup melted butter
-1 1/2 tsp vanilla, divided
-1 large egg
-1/2 cup shelled roasted pistachios, chopped
-1/2 cup powdered sugar
-1 tbsp water
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine dry ingredients (flour through salt) in a large bowl. Tear open the tea bags and add the tea directly into the mixture; mix well. Make a well in the centre.
In another bowl, combine the wet ingredients (buttermilk through egg); reserve 1/2 tsp of vanilla. Mix well, then pour into the well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Stir until just moist.
Divide batter evenly among greased muffin tins (recipe makes 12 muffins). Sprinkle nuts over top, and bake for 15 minutes (until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean).
Let cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then cool completely on a rack. To glaze, combine remaining 1/2 tsp vanilla with powdered sugar and water; drizzle over muffins.
Transfer muffins to an airtight container (or ziploc bag) and freeze immediately. Now you have access to a quick, healthy, and delicious snack!
There is, of course, a method to my madness. Based on personal experience I can tell you that eating a little bit every couple of hours helps to keep hunger at bay, and therefore helps you to eat less over the course of any given 24 hour period. The idea is to eat smaller meals/snacks more often. When it comes to snacking I try to mix it up...fruit, veggies, yogurt, granola bars...and muffins.
Muffins are the best. They're just a little bit sweet and full of fibre, and super healthy when you make them yourself. And, most importantly from the perspective of someone who lives alone, they freeze very well.
Why would anyone want to freeze a muffin? Well, it is a fact of baking that those things you've created lose their freshness over time. This can be a problem when combined with the fact that muffin recipes make 12 muffins at a time...meaning that in order to eat all the muffins before they get stale I would have to eat two muffins a day for the entire week.
I love muffins, but not that much.
To prevent muffin overload, I freeze the entire batch as soon as they've cooled. Then whenever I'm in the mood for a snack I just pop one out of the freezer, microwave for 30 seconds, and before I know it I'm eating something delicious, satisfying, and healthy.
In order to keep myself from getting bored with any one variety of muffin I have several recipes in my rotation. Some come from cookbooks, some from my mother, and others from the internet. But what they all have in common is a set of basic ingredients: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, eggs, and oil. Where the recipes differ is exactly what they use to fill all of these slots...all-purpose or whole wheat flour, the addition of bran or oatmeal, white or brown sugar, oil or milk (or fruit/veggie puree). If you keep the basics on hand, all you will need to do for any recipe is buy the little things that make the recipe unique, making your life a lot easier.
The specific muffin recipe I'm going to share with you today is the one I've made the most recently...pistachio chai. The batter is flavored with chai tea, then topped with roasted pistachios and a sweet glaze.
Ingredients
-1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
-1/2 cup brown sugar
-1 tsp baking soda
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/4 tsp salt
-2 or 3 chai blend tea bags (more tea=more chai flavor)
-1 cup buttermilk
-1/4 cup melted butter
-1 1/2 tsp vanilla, divided
-1 large egg
-1/2 cup shelled roasted pistachios, chopped
-1/2 cup powdered sugar
-1 tbsp water
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine dry ingredients (flour through salt) in a large bowl. Tear open the tea bags and add the tea directly into the mixture; mix well. Make a well in the centre.
In another bowl, combine the wet ingredients (buttermilk through egg); reserve 1/2 tsp of vanilla. Mix well, then pour into the well in the centre of the dry ingredients. Stir until just moist.
Divide batter evenly among greased muffin tins (recipe makes 12 muffins). Sprinkle nuts over top, and bake for 15 minutes (until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean).
Let cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then cool completely on a rack. To glaze, combine remaining 1/2 tsp vanilla with powdered sugar and water; drizzle over muffins.
Transfer muffins to an airtight container (or ziploc bag) and freeze immediately. Now you have access to a quick, healthy, and delicious snack!
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| Keeping healthy snacks on hand means you're less likely to reach for a bag of chips or a chocolate bar! |
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