members recipes

This is a very easy, moist, low fat muffin that everyone loves. It\'s so delicious that they don\'t fuss that it\'s whole grain, low fat or made with squash or carrots. It\'s all in the SUPER SIMPLE TECHNIQUE! Makes 1 dozen full-sized muffins, 2-3 dozen mini-muffins

Ingredients
1 cup quick (not instant) oatmeal
1/2 cup applesauce (or other fruit or veggie puree--see notes)
1 cup milk
1 egg

1 cup flour (all purpose OR whole wheat pastry)
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 to 3/4 cup dried fruit (raisins, currants, blue berries, cranberries, diced dates, cherries, mango, pineapple, etc.)

Optional:
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon OR 1 teaspoon lemon or orange zest

Method
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

In a small bowl combine milk, egg, and fruit/veggie puree, then stir in oatmeal. Set aside for at least 5 minutes.

Prepare muffin tins: Use silicone baking pans or line with paper cups (preferred). If using metal tins, even non-stick, spray VERY WELL with non-stick spray. These muffins will stick to the pans, especially when they\'re hot. (And you won\'t want to wait until they\'re cool!)

Meanwhile, stir together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda and spices or zest. Add dried fruit and toss to separate the pieces of fruit and coat them with flour.

Add the milk/oatmeal mixture to the flour mixture all at once. Stir to combine, batter will be lumpy.

Divide among prepared tins. Bake 12-15 minutes (8-12 for mini-muffins), until a toothpick inserted in the center comes clean.

OPTIONAL PUREES:

ANY UNSWEETENED, COOKED FRUIT: peaches, apricots, pears, etc. Buzz what you have on hand in the blender or food processor, or use a jar of baby food.

COOKED VEGGIES: carrots, squash, sweet potatoes, beets, pumpkin etc. (unsalted leftovers or baby food) Because veggies are usually low acid, add 1 teaspoon of an acidic liquid--lemon juice, orange juice, pineapple juice or vinegar--to the liquid ingredients. Don\'t worry if the milk mixture looks a little curdled--not a problem. The acid is needed to help the muffins rise properly.

SUGAR: Use any sugar you like: white, brown, honey, etc. You can reduce the sugar to as little as 2 Tablespoons if you like, but don\'t eliminate it altogether, some is needed for texture and browning.

ALLERGIES: To complicate this recipe even further, it can actually be made without milk or egg, or both--replace them with applesauce. (I know it doesn\'t make sense, but it DOES WORK!)