Besides their sweet, delicious taste, did you know there is even more to love about blueberries?
· Blueberries have the highest antioxidant capacity of all fresh fruit which helps boost your immune system and prevent infections;
· According to a University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study, blueberries may reduce belly fat and risk factors for cardiovascular disease;
· The fiber, vitamins, sodium, copper, fructose and acids improve digestion and keep away constipation;
· The antioxidants in blueberries neutralize free radicals in the body to help you stay youthful!
Here is my favorite healthy blueberry muffin recipe, which we have been enjoying in our house. It works best with fresh blueberries, but you can also use frozen.
Cara's Healthy Blueberry Muffins
Only 160 calories and 4 grams of fat
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pasty flour
1/2 cup sugar or honey
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp milk
1 large egg
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups or more fresh organic blueberries, washed and dried
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine flour, sugar, oats, baking powder, baking soda in a bowl. In another bowl, whisk milk, egg, oil and vanilla. Toss blueberries with flour mixture. Pour wet ingredients into flour mixture and stir gently.
Line muffin pan with paper liners or spray nonstick spray. Divide batter evenly. Bake 15-17 minutes or until tops are golden. Cool in pan for 10 minutes and enjoy!!
Yum. Blueberries are a favorite at our house. When we were kids, we would go out and pick buckets of the wild ones. They were small, but oh so good. As long as you didn't have to compete with bears, it was an enjoyable outing. We have friends here who have a blueberry farm, but the early warm weather and late freeze damaged the crop. There aren't many this year. I'll be giving this recipe a try.
ReplyDeleteI'm going to pickup some berries at tomorrow's farmer's market and try this with honey. mmmm.
ReplyDeleteThese look delicious!!
ReplyDeleteI love fresh blueberries also. I planted some in my backyard but they really haven't taken off yet, maybe next year. I have a recipe that uses yogurt to reduce the amount of sugar. With yours I would probably use the honey just because I am a honey lover, using it in my breakfast oatmeal and my lunch. Thanks for the recipe I may have to try them, I like the added oats!
ReplyDeleteI've gotten spoiled from being given many blueberry pints from a person who grows organic blueberries - your recipe for muffins caught my eye. Esp b/c i luv honey in my recipes, this is a keeper!
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