I know, the title is ridiculous! It makes me laugh! But it warms my heart when my kids clamor for my “mommy muffins”—which are delicious and healthy at the same time!

Update (January 2023): Here’s the YouTube video of the recipe!

 

Muffins can be a wonderful, portable snack food—but conventional, store-bought muffins are really not much better than cupcakes in terms of their nutritional content. In 2021, Amie Watson of Mashed.com wrote a disturbing exposé of the high levels of fat, sugar, sodium, and calories in a typical muffin. But if you bake your own muffins, you can make sure they are a healthy and yummy treat!

My go-to recipe is modified from Jane Massey’s “Bran-Flax Muffins” on Allrecipes.com, where her recipe currently enjoys a 5-star rating from 600+ reviews. I’ve been making these muffins for years, and they are a staple in my kids’ lunch boxes and snack plates.

To make a batch of 24 muffins (regular, 12-muffin pan size), here’s my recipe:

 

Ingredients

Dry ingredients (large bowl)

1 ½ c unbleached all-purpose flour

¾ c ground flax seed (I recommend freshly ground)

¾ c rolled (old-fashioned) oatmeal, freshly ground 

1 c brown sugar

1 t salt

1 t baking powder

2 t baking soda

2 t cinnamon

 

Wet ingredients (small bowl)

2 large eggs, beaten

1 c milk (low-fat is fine)

2 T canola oil

1 t vanilla

 

Shredded fruits and vegetables (4 cups total)

1 medium carrot, peeled and shredded (1 cup total)

1 small zucchini, shredded (1 cup total)

2 red apples, peeled, cored, and shredded (I like using Gala apples)

 

Optional stir-in ingredients

½ c golden raisins

1 c chopped nuts (I omit these to abide by nut-free school policies) 

 

Method

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare two 12-muffin pans with paper liners. 

Start by mixing together the dry ingredients (flour, flax seed, oatmeal, brown sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon) in a large bowl. In a separate small bowl, beat the two eggs well, then beat in the milk, oil, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Stir in the shredded fruits and vegetables as well as any optional add-ins (raisins, nuts). Fill the muffin cups with batter (~⅔ full).

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes (checking for doneness at 15, as every oven is different!). Remove the muffins and let cool on a rack. Enjoy!

 

Note: Once cooled, muffins may be frozen in a freezer-safe container or plastic bag, and individually defrosted on low microwave power for 1 minute for a tasty and healthy snack at any time. They probably keep well for more than a month in the freezer, but they are eaten too quickly in my household for me to say for sure!