Mom's Mixing Bowl

Growing up in a large family meant our Mom spent lots of time in the kitchen cooking. She was not a side order cook, we ate what my she put on the table. There were occasions where we didn’t particularly care for a dish; such as liver and onions but that was what we ate. There were no substitutions…no fixing yourself a sandwich or running to McDonalds for some chicken McNuggets. Now don’t get me wrong they did not expect us to clean our plates but we did have to at least try it. Mom always had a variety of food prepared so it wasn’t like we went hungry.

Maybe that is why I have never been a picky eater. I will eat pretty much anything you put in front of me or at least try it. Now my sons are another story. Due to my sons being picky eaters I became a side order cook.

So, when you have picky eaters you naturally become creative in the kitchen. Have you seen the cookbooks where they sneak food into the recipes? There are two that I know of one is called Deceptively Delicious: Simple Secrets to Get Your Kids Eating Good Food and the other one is The Sneaky Chef: Simple Strategies for Hiding Healthy Foods in Kids’ Favorite Meals. Where were these books when my sons were young?

Here is a healthy recipe I discovered in The South Beach Diet Cookbook. These muffins are simple to make and delicious for breakfast. Plus, the kids like them and they have no idea how healthy they are for them.

Wholesome Oat Muffins

¾ C. + 2 T. oats
1 C. buttermilk
1 ¼ C. white whole wheat flour or whole grain flour
1 ½ t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
¼ t. ground cinnamon
¼ t. salt
2/3 C. chopped walnuts
1/3 C. canola oil
1 egg, beaten
1/3 C. brown sugar substitute
1 t. vanilla

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Coat a 12-cup nonstick muffin pan with cooking spray or line with paper cups.

In a small bowl, combine ¾ cup of the oats and the buttermilk. Let soak for 30 minutes.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and walnuts.

In a large bowl, stir together the oil, egg, brown sugar substitute, and vanilla until well blended. Stir in the oat mixture. Stir in the flour mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups, filling them about two-thirds full. Sprinkle the remaining 2 T. oats over the muffins. Bake for 11- 15 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on a rack for 5 minutes. Remove to the rack to cool completely.

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