Butter-Free, Easy and Delicious Blueberry Muffins

Homemade, butter-free muffins

Soft, moist and filled with sweet blueberries 

One of the great things about living in California is that you find fresh berries at the farmers' market pretty much all year long. Yesterday I bought these delicious organic blueberries and couldn't wait to come home to bake some muffins. These are super easy to prepare, and so delicious. To make them healthier, I didn't use butter in this recipe but vegetable oil. The results are as great!
Blueberry muffins are one of my favorite. The berries add a fruity and sweet flavor in every bite. Blueberries are not only delicious but, as I'm sure you are aware of, are a great source of antioxidants. But did you also know that studies suggest that blueberries are  beneficial for our brain, by improving our memory, and slowing down memory loss that normally comes with aging? I have been feeling so forgetful lately. It could be that I have way too many things in my daily schedule. Or yes, it could also be that I'm getting older. Either way, I better start improving my cognitive functions now, and have all of these muffins for myself ;-)


Ingredients: to make 20 regular muffins, or 18 extra large

• 3 eggs
• 1 cup (200 gr) of sugar
• 1 and 1/2 cups of milk (375 ml) (I used whole milk)
• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) of vegetable oil
• 8 oz (225 gr) of fresh (organic) blueberries 
• 4 cups (600 gr) of all-purpose flour
• 1 (15 gr) tablespoon of baking powder
• 1/3 teaspoon of salt
• about 2 tablespoons of coarse raw sugar for decorating

Preparation time:
Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400º F (200º C). In a bowl, whisk the eggs together with the sugar until fluffy. Add the milk, vanilla extract and the oil and mix until combined. 

2. Add the flour, salt and baking powder. Mix until combined. Do not over-mix or your muffins will not turn out as soft.

                                        

                                        

3. Fold in the blueberries using a spoon.

4. Line 18-20 muffin tins with paper liners. Spoon the batter evenly into the cups (should fill almost to the top). Sprinkle with the coarse sugar.

5. Bake at  400º F (200º C) degrees for 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 375º F (190º C), and bake for another 30-35 minutes or until the top is golden. Test with a toothpick for readiness.

Enjoy!

Banana Muffins with Hazelnuts and Nutella

Soft and moist, butter-free  banana-hazelnut muffins stuffed with creamy Nutella 

Do you have a bunch of ripe bananas sitting on your kitchen counter? And are you wondering if today is the day you will finally throw it away? Because let's face it: no one will eat those bananas. They are way past their kind-of-ok stage, and way into the too-mushy-to-be-any-good phase.
Like you, I really hate throwing away food. So my bananas just sit on the counter for the longest. But it's really not my fault. No one  in my house likes bananas when they are still green, and definitely no one eats them if they are ripe. Thi means, each banana has a about a three day time-span in which it should be eaten. Not a day less, and surely not a day more!
Today I decided NOT to throw away my ripe bananas and find a creative way to use them. So I baked these super yummy butter-free muffins, filled with hazelnuts and with a heart of nutella. Delicious! And I'm sure you know by now, hazelnut and Nutella combination is one of my favorite! Here is how I made these muffins:

Ingredients: to make 12 muffins

• 2 ripe bananas
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup (100 gr) of sugar
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) of vegetable oil
• 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 1.5 cups (225 gr) of all-purpose flour 
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• a pinch of salt
• 1 cup (75 gr) of chopped hazelnuts
• 12 teaspoons of Nutella
• about 1 tablespoon of raw coarse sugar (optional)

Preparation time: 50 minutes
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350º F (175º C). In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork, or a potato ricer (like I did) and mix in the eggs.

2. Blend in the sugar, vanilla extract and the vegetable oil.

3. Stir in the flour, baking powder and salt, until all is combined.

4. Add 3/4 cup of chopped hazelnuts.

5. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners, or grease with butter and flour. Spoon a little bit of batter (about half full). Add one teaspoon of nutella into each and cover with more batter. Sprinkle with the remaining chopped hazelnuts and some raw sugar (if you like).
Bake for about 25 minutes until the top are brown.

Enjoy!

Butter-free Yogurt Cake with Chocolate Chips and Walnuts

Soft, fluffy, chocolaty, and nutty. So good that it's hard to believe it doesn't have butter. 

And it will only take 45 minutes of your time. 

This is the easiest cake ever. Really!!! One of those recipes where you can just combine all the ingredients, pour them in an oven pan, and bake. The clean up is also super fast too. All the measurements in the recipe are made using the empty yogurt cup. In only 45 minutes you will have a delicious cake, soft and fluffy, filled with chocolate chips and walnuts. Great for a wholesome breakfast, or a fun mid-morning snack or afternoon tea.
And did I mention that there is no butter in this recipe?!? Simply perfect!
Here is the recipe:

Ingredients:  to make a 9 in cake - serving 8-10

• 1 vanilla yogurt cup (mine was 6 oz)
• 3 cups* of all purpose flour
• 1 cup* of sugar
• 1/2 cup * of vegetable oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon of almond extract
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup* of walnuts, chopped
• 1 cup* of semi-sweet chocolate chips

cup*= Use the empty yogurt cup!!

Preparation time:10 minutes plus 35 minutes for baking

Directions:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the yogurt, flour, sugar, oil, eggs, baking powder, almond extract and salt.  Mix well.

Step 2: Stir in the walnuts chopped in small pieces and the chocolate chip.

Step 3: Pour the batter in a 9 in oven pan with removable sides if you have it. I covered the bottom with parchment paper. Or you can also grease with butter and flour.

Step 4: Bake for about 35 minutes until golden on top. Test with a toothpick in the middle to see if the cake is completely cooked.

  

Butter-Free Apple Cake with Ricotta Cheese

Wholesome, moist, soft and delicious apple cake with ricotta cheese and a sprinkle of almonds!

I can't imagine a morning at the beach without a nutritious, healthy and delicious snack for the kids.
That's why on Thursday night I prepared this apple cake with ricotta for Friday morning. It was the first day of vacation for my kids, and I organized a little gathering with some of our friends at the near by beach. I was so much fun! The perfect way to kick off the summer.
My only mistake: I should have made at least two of these butter-free, moist and yummy apple cakes! About a third of it was gone on Thursday night, right after dinner... well, maybe this was another mistake! But my kids, and I :-) really wanted a taste. It's so hard to say no to a just baked, still warm and incredibly fragrant dessert! And I had to make sure it was actually as delicious as it looked, right?!?
Anyways, the rest of the cake disappeared on Friday in less than 60 seconds. I guess I should have figured that out: playing in the water and running around the sand can sure make you hungry. Now I learned my lesson, and I will be better equipped next time!
As I promised my friends, here is the recipe.

Ingredients: to make one doughnut shape cake, 10 inch in diameter

• 3 apples, I used pink lady, about 1.25 lb total
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup of sugar
• 7.5 oz of whole milk ricotta cheese (half of my package)
• 1/2 cup of vegetable oil (I used olive oil, because I didn't have any other oil available!)
• 1 tablespoon (16 gr) of baking powder :-)
• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sliced almond, unsalted dry toasted
• powder sugar to decorate

Preparation time: about 20 minutes to prepare, plus 60 minutes to bake

Directions:

Step 1: Turn on the oven to 350 degrees. Peel and thinly slice the apples. Place in a bowl with lemon juice (half lemon juice should be plenty).

Step 2: In a large bowl, mix well the eggs with the sugar.

Step 3: Add the ricotta cheese, and mix well again.

Step 4: Stir in the oil ... pretty simple, right?

Step 5: Add the lemon zest, the baking powder and the flour. Mix some more until nice and smooth.

Step 6: Last, add the apples and mix with a spoon.

Step 7:  Grease the bottom of your baking pan if necessary, and sprinkle the bottom of your mold or pan (which will be the top of my cake) with the sliced almonds.

                                              

Step 8: Pour the batter, and place in the middle of the oven.

Step 9: Cook for about 1 hours. Check with a toothpick if the cake is ready. The toothpick should come out clean, no streaks of batter.

 Let the cake cool down a bit, flip it over, and sprinkle with powder sugar. Yummy!!