I came up with a healthy recipe for strawberry cream cheese muffins using coarse bran, fresh strawberries and fat free cream cheese. Before baking fresh strawberries are placed on a slice of fat free cream cheese on top of each muffin. Center of muffins will be soft and creamy because of the cream cheese/strawberry filling. This recipe yields 18 muffins at approximately 150 calories per muffin.
Strawberry Cream Cheese Muffins
1 cup coarse bran (I used Shiloh Farms Coarse Wheat Bran, a.k.a. Miller's Bran)
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup preferred sweetener (or sugar)
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup natural applesauce
1 and 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup fat free sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup chopped strawberries for muffin batter
2 cups chopped strawberries for garnish
8 oz. package fat free cream cheese
Boil water and add coarse bran. Remove from heat and let stand for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Meanwhile combine honey, eggs, vegetable oil, applesauce, fat free sour cream, and vanilla.
In separate bowl mix together whole wheat flour and baking soda.
Add flour mixture to oil mixture containing eggs, applesauce and sour cream. Stir to combine.
Next add the coarse bran.
Chop the 2/3 cup fresh strawberries into small pieces. Gently fold the chopped strawberries into the batter.
Stir to combine. Add muffin liners to a muffin tin. Add batter to muffin tin reserving some batter to cover strawberry and cream cheese filling before baking. This recipe made enough to yield about 18-20 muffins.
Cut cream cheese into small pieces.
Place a piece of cream cheese on top of the muffin batter for each muffin.
Next add fresh strawberries.
Top with remaining reserved batter. I recently modified this recipe by adding a thin layer of batter on top of the filling for each muffin before baking. This helped to reduce the sinking appearance that resulted from the strawberry/cream cheese filling.
Place in preheated oven and cook until muffins are cooked through, about 30-35 minutes. Muffins are done when toothpick stuck in center comes out clean. Cream cheese will be moist and soft at the center.
Recipe yields 18-20 muffins at approximately 150 calories/muffin. Enjoy!
Will oat bran work?
ReplyDeleteThat's a great question, I have not tried substituting oat bran in this recipe before. I will give it a try in the next week or so and let you know how the recipe turns out. I do frequently use oat bran in other muffin recipes. Thanks for asking.
DeleteI did recently try using the oat bran in this recipe and it turned out fine. The cooking time was a little shorter using the oat bran instead of the wheat bran.
DeleteThanks again.