Savory Muffins (Greens & Pesto)

savory muffins with greens and pesto (photo by jhy)

You will need:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 T. baking powder
• 1 t. salt
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 c. oil
• 1/2 c. yogurt (at least)
• 1 c. milk
• 10 oz cooked greens (spinach, nettles, others) See Nettles
• 1/2- 1 c. pesto See Garlic Mustard Pesto
• 1 c. shredded cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, etc)

mixing spoon or fork
spatula
2 medium bowls
measuring cups & spoons
muffin pans for regular size (2 1/2 inch) muffins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare 12 muffin cups. You can insert liners, but for less bread loss on the paper, try How to Bake Muffins that Won't Stick to the Pan (link coming soon).

In a large bowl, mix the dry ingredients.

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs, add oil, milk and yogurt and mix well. Add the squeezed out cooked greens (save the juice). If the liquid seems thick add in a little of the juice from the greens. This is where you have to do some guessing in this recipe because the amount of liquid in the greens, and the thickness of the pesto may require the addition of more liquid.

savory muffins ready to bake (photo by jhy)

Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquid all at once. Stir until thoroughly moistened, but the batter will still be lumpy. Over-mixing muffins will make them tough and dry. If the batter is really too stiff to stir, you can add more greens juice or yogurt, but don't stir excessively.

Finally, fold in the cheese and pesto until distributed.

Fill the 12 muffin cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes until tester or toothpick comes out clean. Remove from pans.

Low-Fat Apple Bread

slices of apple bread (photo by jhy)

You will need:

• 2 c chopped apples
• 1/2 c chopped nuts (I used walnuts)
• 1/4 c oil
• 1/2 c yogurt
• 1/3 c honey
• 1 egg (or 1/4 c egg substitute)
• 1 t vanilla
• 1/2 t nutmeg
• 1/2 t cinnamon
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/2 t soda
• 1 t baking powder
• 1 c white flour
• 1 c whole wheat flour

9x5 loaf pan or equivalent bowl measuring cups sharp knife spoons, scrapers, etc This bread is less sweet than the Pear-Almond Bread. I really like them both. I think this apple bread is good for breakfast, or to go with a vegetable-based soup. Peel and chop the apples. I usually make the chunks 1/4- 3/8 inch on a side- something between what I would call fine and coarse. Prepare the pan by greasing, lining with wax paper and grease again. Breads with large chunks of fruit tend to stick to the pan, and the extra minute it takes to line with wax paper is well worth it. Mix the wet ingredients and beat well. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until they are all moistened. Add the apples and nuts and stir in. The batter will be very thick.

spread the dough in a loaf pan and level (photo by jhy)

Spread in a loaf pan. (I doubled the recipe, which is why there are two pans in the picture). You will need to level the dough. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick or tester comes out clean. Remove from pan and peel the wax paper immediately. Cool before slicing.

You may be able to tell that my pans are not 9x5. They are approximately 10x4, and have no brand label, but they make a nicely shaped loaf. The only ones of a comparable size that I find on line are these ridiculously priced ones. What can I say? I really prefer this shape for quick breads because the slices are more nearly square instead of low rectangles. Glad I found these somewhere in my past!

Pear Almond Bread- Good for Dessert

pear almond bread (photo by jhy)

You will need:

1 1/2 c. chopped pears (about 1/2 inch cubes)
• 1 c. sugar OR 1/2 c sugar and 1/2 c sugar substitute
• 1/4 c. vegetable oil
• 2 eggs OR 1/2 c Egg Beaters™
• 1/2 c. plain lowfat yogurt
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1 t. almond extract
• 1 1/2 c. white flour
• 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. cinnamon
• 1/4 t. nutmeg
• 1/2 c. sliced or slivered almonds
• 1/2 t. grated lemon peel

a medium bowl measuring cups & spoons spoons, fork, whisk, scraper 9 x 5 inch (or equivalent) loaf pan wax paper shortening to grease pan This is one of our very favorite quick breads and it uses quite a few pears. The pears remain in chunks throughout the bread after baking, so it is very moist. In fact, it will begin to mold in about an instant, so it's good to either eat it right away or freeze. More on that at the end. Combine the sugar (and substitute), oil and yogurt in a bowl and beat or whisk. Add eggs (or substitute) one at a time and beat well after each. Mix in the extracts. Add dry ingredients (sift if you want, but I never do) and mix. Add pears, almonds, and lemon peel (you can leave this out) and mix thoroughly. Prepare loaf pan by greasing the inside, line long sides and bottom with a length of wax paper, and grease the paper. This bread really likes to stick to the pan, so it's worth it to take time to do this.

pear almond bread batter in lined loaf pan (photo by jhy)

Spoon into loaf pan, and level somewhat. Bake 1 hour at 350 F. Cool slightly, then remove from pan to complete cooling. I slice this into 16 slices, and with the healthier substitutes, each slice is about 185 calories. It's a fairly sweet bread, because pears are just very sweet, so we like to eat it as a dessert. Because it molds so fast, I slice it, accordion fold a strip of wax paper between the slices, and freeze it in double bags or a bag and container. Then it's easy to pull out one slice at a time. I actually like to eat it when it's still partially frozen. Yummy! Excellent with coffee or tea which balances the sweetness somewhat.