Modified Banana Muffin Recipe

Those who know me well, know I am a little weird, and that I am also ever so particular about my bananas (I like to eat them on my cereal when they are neither too green nor have started to have brown speckles on them), my just purchased bread from the store (No sacker boy/girl it doesn't go in the same sack as the milk!) actually I don't say this out loud - I just re sack it. Truely though which one is more rude? And then I have my issue with which towel in the kitchen to use for drying hands or drying dishes (I'm not such a freak any more about the bathroom towels!). And last but probably not least, someone else using "my" pillow.

Okay, that said, and you now having been allowed into my mind way more than I probably should have let you, here is my story about the modified banana muffin recipe:

When the bananas start to become brown, speckled around here, I peel them and put them in a zip-loc bag or small container, usually two at a time, and then place this in the freezer (my grandmother would never let a good piece of anything go to waste!). I can then use them to make banana bread/muffins whenever, No waiting for a "good" banana to go "bad"!!!

So this morning, I had two in the freezer and two on the counter. I had been wanting to make banana muffins since I had placed the two in the freezer several weeks ago. So, today was the day!!!

Then of course, I didn't want to just make my plain same ole' same ole' banana recipe. And, whenever I look for a different recipe on the internet, they are all basically the same. Truely though, what else can you do with a banana bread recipe?!?!?

Well, this is what I decided, and partly because I really wasn't sure if I had enough white flour. And of course, needing to not feel guilty about making something with sooooo much butter and sugar in it, maybe I could make these muffins healthier!!!

Tuesday Morning Banana Muffins

1 cup (1/2 lb) unsalted, butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup Splenda
4 mashed bananas
1 cup white flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs

(optional: dried craisins, or chopped pecans, mini chocolate chips, Pampered Chef Cinnamon Sprinkles) I used sprinkles on top of muffins before baking them. I didn't use any of the other options.

Cream butter and sugar. Add mashed bananas, flours, wheat bran and flaxseed, soda and salt. Fold in eggs, add craisins, nuts or mini chocolate chips. Mix until all ingredients are wet, don't over mix. Place muffin cups in muffin pan, fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter. (Opt. Sprinkle tops with a little of the Pampered Chef Cinnamon Sprinkles.) Bake in 350 degree oven for approximately 20-25 minutes. Allow to cool a little in pan, then remove from pan and allow to finish cooling on wire rack. Makes 24 muffins.

Nutritional information: Calories 149, Total Fat 8.7g (saturated 5.0g, polyunsaturated 0.4g, monounsaturated 2.4g), Cholestrol 38.4mg, Potassium 87mg, Sodium 107.5mg, Total Carbs 16.7g, Dietary Fiber 1.4g, Sugars 6.2g, Protein 2g.

Here are the things I changed:

Original recipe = Grammy's Banana Nut Bread

Instead of 1 c. sugar, I used 1/2 c. sugar - 1/2 c. Splenda
Instead of 2 c. white flour, I used 1 c. whole wheat flour, 1/4 c. wheat bran, 1/4 c. ground flaxseed
Pampered Chef Sprinkles weren't on the original recipe, neither was the option about adding craisins or mini chocolate chips.

Nutritional information: Calories 160, Total Fat 8.7g (saturated 5.0g, polyunsaturated 0.4g, monounsaturated 2.4g), Cholestrol 38.5mg, Potassium 85.5mg, Sodium 107.6mg, Total Carbs 20.3g, Dietary Fiber 0.7g, Sugars 8.4g, Protein 1.9g.

Okay, so my recipe didn't totally make the muffins a lot better for you when you compare the nutritional information, but I can still eat one and not feel totally guilty!!!

I tried different senarios of changing the recipe up by using brown sugar instead of granulated sugar, egg beaters instead of fresh eggs, applesauce instead of butter, etc. However, I thought my modified recipe was best. But, that depends on if you are counting calories or carbs/sugars.
I sort of watch both, but I do try and keep my carbs down, as well as my sugars.

I calculated this nutritional information using a really handy tool that the internet has available:
http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-calculator.asp
I use this a lot when I am modifying a recipe, just to see if what I am doing is a little healthier.