Strawberry Yogurt Whole Grain Muffins

Well, you knew it was coming, didn't you? Muffins + Strawberries + Yogurt + Whole Grain Flour= Awesome breakfast or snack. My friend, Nancy, first posted about this recipe a while back (here's the post). I've worked with it a bit & must say it's my second favorite muffin recipe. Here's my first. And the perfect recipe to have on hand when your strawberries are about to go bad--but not quite there, yet not worthy to be put out to be eaten either. The muffins are even better with freshly picked strawberries!

I first made these last year and then again a couple months ago when we went strawberry picking. But I'm getting ready to make them again and figured I'd share the recipe for anyone else that finds themselves with a bumper crop of strawberries--they are still cheap at the grocery store in June! Here are a few pictures from our picking in April:

I've included two of my trials below as notes after the recipe--you may want to read through them before trying out the recipe to see what might sound good in your own efforts. I don't know that I prefer one over the other. The original is wonderful, but I would encourage you to play around with the recipe if you wish too--it's a forgiving one. Thanks again for the inspiration, Nancy! These are really melt-in-your-mouth good!

STRAWBERRY YOGURT MUFFINS 
Adapted from Stonyfield Farm

  

"these muffins are a great brunch item. for extra sweetness, dust with cinnamon sugar while still hot."

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup sugar (I've only made them with raw sugar so far b/c I adore raw sugar)
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup lowfat plain yogurt
• 1/4 cup butter, room temperature (used light butter before with success)
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup chopped strawberries, fresh or frozen (I've only used fresh)

Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 12 muffin tin or line it with paper baking cups. In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar and baking soda. (I skipped the sifting and it was fine) In another bowl, stir together eggs, yogurt, melted butter and vanilla until blended. Toss the strawberries with the flour mixture.

Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture and stir until the flour is just moistened. The batter will be lumpy. Spoon the batter into the muffin cups. (Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, if desired) Bake for 20 – 25 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.

Yields 12 muffins.

  

TRIAL I

1) I used regular strawberry yogurt and must say this made a big difference in the 'pop' of the strawberry flavor 2) Used 3 egg whites in place of 2 regular eggs 3) Substituted whole wheat pastry flour instead of whole wheat flour (I tend to prefer it for baking) 4) Added about 1/4 cup of wheat germ + ~2 Tbsp. of ground flax seeds 5) Used brown sugar instead of regular sugar 6) When my dough seemed too dry, I added a splash of skim milk. Came out spectacular and HEALTHY!

 
TRIAL II

1) Used Smart Balance buttery spread (stick form) instead of butter 2) Used 1/3 (raw) sugar in muffin batter and then mixed 1/4 cup of (raw) sugar with a couple teaspoons of ground cinnamon cinnamon and sprinkled this cinnamon-sugar mixture on top of the muffins before baking 3) Had to add ~1/2 cup of buttermilk b/c dough was dry 4) Used fat-free strawberry Greek yogurt. Still a smashing success!!!!