Banana Muffins to Boost Lactation

These nutrient packed muffins are great for lactating mothers, or anyone who could use a boost of vitamins, minerals and healthy fats.

These aren't your grocery store muffins that are a super sweet cake like creation. These muffins are a nutrition packed breakfast or snack that you don't have to feel bad about.

Ingredients:
3 large Ripe Bananas, mashed
1/2 C Maple
3 oz Applesauce
2 Eggs
1/2 C Oil
1 C White Wheat Flour
2/3 C Oats
3 tbs Flax Seeds
3 tbs Brewers Yeast, debittered
1/2 C Pecans
1 tsp Baking Powder

Preheat oven to 350. Spray two muffin tins with non-stick spray, set aside. Put oats, flax and pecans in a blender, pulse until ground into flour (flax seeds will still be large but broken up). In a large bowl combine all ingredients and mix until combined. Scoop mixture into muffin tins, it should make about 2 dozen muffins. Bake 20-23 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Carrot Raisin Muffins

Before embarking on a car trip to San Diego I thought these muffins would be the perfect breakfast to eat in the along the way. We like to get an early start and need something easy to store and eat in the car. You could certainly add nuts to these, I skipped them. The three year-old doesn't like nuts but he did give the nut free version a thumbs up.


Carrot Raisin Muffins
Makes 16 Muffins
3 large Carrots, grated (about 1 1/2 Cups)
1 C Raisins
1/2 C Plain Whole Milk Yogurt
1/2 C Maple Syrup
2 Eggs
1/3 C Sunflower Oil
2 C Unbleached White Flour
2 tsp Baking Soda
1 1/2  tsp Cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350. In a large bowl beat together Yogurt, Maple Syrup, Eggs and Oil. In a small bowl mix together Flour, Baking Soda and Cinnamon. Mix dry ingredients into wet until just combined. Stir in Carrots and Raisins. Prepare two muffin tins, spray or line with cupcake papers. Fill  cups nearly to the top with muffin batter. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Shredded BBQ...sweet potatoes?!?!?

I love BBQ but when we are not eating meat it can be a tough craving to satisfy. I try not to use a lot of the meat replacement products because they are so highly processed. I came across this idea a few weeks ago but when I first attempted it I cooked it in a skillet it stuck to the pan and made a huge mess. It absorbed so much oil as I tried fruitlessly to keep it from sticking. I loved the concept of sweet potatoes as a shredded meat replacement and truth be told I just LOVE sweet potatoes, so I decided to give it another shot.  Baking the shredded sweet potatoes in the oven with just a spray of oil on either a silpat or parchment paper worked great. Nothing stuck and I was free to prep the rest of dinner while they baked. We served our shredded BBQ Sweet Potato Sliders with Kale Slaw and a few red onion slices that I tossed in a bit of vinegar while everything cooked.
Serves 2 hungry adults

Ingredients:
2 small Sweet Potatoes

1/2 C BBQ sauce

Spray oil, I used spectrum organic grape seed oil
Buns for Serving

Preheat oven to 400. Grate both sweet potatoes on the large side of the grater. Spread out grated potatoes on a silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Spray with a little oil, bake for about 15 minutes, flip potatoes and spray with more oil. Bake another 15 minutes. While potatoes are baking heat BBQ sauce in a small sauce pan. Toss cooked sweet potato in BBQ sauce and serve on Buns.