Happy Monday! A while back, I was fooling around with muffin recipes and I made an apple granola muffin that was a 6-7 out of 10. Apples were a little bland and they were nothing to facebook and tell your friends. This time around I altered the ingredients slightly. I used organic hemp granola with a pumpkin flavor and added nutmeg into the mix for some more flavor.

Results…. ummm these are delicious! Give them a try and let me know what you think.

I have been craving homemade muffins without a huge amount of oil. I recently picked up a new box of hemp granola (pumpkin) so I thought I would incorporate that into a basic muffin mixture with some apples. This is what I came up with. A delicious muffin, moist on the inside with a little crunch on the outside from the granola.

I was really impressed with the texture of the muffin, last time I thought that maybe the apple was a little “BLAH“. This time, I added some nutmeg to the apple before hand and I think it was the final tweak.

Ingredients

• 2 Large Apple (Peeled and Cored)
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 2/3 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 2/3 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 2 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 Tbsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1 Tsp. Nutmeg
• 1/2 Tsp Salt
• 3/4 Cup Granola
• 4 Tbsp. Canola Oil
• 1 Large Egg (beaten)
• 1 Cup Skim Milk

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease a 12- hole muffin pan.









2. Place the apple and half the sugar in a bowl and set aside for 5 minutes.



3. Sift together remaining sugar, flour(s), baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.



4. Stir in granola (reserving some for top of muffins).



5. In a small bowl, beat together remaining ingredients. Stir this liquid into the dry ingredients and lightly stir together.



6. Divide the mixture among the holes in the muffin pan, filling each about 2/3 full.



7. Top with remaining granola.
8. Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly brown.
9. Remove the muffins from the oven and turn out immediately onto a cooling rack to cool.
10. Serve warm or at room temperature.



11. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: When mixing the dry ingredients with the wet – be sure not to over mix, lumps and some flour still showing is OK. If you over-beat the batter, the muffins will be flat.

So next time you are on the hunt for a muffin – give these a try.  I beckon they would work great with any fruit if you are in a pinch.  Have a great start to your week and stay tuned for some garden chatter.

Take care

zesty

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I decided to go back in time because a lot of new folks have never seen my first ever post relating to Super Star Toast.  Over time I have had many variations on this slice but when I think back…. this piece of toast really goes above and beyond. Last night was a fend for yourself supper and I was craving toast.  I went back to old faithful and I was not disappointed.

Tell me what you think of this piece of toast and drop a comment if you have a favorite combination of toppings on your toast.  Or maybe you are a single topping kind of person.

So I had some kaiser rolls left over from the weekend and since I really despise wasting food, I decided to pop them in the toaster oven.  Originally I was just going to go with some plain old butter, a glass of apple juice along with some granola and banana. Then a light went on and I thought that maybe I could kick this toast up a little bit. What you are about to see is, in my mind, a true kicked up piece of toast.

For me this was amazing! I loved the flavor combination and the texture. It was a true treat and something I would definitely eat again!

Ingredients

• 1 Kaiser ( Toasted )
• 1 Tbsp. Peanut Butter
• 1 Tbsp. Nutella
• 1 Banana ( Mashed )
• 1 Tbsp. Granola
• Drizzle of Honey

Method

1. Toast Kaiser
2. Spread Peanut Butter
3. Top with Nutella
4. Add mashed banana, then top with granola
5. Drizzle with Honey
6. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: If you are having more than one piece, my recommendation would be to prepare one piece at a time to prevent it from going soggy.  Also it is a good way to use up over ripe bananas.

Well this is it!  I hope you have a great weekend!

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Welcome back from the weekend!  We had a great couple days off.  We did some family visiting, some relaxing as well as spending time preparing for the week.

The next couple weeks will be the biggest in Zesty history.  Now zestycook.com being only 6 months old – that is not that big of deal.  However this will will mark the launch of the new and improved look for zestycook as well as the much anticipated free E-Book feature recipes from myself as well as other amazing foodies.  I am very excited and looking forward to sharing with you all the hard work.

As for today’s post, I was debating what to post especially with all the sweet treats last week so I opted for a breakfast post.  I do eat breakfast everyday… but I rarely post breakfast recipes.  Even though there will be no recipe today, here’s a breakfast I prepared yesterday.  I hope you enjoy the pictures.

Let me know what you think of this somewhat balanced breakfast.

Granola with Yogurt & Berries

• 1/2 Cup Fibre Flax Granola
• 1/2 Cup Vanilla Yogurt
• Strawberries and Blueberries

Multi Grain Toast, Raspberry Jam and Eggs

• 2 Pieces of Toast
• 2 Eggs Soft Boiled (7 minutes)
• 1 Tbsp. Raspberry Jam

Multi grain toast with oatmeal on top (love the oatmeal).

2 Soft boiled eggs (cooked just right)

Yum!

Raspberry jam on toast with spoonful of egg… oh I really love that.

Me trying to get fancy with the camera… not sure it worked

So there you have it!  A zesty Sunday breakfast – pretty easy, pretty tasty, and (for the most part) healthy.  I hope you have a great Monday whether you are at the office, in the classroom or at home.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty

Welcome to the first installment of the Valentines treat week at ZestyCook.com.  Before I get started please do not forget to sign up for the great giveaway of Grill Charms.  The contest will run through the day tomorrow and then I will announce the winners on Thursday’s post.

I have been craving homemade muffins without a huge amount of oil.  I recently picked up a new box of granola (fiber and flax) so I thought I would incorporate that into a basic muffin mixture with some apples.  This is what I came up with.  A delicious muffin, moist on the inside with a little crunch on the outside from the granola.

I was really impressed with the texture of the muffin, although I did find that maybe the apple was a little “BLAH“.  Next time, maybe I will add some flavor to the apple before hand.

Ingredients

• 1 Large Apple (Peeled and Cored)
• 1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
• 2/3 Cup All-Purpose Flour
• 2/3 Cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 2 Tsp. Baking Powder
• 1 Tbsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1/2 Tsp Salt
• 3/4 Cup Granola
• 4 Tbsp. Canola Oil
• 1 Large Egg (beaten)
• 1 Cup Skim Milk

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Lightly grease a 12- hole muffin pan.









2. Place the apple and half the sugar in a bowl and set aside for 5 minutes.



3. Sift together remaining sugar, flour(s), baking powder, cinnamon and salt.



4. Stir in granola (reserving some for top of muffins).



5. In a small bowl, beat together remaining ingredients.  Stir this liquid into the dry ingredients and lightly stir together.



6. Divide the mixture among the holes in the muffin pan, filling each about 2/3 full.



7. Top with remaining granola.
8. Place in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly brown.
9. Remove the muffins from the oven and turn out immediately onto a cooling rack to cool.
10. Serve warm or at room temperature.



11. ENJOY!

Zesty Tip: When mixing the dry ingredients with the wet – be sure not to over mix, lumps and some flour still showing is OK.  If you over-beat the batter, the muffins will be flat.

This was a really fun recipe to play around with.  What do you think of the pictures? I think I may have finally figured out how to focus in the front and blur in the back with my camera.  I am pretty excited.  Have an awesome Tuesday!

I think tomorrow’s special treat may make you smile.  I can’t wait to share it with you.

Take care

zesty

Download my Free Recipe Book: Simply Zesty