Muffins and Quick Breads are pretty simple to make, and with these tips they can come out delicious every time.

Choosing Healthier Ingredients

I never use white flour anymore, instead I use whole wheat pastry flour. It is still light and bakes up nicely like white flour, but it has so much more nutrition.

You can substitute other ingredients for sugar, but be aware that it will also affect the texture of the muffin. 1/4 cup of unsweetened apple juice concentrate works well. 1/4 to 1/2 cup of unsweetened apple sauce is another way to go. To keep the delicate texture intact, you could try only taking out half the sugar and replacing the other half with one of the above. 1/4 cup of molasses would be a great choice if you take this route. It is a good source of iron, but the flavor might be too strong if it were the only sweetener you used.

Most recipes will bake up just as well if you want to add some healthier products to boost nutrition. For example, 1/4 cup of wheat germ, and/or 1/2 cup of dry milk powder can be good additions. If your kids are like mine and can’t stand the smell and texture of wheat germ in baked goods, try replacing about 10% of the flour in your recipe with uncooked Wheatena right out of the box.

Generally adding raisins or nuts won’t cause a muffin recipe to fail either. 1/2 cup of raisins or other dried fruit (chop it if it is bigger than a raisin) and/or 1/4 cup of chopped nuts would be good choices. If your kids don’t like chunks of nuts, pulverize them (nuts, not kids) in a mini chop first. But be sure to do quick pulses only or you could end up with nut butter!

Sneaking in 1/2 cup of canned pumpkin or fresh, steamed, mashed sweet potato is another good addition. This gives vitamins, pretty color, as well as extra moisture. The moisture can be helpful if you’ve also added something like wheat germ that might make the muffins a little dry.

Mixing the Batter

Always lightly beat the eggs in a small bowl first. This breaks up the egg and keeps you from ending up with lines of egg white visible in the finished product. Add the rest of the wet ingredients and combine thoroughly.

In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients and make a well in the center. Pour in the wet ingredients and using a large spatula fold them in until just barely combined. It is OK if you can still see a little flour not mixed in. Do not overmix or you will end up with tough muffins or bread.

Baking Muffins

I always use paper or foil muffin liners. They keep the muffins from sticking and you can take them out to cool right after removing the pan from the oven. Then if you have extra batter you can bake another batch right away — and you don’t have to wash the pan first.

Then after, yes after, you put the liners in the pan, lightly spray with non-stick cooking spray. This keeps any overflow from sticking to the pan and lets the muffins easily peel out of the liners. Be sure not to hold the can too close when you’re spraying or you’ll shoot the liners across your counter! Um, or so I’ve heard…

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