Inspired Edibles

~ wellness, wonder, words ~

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate Drizzle

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Back in my teenage years in Montreal, my best friend and I would often go to a Friday afternoon fitness class together (there may have been a boy involved – I’m not sure I remember).  Following our workout, we would promptly dash to a local muffin stand and devour a giant ooey-gooey banana-chocolate chip mess (talk about eating our profits).

I haven’t had a muffin from a commercial establishment in many, many years, but I still love the combination of flavours.  This version also contains peanut butter and is a tad healthier than the ones we use to eat.  I like to think that it’s every bit as good!

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate Drizzle
  • 1 egg

  • 1/3 cup turbinado sugar

  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract

  • 1/4 cup olive oil

  • 1/2 cup all natural peanut butter (ie: without sugar), smooth or crunchy

  • 3 ripe bananas, mashed

  • 1 cup whole grain oatmeal

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour

  • 1 tsp baking soda

  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 50 grams of 75% cocoa chocolate (about 4 large squares)
  • handful of peanuts for topping

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Preheat oven to 400 F.

Beat egg, sugar, vanilla and olive oil together in a large bowl.  Add peanut butter and banana and beat until combined.

In a separate bowl,  mix oatmeal, flour, baking soda and baking powder.

Add dry ingredients to wet, mixing just until combined.

Divide batter among 12 oiled muffin cups.  Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until golden and firm to the touch.

Allow muffins to cool completely on a rack.

Meanwhile, heat chocolate in a sturdy pot on stove over lowest heat.  Stir to facilitate melting, then set aside to cool.  Once muffins and chocolate have cooled, take a spoon and drizzle chocolate over muffins freestyle.  Or, place chocolate, once cooled, in a small plastic bag and snip the corner – gently squeeze to apply chocolate.  There are certainly more precise ways of applying chocolate, but I’ll leave that to the cake makers.

Enjoy.

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This post is dedicated to Lynn –

Photo by Trinity Nutrition

Marbled French Toast with Fresh Strawberry & Granola

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We had a brilliant father’s day weekend at the lake.

The sun was shining, the loons were… calling (?) and our golden retriever was in doggy heaven.

We bought our cottage in the spring of 2003.  A bare bones, post-war fishing cabin that appeared to be built on a permanent slant.  The structure on the hill came complete with a family of squirrels living in the roof and enough marauding mice to feed an army of cats.  Perfect!

I’ll admit to feeling overwhelmed more than once during the patch-up journey, but tried to stay focused on the clean, quiet lake that brought great happiness to the whole family.  Besides, there was this fabulous vintage 60s, reclining, vibrating chair made of genuine vinyl that came with the cabin and had our name written all over it – an enduring beauty in its own right!

Much of the structural work accomplished over the past 8 years was done by my husband.  His enormous patience, boundless energy and skill are… infuriating – oops!  I mean inspiring :).  Little by little, we carved it into our own.

Along the way, we’ve been fortunate to have family & friends sharing the phases with us and helping us build some pretty wonderful memories.  

In many ways, it’s still the same wonky old cabin we fell in love with – and we wouldn’t want it any other way.

The cabin as it was then –

The cabin as it is today –

In honour of father’s day, we kicked off the morning with some homespun café au lait for dad (mom may have had one too!)

Topped with cinnamon, dark chocolate and hazelnut shavings

 

Then we moved on to the main morning course. 

We got lucky and found some gorgeous marbled sour rye bread at the market and stopped in at a neighbouring ranch to pick up some farm fresh eggs.

With local strawberries in abundance, our topping choice was made easy. 

French Toast with Fresh Strawberry & Granola

  • 8 pieces of whole grain bread (we used marbled rye)
  • 4 Eggs
  • Approx. 1 cup milk (or alternate beverage)
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 cup fresh strawberries, washed and sliced
  • 1/2 cup granola
  • sprinkle of maple syrup
  • dollop of whipped cream

Serves 4

Place eggs, milk and cinnamon in a large dish

Whisk ingredients together until well combined

Place slices of bread in milk/egg mixture allowing them to saturate for a moment before turning them over
Fry battered bread in a skillet with some olive oil over medium heat, cooking until golden on both sides.
Place French toast on individual serving plates and top with fresh berries, a sprinkling of granola, maple syrup and whipped cream. 
Dad was delighted and particularly liked the “crunch” of the granola that accompanied the French toast. 
Cheers to a beautiful Father’s Day Weekend!
– Photos by Trinity Nutrition –

Where it All Began

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When I first started this nutrition journey, I would spend hours playing around with recipes.  Adding a bit of this, taking away a bit of that, until I finally came up with a list of wholesome ingredients I felt good about putting in my body and my family’s bodies.  There was – and still is – plenty of trial and error involved but it’s all part of the fun.  Preserving taste is also an important part of the challenge.  Here is a fairly major re-do of a Martha Stewart original that a dear friend treated me to.  You will love the apple slice on top!   

Irresistible Apple Muffins

 

    • 1 Granny Smith Apple – peeled and quartered
    • 1/3 cup brown sugar
    • 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup oatmeal, 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
    • 2 tsp baking soda
    • 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg, dash cardamom
    • 1/2 cup plump golden raisins
    • 2 eggs
    • 1 tsp vanilla
    • 1/2 cup buttermilk
    • 1/4 cup olive oil, 1/4 cup orange juice (diluted)

 

Preheat oven to 400 F


Cut 3 apple quarters into small dice and cut remaining quarter into 12 thin slices for garnish. Mix sugar, flours, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and golden raisins in large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, vanilla, buttermilk, olive oil and orange juice together. Add wet ingredients to dry mixing only until combined.

Divide batter among muffin cups topping each with an apple slice. Bake until muffins are beginning to brown around edges – 16 to 18 minutes. Let muffins cool slightly and enjoy.