Happy Election Day!
I hope everyone did their part and voted regardless of who for. Depending on what happens in the election, our country may change for better or worse. In the theme of change, I thought to myself how difficult it is sometimes to change eating or lifestyle behaviors. Like any habit, it takes discipline and consistency to maintain a new behavior. It also requires goals that are sustainable long-term and realistic within your lifestyle. Seems easy right? You may be surprised. I have been in plenty of nutrition consultations with patients that desire to lose weight and when offered solutions that change their daily routine, the look on their face often reads “whoa, whoa, whoa, let’s just hold on here”. I am so frequently reminded that food is very personal and often social and emotional in our culture.
However, variety, in particular, is incredibly important to any healthy diet. It increases your likelihood of getting a wider spectrum of vitamins and minerals to keep your body healthy and fight chronic disease. I encourage everyone to take a look at their diet or even lifestyle to see if there is potential for change or improvement. Or in some cases, just to simply add more variety to your life and diet. Change often brings perspective, if nothing else. And perspective into your own diet and lifestyle can only lead to accountability and as a result, a positive change.
In a few weeks, I will be headed down to beautiful Florida for a warm Thanksgiving holiday and frolicking in my bikini happily at the beach (well maybe not frolicking). Knowing that I will be spending the majority of my time in my bikini got me thinking about my diet. I decided to take a deeper dive into my breakfast lately. I decided I needed to be more strict with my carbohydrates in the morning, considering my standard go-to was PB, flax, and banana oatmeal (which don’t get me wrong, is still a healthy option). However, after a week of limiting myself to two hard boiled eggs in the morning, I was starting to really miss my warm breakfasts and more snacks either in the morning or evening. I realized I was missing variety.
This lovely little revelation led me to these pumpkin muffins. After making these muffins, I did half and half breakfasts rotating my hard boiled eggs and these muffins, as well as my oatmeal. Worked like a charm 🙂 These pumpkin muffins are a great source of whole grains, dietary fiber, after-workout snack, or can satisfy an afternoon or evening sweet tooth. Serve these babies warm with a tablespoon or two of natural peanut butter and you’re in business. Enjoy!
Flax, Oat, and Pumpkin Muffins
Yield: 16 muffins
Prep time: 20 minutes, Cook time: 20 minutes, Total time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:
1 cup Pumpkin puree, canned
2 Eggs, large
1/2 cup Honey
3/4 tsp Baking powder
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1/2 cup Brown sugar, packed light
1/2 tsp Cinnamon, ground
1/2 tsp Pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla
1 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
3 Tbsp Flaxseed, ground
1/4 cup Old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup Vegetable, olive, or canola oil
For topping:
3 Tbsp All-purpose flour
2 Tbsp Brown sugar, packed light
3 Tbsp Old-fashioned oats
2 Tbsp Butter, softened
1 Tbsp Pumpkin puree, canned
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease muffin tins and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add all dry ingredients and stir until evenly mixed. Create a well in the center and add in your wet ingredients (eggs, pumpkin, oil, honey, and vanilla). Stir until all dry ingredients are absorbed.
- In a separate small bowl, mix topping ingredients of flour, brown sugar, oats, and pumpkin puree. Cut in butter and mix until semi-crumbly.
- Fill your muffin tins 3/4 the way full, sprinkle the topping on each muffin, and bake for 18-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean. Let the muffins cool for about 5-10 minutes and serve warm, freeze for later use, or refrigerate.
Enjoy!
-EAW
Recipe adapted from Lauren’s latest.