Strawberry Muffins

I knew I'd be making these the moment I saw them on Donna's blog. My little boy loves strawberries and will eat them by the handful. I'm always looking for healthy breakfast options for him-- and these certainly fit the bill. With strawberries on sale everywhere at the moment, they were really inexpensive to make and they seriously came together within 15 minutes. They were incredibly moist and he (as well as the rest of us) loved them. These will certainly be made often through the coming months!

Strawberry Muffins
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
6 teaspoons sugar
2 cups chopped strawberries
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Combine the flour, baking powder, salt, and one cup of sugar in a medium bowl. Toss the strawberries into the dry ingredients, set aside. Beat together eggs, butter, milk, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Spoon batter into muffin tins lined with paper liners. (Fill 2/3 of the way.) Sprinkle a small amount of sugar on the top of each muffin. Bake for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Source: My Tasty Treasures

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

After reading my blog entry about traditional banana bread, my friend Kelly mentioned that she loves to add chocolate chips to her version. This seems like such an obvious pairing and I'm so upset that I haven't played with it before now! (Thanks, Kelly!) Any time that I can play the chocolate card, I'm much more likely to get a favorable response from my little boy... and this recipe was no exception. The thing that I liked most about this recipe was that the muffin itself had much more of a cupcake texture and was very light and easy to enjoy. These are a definite 'make again' for our household.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used a bit more than this!)
1 egg
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup milk
1 cup mashed bananas

Measure flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and chocolate chips into a large mixing bowl. Mix well and make a well in the center of the bowl. Beat the egg in a small bowl until frothy. Mix in cooking oil, milk, and bananas. Pour the mixture in the well and mix only to moisten. The batter will be lumpy. Fill greased muffin tins 3/4 full. Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

Source: AllRecipes.com