Nutritional Thoughts and a Side of Muffin
I love baking. I didn't grow up baking - the extent of the baking we did was apple crumble (which is really good, in case you were wondering). At boarding school I ended up randomly starting to bake; it brought people together, was a tasty treat and a fun way to pass the time. I never took it past amateur hour, which is exactly what I love about it. Tasty treats to bring for dessert or ones to make for me to nibble on. Sounds perfect.
One of the things that I love about Tone It Up is the world of baking with alternative ingredients. Alternative for me. I'd never baked with chickpeas or protein powder before. I have some sort of baked good on my meal plan every week - it's a great on-the-go snack and I usually feel like I'm treating myself! When I discovered this bran muffin recipe, I nearly died. I LOVE bran muffins and you cannot get them in Europe (certainly not frequently).
These baes remain one of my absolute favs (blondie muffins are on that list, too!). I've actually modified it & make it with less or no sugar, depending on how I'm feeling. Both works, without a substitute (again, amateur baker over here). It also depends on the protein powder that I'm using. While I love Perfect Fit, shipping costs to Europe are astronomical - and while PF is great, it already isn't cheap. I recently discovered a an affordable, 100% pea protein that I'm using to bake with and so far, so good. Downside: it's not organic and the peas come from China...
Back to the Bran Muffins. Here's TIU's recipe. I double almost all recipes and honestly, tend to eat more than one muffin as a serving (another reason I nix the sugar). I do this for several reason. Firstly, I'm a firm believer of the "if I'm baking, I might as well make enough that the dishes afterwards are worth it" and secondly, I find that there is usually some point in the week when something unforeseen happens and I have to have an additional snack on-the-go (whether a shift that turns into 16 hours instead of the scheduled 12 or a longer hike or even coffee with friends). Why I eat more than the allotted one muffin per serving? Honestly? I'm just still hungry after one muffin. Here's the thing about nutrition plans -- no two people are alike so no two nutrition plans should be. The key, in my opinion, to healthy and great nutrition? Learn to listen to your body! School yourself to make healthy, clean eating choices and don't binge (if you're binging or have a sugar addiction, please seek help!). When you learn to listen to your body, you also learn to recognize hunger and satiety. You remember what feeling full is like - without feeling stuffed. If you're having trouble with this, try eating more slowly so that your brain has time to catch up with your stomach.
I found restricting myself to one muffin in this case, left me hangry - which is not a fun place to be. By nixing the sugar and upping the serving size to two muffins, I didn't get the overly sugary hit, but was able to have a more sustained feeling of satiety. Again, please listen to YOUR body. I'm not a nutritionist, this is just what works for me!
Happy baking, friends.
xx.
