Friday Food Frenzy 10

I must confess, I've been holding out on you. I have a recipe from one of my Weight Watchers Cookbooks that I love!! It's from the PointsPlus Cookbook they released in 2010 from which I've shared a few other recipes with you. It's for Buttermilk-Banana Bread with Toasted Pecans. However, I make this without the pecans and I actually make them as muffins. Initially, I just didn't have a loaf pan and since the recipe said it served 18, I figured muffins would help ensure portion control so I'm properly logging the calories. So I'll stop being selfish and share the recipe. :)

Buttermilk-Banana MUFFINS with Toasted Pecans

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 TBSP baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup sugar
5 TBSP unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and chopped (optional)

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray or insert muffin liners (if you prefer to use a 5x9-inch loaf pan, go for it --- I'll provide the baking instructions).

2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.

3. With electric mixer on medium speed, beat sugar and (softened) butter in medium bowl until light and fluffy  (the recipe says about 3 minutes, it only took me about 1 minute). Beat in eggs, beating well after each addition. Beat in bananas, buttermilk, and vanilla. Reduce speed to low; beat flour mixture into banana mixture until just combined. Stir in all but 2 TBSP pecans (if using).

4. Pour batter into prepared pan(s), top with remaining pecans (if using) and bake as follows:
For 18 muffins: Dark pans for 14-15 minutes; Light pans for 17-18 minutes
For 5-9 inch loaf: 50-55 minutes (insert toothpick into center of loaf and ensure it comes out clean)
Allow muffins to cool before removing from pan OR remove loaf from pan and allow to cool completely on wire rack.

Using the original recipe (with pecans), nutritional information for 1/18th of loaf OR 1 muffin:
58g, 142 calories, 6 grams total fat, 2 grams saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 33mg cholesterol, 238mg sodium, 21 grams total carbs, 9 grams total sugar, 2 grams fiber, 3 grams protein, 33mg calcium.

If you omit the pecans and use 1/2 cup Egg Beaters in lieu of 2 large eggs, it would be 122 calories per muffin. See my yummy finished products below! :)

I posted about BelVita Breakfast Biscuits previously when I received a free sample in my Influenster VoxBox. I had sampled the product as a breakfast option, and decided when I started my new workout routine that this might be a great early morning breakfast when I wake up before my daughter to try to get in a good, early workout. And I was right! I was able to eat the 4 biscuits and workout about 15 minutes later without feeling hungry or sluggish. I initially received a sample of the Cinnamon Brown Sugar (they were good) but bought Apple Cinnamon, which I absolutely love! I bought more to keep on hand for my early workouts. 

If you're like me and browse the magazines as you're in line at the grocery store, you might see what I found this past week: Cooking Light published an All-Time Top Rated Recipes special magazine with 176 greatest hits and tips. It was $11.99 but as I browse through it, I think it's going to be worth every penny (after all, most cookbooks out there cost much more than this). Perhaps I will share some of these yummy recipes with you in the upcoming weeks.

I hope you've enjoyed is edition of Friday Food Frenzy. Have a wonderful weekend, and if you're in the heatwave in the northeast like me, stay cool.

~ Aly