Nectarine Muffins

Stop the presses… we hit almost 100 degrees this weekend!! Some places in The Netherlands actually did hit that and then slightly more. I guess it hasn’t been this hot since 1994. I barely moved this weekend. The type of place we lived in holds the heat like an oven. We had a ceiling fan going and as long as you sit under it with water, you do just fine 🙂 I refuse to complain because by the end of next week we’ll be back into the 60’s with rain.

Before the heat hit I got up in the morning and baked and cooked for two days. There was no way I was going to heat the house up with these sort of temps. These muffins were one of the items I baked. This recipe comes from a great friend on Facebook. She has been tweaking her diet for the last few years and is always looking for healthier versions of everything she loves. I was so excited to try these out for her and just like I told her… there was no way these were going to taste bad. They were soft, moist, healthy, the butter flavoring added a fantastic touch and boost of flavor, and they are perfect with a cup of coffee in the morning.

Nectarine Muffins

• 3 Diced, ripe Nectarines, with or without skin
• 2 tsp. Lemon Juice
• 3/4 cup Whole Wheat Flour
• 3/4 cup Spelt, All-purpose or Whole Wheat Flour
• 2-1/2 tsp. Baking Powder
• 1/4 tsp. Baking Soda
• 1/4 tsp. Salt
• 1 tsp. Ground Cinnamon
• 1/2 cup Brown Sugar… not packed
• 1/2 cup Fat free Yogurt… I used Greek
• 1/4 cup Unsweetened Applesauce
• 1/4 cup Buttermilk
• 1 Large Egg
• 1/2 tsp. Vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. Butter Flavoring
• 1/2 cup Chopped Walnuts or Pecans

Place the chopped nectarines in a bowl with the lemon juice. Stir to combine and allow to sit while you get the rest of the ingredients ready (the lemon juice stops the nectarines from turning brown.)

Preheat oven to 400 or 200 celcius. Grease a 12 cup muffin pan with nonstick spray and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon into the bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the sugar, yogurt, applesauce, milk, egg, vanilla and butter flavoring.

Add the wet ingredients into the dry and mix with a wooden spoon just until combined. Gently fold in the nectarine mixture and nuts.

Spoon batter evenly into prepared pan. Bake 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan on wire rack 3-5 mins before removing and cooling on wire rack completely.

Yield: 12 Muffins

Source: Friend on Facebook

Originally posted on Home Cooking with Sonya.