Pear Crumble Muffins

Ever buy a big bag of pears and find that a handful of them are already overripe when you get home? This recipe is 100% for you! These muffins are made with oatmeal, whole wheat flour, and less sugar than your average muffin- which makes them a pretty healthful treat that is registered dietitian nutritionist approved!

Ingredients

• oatmeal

• whole wheat flour

• fat free milk

• baking powder

• baking soda

• salt

• ground cinnamon

• sugar

• an egg

• olive oil

• vanilla bean (or vanilla extract if you don’t have bean on hand!)

• 2 medium-sized pears

• 1/2 cup of your favorite low-sugar granola (I used Lidl’s)

For this recipe we’ll use the traditional muffin method: you will combine the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in their own separate bowl before combining the two.

Why are these muffins all that and a bag of chips?

These muffins feature healthy swaps compared to traditional muffins without sacrificing flavor or mouthfeel. They are made with half the sugar of your typical muffin (the sugar in the recipe plus the sugar from the pears is definitely more than enough). The flour featured in this recipe is whole wheat for more fiber and it is embellished with the whole oats which add a chewiness to the muffin.

The skin is left on the pears for additional fiber and texture.

How do I tell if my pears are overripe?

If you look at them and they’re getting brown bruise spots…they’re probably overripe. (Additionally, if you press gently into their flesh and you finger sinks into them…they’re likely overripe). A pear that is at pique ripeness will yield to gentle pressure applied to the stem end.

Now for the recipe…

Ingredients
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 cup fat free milk
1/4 cup olive oil
1 vanilla bean (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
2 pears, diced
1/2 cup low sugar granola

Instructions
Prepare a muffin tin with pan spray. Preset oven to 400 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine the oatmeal and milk. Let soak for 5 minutes.
In a separate medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
Add remaining wet ingredients to oat-mixture.
Add dry ingredients to wet.
Fold in the pears.
Fill muffin tins about 2/3 of the way with batter. Top each muffin with granola.
Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown. Allow the muffins to cool in the pan for 5 minutes.