The "Olympic Muffins" that are trending on social media at the moment--copies of the muffins some Olympic athletes are eating in Paris--are loaded with saturated fat, calories (about 400 per muffin), and more sugar than people should eat in a week. Yes, the muffins are no doubt "over the top" good. If you put that much butter, sugar, and chocolate into something, it better be great! Unfortunately, unlike the Olympic athletes, most of us can't handle the fat and carbohydrate load in the trending muffins. So, I decided to come up with a copy Olympic muffin that still tastes good but is better nutritionally and, in moderation, can be enjoyed by a diabetic or anyone wanting to "eat healthy." My version leaves out the butter, refined sugar, and chocolate ganache, and, yes, it still tastes good! My muffins are sweetened with dates, have a hefty dose of fiber, and include a good amount of protein. The muffins also are moist, deep, dark, and chocolatey. If you want more chocolate in the muffins--to make up for the missing ganache--you can add a small amount of dark chocolate chips. I actually really like the muffins, even without the extra chocolate chips (which is a rare thing!). The muffins, regardless of when the Olympic athletes eat them, are a dessert, rather than a breakfast item, and we like them with a cup of coffee or tea after dinner. Enjoy!
Chocolate Olympic Muffins (Diabetic Friendly) -- Makes 12
2 tablespoons of milled flax seeds
1 cup of rolled oats (old fashioned)
1 cup of pitted dates
1/4 cup of cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon of espresso powder
1/2 cup of canola oil
1 cup of kefir, buttermilk, or 1/2 cup of plain yogurt mixed with 1/2 cup of milk
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 cup of melted dark chocolate (72 percent or more)
1/2 cup of chopped pecans, divided
1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips, plus a few extra to sprinkle, optional
Spritz 12 muffin cups with non-stick cooking spray and set them aside. Put the flax seeds, oats, and dates into a food processor and process them together until the oats have turned into a flour and the dates are chopped up into tiny bits in the oat flour. Add the cocoa powder and espresso powder to the date mixture and process them in in a few pulses. Add the canola oil, kefir or buttermilk or yogurt mixture to the dry ingredients and process them in until well mixed. Add the baking soda, baking powder, salt, melted chocolate, and 1/4 cup of the pecans and process them in until combined. Open up the food processor and stir in the dark chocolate chips with a spoon (if you're using them). Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups and sprinkle the remaining chopped pecans on top of batter. I often make half of the muffins with chocolate chips and half without, so I sprinkle the half with the chips with a few more chips rather than pecans, so I know which is which. Air fry the batter at 310 degrees (yes, the lower temperature is correct) for 25-30 minutes or until a pick inserted in a muffin comes out with no wet batter attached and the muffins are barely firm to the touch. Let the muffins cool in their cups for 5-10 minutes before turning them out to cool completely.
Comments