Loaded Morning Glory Muffins

Talk about loaded!! *-*

Think....carrots/pineapple/coconut/apples/raisins/nuts and you get just a taste of this amazing muffin!

{I added the "Loaded" name to this recipe title.}

Rest assured, with all those tasty ingredients, this is a very moist muffin.

I found the recipe online at Taste of Home online.

It's hard to stop at just one, but you can't eat very many at once either because they are very filling.

Confession...I tried eating several and ended up with a belly ache - they were sooo good I couldn't stop!

I'd eaten 2 before I thought about putting cream cheese on them, so of course I had to go for a couple more!  lol

(Needless to say, this was my 'dinner'...I didn't feel like eating anything else at mealtime=)

But oh how I enjoyed every delectable bite!

I made this recipe from scratch when serving in a college kitchen this past June. I made a quadruple (5X) batch to make 10 dozen because we needed to use up the carrots/pineapple in stock.

I didn't get to taste them that day as we headed for home before they were finished baking, (a big storm was on the way!) so naturally I had to try them at home.

And I'm SOOO glad I did!

A few of them went into the freezer - I pull them out in the morning, wrap in a paper towel and warm in the microwave.  Oh sooo good with my morning coffee!

Here's the recipe - with a couple of healthy tweaks I added for our own eating plans.

LOADED MORNING GLORY MUFFINS
(From The Better Baker & Taste of Home)

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
(I substituted 1 c. of whole wheat)
1-1/4 cups sugar
(I used 3/4 c. Splenda & 1/2 c. sugar)
3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
(I used a healthy substitute of 3 Tb. of flax seed meal mixed with 1 Tb. water for 1 of the eggs - it adds fiber and a touch of nuttiness)
3/4 cup applesauce
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups grated carrots
1 medium tart apple, peeled and grated
1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, drained
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts




In a large bowl, combine the first five ingredients. In another bowl, combine the eggs, applesauce, oil and vanilla. Stir in carrots, apple, pineapple, coconut, raisins and nuts.


Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups two-thirds full. Bake at 350° for 20-24 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks.

 Yield: 2 dozen.

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