It's the first day of school... Two minute mug muffin recipes - breakfast is served!

Well, the last weekend of summer is upon us and the kids are heading back to school.  We moms love and hate that first day back – love getting back to a schedule and having a little more time to get things done during the day, but hate the return to early mornings, rushed breakfasts and packing lunches.

During the last few years there have been a number of quick “microwave mug cake” recipes floating around recipe sites and on pinterest, but I’ve suddenly noticed a number of healthy mug muffin recipes as well.  Even Dr Oz jumped on the mug muffin bandwagon when he shared a recipe by Jorge Cruise on his television show (click here for link).  I decided to try out a few of these easy mug muffin recipes for myself with the help of my kids, who helped make and taste-test all of them to see if they might fit into our busy morning routine.

Directions for mug muffins

The directions for all of the recipes below are basically the same except for a slight difference in ingredients.  Here are the 4 step directions for making a 2 minute mug muffin!

Perfect for kids to make their own!

- whisk egg in the mug with a fork

- add dry ingredients and mix

- microwave for 60-90 seconds (watch to make sure the muffin doesn’t overflow)

- tip muffin out onto a plate and let cool slightly if serving to kids

- enjoy!

Recipes

Jorge’s Skinny Muffin (shared on the Dr Oz show) - link here

Ingredients (makes 1 serving)

1/4 cup ground flax

1 tsp baking powder

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp coconut oil

1 egg

1 packet stevia (I substituted 2 tsp agave nectar)

This muffin turned out very light and airy due to the baking powder, and not as dense as I expected with just the flax and egg mixture.  My daughter enjoyed the flavour as is, but my son felt it needed some fruit or nut butter to make it yummier.  I would certainly eat this muffin, but not sure my kids would on a daily basis.

Berrylicious Microwave Minute Muffin in a Mug – link here

Ingredients (1 muffin)

1 egg

1/4 cup of dry oats

1 tsp of stevia (I substituted 2 tsp agave nectar)

handful of blueberries or fruit of your choice

(this recipe is also very similar to one shared by Maija Moments for the YummyMummyClub.ca - link here)

This muffin was tastier than the previous one, and the fruit cooking in the microwave made it smell delicious!  The texture of the muffin was quite dense though, and so the kids didn’t love it for that reason.

Cinnamon Muffin in a Mug – link here

Ingredients

1 tbsp flour (I used spelt flour, but whole wheat would be good too)
1 tbsp ground flax meal
1 tbsp quick oats
2 tbsp chopped walnuts
½ tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 egg
1 tbsp honey (I used agave nectar)
2 tbsp vanilla yogurt (I used strawberry; I also think greek yogurt would work well)
Optional: add fruit, such as raisins or a few pieces of chopped apples or dried apricots (I added a few blueberries)

This was one of my favourite muffins in terms of both taste and texture.  It was the only one that my son really liked and said he would eat regularly.  If you read the original recipe  the author discusses in detail why this recipe works so well and why other recipes are not as nice.  Basically adding the flour and baking powder lightens the texture, and the yogurt adds moisture.  She also discusses ways to adjust the recipe to suit your own taste with ingredient substitutions.

Chocolate Banana Mug Muffins (makes 2 servings) – link here

Ingredients

1 ripe banana
1-2 tbs. nut butter
1 egg, beaten
2 tbs. cocoa or carob powder
1-2 tsp. honey

Based on previous experience with the other recipes, I made a few modifications to this recipe, so see my version below…

Anita’s Peanut Butter Banana Mug Muffin (1 serving)

Ingredients

1/2 ripe banana, mashed in the mug

1 egg, beaten

1 tbps natural peanut butter (or other nut butter)

2 tbsp oatmeal

1 tbsp spelt flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp agave nectar

The texture and taste of this muffin was very good, and it was one of my favourite recipes.  To make it nut free, you could substitute pea butter, soy butter or sun butter for the peanut butter.

So, will we be using these recipes Tuesday morning??  The last two recipes that I tried have a few more ingredients than the first ones, but I think overall the taste and texture were much better.  To make preparation easier in the morning,  you could measure the dry ingredients into a container the night before and have everything ready to go.  All of these recipes are also easy enough for kids to make on their own (except maybe for the microwaving part), which means one less thing for mom to do during the busy morning rush!

Enjoy!

All photos by Anita Woo

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