Am very sorry to disappoint you, but that thing drizzled over the muffins is not chocolate ganache.
As much i wish it was chocolate, its not. What is it you ask? Its carob molasses. Or as we in Lebanon call it, debs el kharoub. We usually combine carob molasses with tahini and have it as a dessert on its own, or sometimes on a slice of bread, this is the Lebanese equivalent of the American peanut butter and jam sandwich. If you’ve never had carob molasses before, it tastes a bit like chocolate, though it has a deeper, more pungent taste. Its also very sweet, so a little goes a long way. Sure, you can skip the carob molasses and use melted chocolate, but then you’d be depriving yourself the pleasure of experimenting and trying a new food that will enlighten your sweet molasses tastebuds as it never did before.
Let me assure that these healthy skinny oat bran muffins, are not a pain to eat. Am not going to lie, they do taste healthy, but they kind of grow on you. once you get past the first bits, try to take a moment to absorb all the flavors (think of something else other than sugar). Once you absorb the flavors; once you feel the tangent taste of the cinnamon – nutmeg combination, once you taste the earthy carob molasses, once you feel the moisture from the yogurt embossed into the nuttiness of the oats, then you’ll realize that this recipe is a recipe you can’t afford not to make.
Rating: 51
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 12 Large muffins
150 cal per muffin
Recipe slightly adapted from Epicurious
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups (173 g) all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup (113 g) oar bran
- 1/2 cup (80 g) medium cut oats
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 1/2 cup (350 g) yogurt
- 1/3 cup (72 ml) carob molasses (or unsulphured blackstrap molasses)
- 6 tbsp (60 g) unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup (180 g) raisins
Steps
- Preheat oven to 180C / 350 F / Gas mark 4.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oat bran, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together yogurt, molases, butter, and eggs. Add to dry ingredients, stir until just combined. Using a spatula, fold in the raisins.
- Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a wooden pick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Turn out onto a rack to cool.
I wish I was a dietician to sit here and write a post about the benefits of oat bran and oats. Alas, am not, so am just going to repeat what every other dietician rumbles: they are healthy, loaded with fiber, and lower cholesterol. Not a lot of foods have this reputation.
I’ve “lebaniased” these muffins by adding carob molasses. What would you add if you were me? Do you love oats, or do you just loathe anything stamped healthy? We’d love to hear from you, so share your comments below.
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