Cassidy's Baby Cakes: Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins

Cassidy ran across a recipe for "The Best Blueberry Muffins" in the July 2012 issue of Parents magazine. Her pal, Julie, just gave her two quarts of frozen blueberries, so Cassidy thought blueberry muffins would make the perfect babycakes (especially with her new personal challenge of eating anything and everything despite having no teeth). Cassidy's mommy wanted muffins that were nutritious enough to fuel her busy little baker through the day's adventures and low enough in calories so she could enjoy some herself. We tweaked the recipe a tiny bit. The results were delicious, nutritious, and diet friendly.

PARENTS Magazine's Recipe for "The Best Blueberry Muffins":
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1 cup blueberries
170 calories per muffin

Cassidy's Whole Wheat Blueberry Muffins:
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 cup buttermilk
5 oz vanilla Greek yogurt
2 egg whites
1 cup blueberries
110 calories per muffin

By substituting Greek yogurt in place of oil and leaving out the egg yolks, Cassidy saved 60 calories per muffin! But, she didn't sacrifice any flavor or moistness. These muffins are delicious. The whole wheat flour has the same calorie content as all-purpose flour (100 calories per 1/4 cup). However, whole wheat flour has four grams of fiber per serving, and all-purpose flour has less than one gram of fiber per serving. One egg white only has 17 calories, but a whole egg has about 80 calories. Besides, egg yolks are drying. Using only egg whites lends to a moister cake. We replaced 1/3 cup oil (636 calories!) for a five ounce container of Greek yogurt (120 calories). One-third cup is only 2 1/2 ounces, but we wanted to make sure we had a moist cake. It was the right decision. The last time we substituted yogurt for oil ounce for ounce, our cupcakes were chewy and slightly crumbly. From now on, we'll use twice as much yogurt as oil when substituting.

This recipe makes one dozen muffins with the muffin cups filled all the way up, baked at 425 degrees for 17 minutes (right before you think they are done). Then, we immediately removed them from the pan to prevent carry-over cooking.