Whole Wheat Oatmeal Raisin Muffins



I've been drawn more and more lately to tweaking my baking recipes so that they are more healthy. For years, this has meant experimenting with alternative moisture components (applesauce, yogurt, canned pumpkin, etc. in lieu of oil or butter) and sweeteners (honey, agave nectar, maple syrup). Once, when Splenda first hit the market, I attempted baking with it as a sugar substitute. This was before the special "Splenda for baking" was released, and the results were catastrophic. My cake never rose completely, and had an acrid, chemically taste. After that, I abandoned Splenda and all sugar substitutes of its ilk.

Lately, though, I've been researching healthy recipes more and more, and I keep coming across Splenda being used in cakes, muffins, and other sweet treats. So I decided to give the new formulation another try with these Whole Wheat Oatmeal Raisin Muffins. I think I can now safely say that I am a convert--I subbed in Splenda and molasses for this recipe (which originally called for brown sugar), and I am so pleased with the results! These muffins are subtly sweet and super moist, with a dense, oatmeal-y texture and great pops of extra sweetness from the raisins. I baked these with some wonky, odd-shaped muffin liners from Ikea and the batter portioned out into 15 cups--I know this is an odd number of muffins to bake, and I suspect that using regular-sized tins this would portion well into 12 regular or 6 large muffin cups. Note, though, that the nutrition information below is based on the batter making 15 muffins. You can always back calculate (multiply by 15 then re-divide by the number of muffins) to get the values on a different number.

Ingredients:
1 c quick-cook oats
1/2 c skim milk
1 egg
1/2 c low fat plain yogurt
3/4 c Splenda (granulated for baking)
1 tbs unsulphered molasses
1 c sifted unbleached whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp Trader Joe's Sugar Free Chai Spice
1/4 tsp ground clove
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 c unsweetened applesauce
1 c raisins

Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 400F. Set 15 muffin liners into two regular sized muffin tins.
In a large bowl, combine oats, milk, egg, yogurt, Splenda, and molasses. Mix well, and set aside.
In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Stir in applesauce and vanilla until well blended.
Combine dry ingredient bowl into oat ingredient bowl, stirring until well combined. Stir in raisins.
Separate batter equally into the 15 muffin cups. Bake at 400F for 15 to 20 minutes. Allow to cool for a few minutes before transferring muffins to a rack to cool completely.

Nutritional Info:
Serving size: 1 muffin
106 calories, 2 g fat, 24 g carbs