A low-fat muffin isn't necessarily a healthy muffin, according to the Culinary Institute of America.
Some fats, like liquid plant oils, are actually healthy, according to the CIA, an independent, not-for-profit culinary college.
The CIA chefs reworked a blueberry muffin recipe to incorporate healthy fats and whole grains, and going easy on the salt and sugar.
A regular blueberry muffin from a national coffee shop, they say, has on average about 450 calories, most of those calories coming from carbohydrates in white flour and sugar. A low-fat muffin has about the same calories, but contains more carbohydrates and sugar and about 60 percent more sodium than a regular muffin.
CIA's makeover resulted in this recipe, which is less than half the size of a coffee-shop muffin and contains 130 calories. It is made with a mixture of whole-wheat and white and almond flour, and uses canola oil, a healthy fat.
Blueberry Muffins
1 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon orange zest
2 cups fresh blueberries
2 eggs, large
1 1/4 cups low-fat (1 percent) buttermilk
1/2 cup brown sugar
6 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon orange juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Place the rack in the top third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line muffin tins with paper liners.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and orange zest. Add the fresh blueberries and toss gently to coat the blueberries in flour. This will help keep the blueberries suspended in the batter instead of falling to the bottom.
In a medium mixing bowl, lightly beat the eggs, then whisk in the buttermilk, brown sugar, canola oil, orange juice, and vanilla. Don't be concerned if the mixture looks curdled or lumpy.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until most of the flour is incorporated. The mixture can be slightly lumpy; don't overmix. Divide the batter among the 18 muffin cups.
Bake 12 to 14 minutes, until the muffins are golden brown around the edges.
Nutrition analysis per 6-ounce muffin: 270 calories, 12 grams protein, 5 grams carbohydrates, 21 grams fat, 1,050 milligrams sodium, 50 milligrams cholesterol, 2 grams fiber.
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