Pumpkin Protein Muffins

high-protein pumpkin muffins

Like I said earlier, I’m beyond ready for fall. And since I can’t wear jeans and boots here for another couple of months I’m looking to other means to get my autumn fix: PUMPKINS!!

I suppose pumpkin is one of those things you either love or hate. It’s kinda like coconut or seafood in that regard. No fence sitters. I love pumpkin. Brad hates it.  The boys tolerate it in small doses. This means when I bake anything with pumpkin, I go into it with the assumption that I will be the only one in the house to eat it. So in order to remain on friendly terms with my waistline I came up with a low-calorie high-protein pumpkin muffin. Each muffin only has about 80 calories and is packed with heart healthy goodness. This is a variation on a banana muffin recipe I found on pinterest, and after altering a bit, have enjoyed all summer.

High-Protein Pumpkin Muffins:

2 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats (not quick cooking)
1 cup canned pumpkin (use plain pumpkin – not pumpkin pie mix)
3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1 cup plain low-fat greek yogurt
6 tbs egg whites (I buy egg whites in the carton. 6 tbs = 2 eggs or you could use 4 egg whites. I just hate wasting yolks.)
3/4 cup stevia for baking
1 heaping tbs of rice protein powder
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Spray your muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

2 In a food processor or blender, mix all the ingredients together. Blend until smooth. (I usually blend my oats up first before adding anything else. This helps make them a little smoother)

3 Divide mixture among muffins tins and place into pre-heated oven. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until tops are lightly golden brown.

4 Allow muffins to cool.

5. ENJOY!!!

A few things to note:
– These muffins are very moist. A toothpick might not come out clean. They should be done if they have baked the allotted amount of time and the tops are nice and golden.
– 1 can of pumpkin has two cups of pumpkin in it. I use half of the can and put the rest in the fridge for the following week. You could also use the whole can and leave out the apple sauce. This makes the muffin batter a little thicker.
– These would also be really yummy with chocolate chips or walnuts mixed in so feel free to experiment!

high-protein pumpkin muffins

 

A few things

1. Anyone else have a countdown going for Friday? We’ve been phone-less for about a week now. Actually my phone died back in April, so I’m DESPERATE to have my own again. I’ve been forwarding all of my calls to Brad for the past several months. Unfortunately, I couldn’t forward my texts, so just know that I haven’t intentionally ignored anyone. 🙂  Brad sold his unlocked iphone on Saturday for enough money to cover his new one. (Who doesn’t like a free upgrade?) He’s going through withdrawals, though. He’s got the shakes big time. Friday can’t come soon enough!

2. Ezra gave his first ever talk in Primary last Sunday. We didn’t find out that he was assigned one until the night before so he gave his part for the upcoming primary program. I wish I could have recorded it or at least got a picture because it’s such a sweet little milestone and he knocked it out of the park! I kept hearing Lucy from the front row saying “Oh, he’s so CUTE!”

3. I think it’s safe to say Memphis is officially potty trained. He very rarely has accidents, but I’m still a little leery of letting him wear underwear when I run errands. You have maybe 5-10 minutes to get to a potty when he announces he needs to go (just picture me mowing down my fellow Target shoppers in my haste to get to the restroom in time) so I stick him in a diaper just in case. Maybe we’re a 9 on a scale of 10. (10 being done.)

4. Brad joined a country club. I have a hard time typing that without laughing. I’m wondering if he’s the youngest member because apparently he’s pretty big news around the club. Can you believe they give a discount if you’re under 55? Like a “non-senior citizen” discount or something. He played golf with the president and vice president on Saturday and has since received a few calls to play rounds with people he’s never met. The vice president called today to invite him to be a member of the board. He’s hoping to score a spot on the club team so he can play the other courses on the island.

5. Our architect is making a few changes to the house plans. Can’t wait to see them.

snake in the grass

We’ve spotted this little guy (or girl?) around the yard a few times this summer. If a black cat crossing your path is bad luck, what is a black snake crossing your path?

I’ve recently (since taking these shots) decided I need a better zoom lens. I’m not really scared of snakes, but when you have one eye closed and you’re peering through a little camera hole you aren’t in an optimum runforyourfreakinglife position. I figured that one out when he/she let me snap a few shots, before jumping (they don’t have legs, yet they can jump?? NOT COOL!) like two feet into the nearest bush. I had a mild heart attack. Nothing major.

Instadump

Pardon the name, but I’ve got lots of photos from the phone that I’ve been meaning to share. So here’s one great big fat photo dump in no particular order.

I suppose there should have been a post or two dedicated to the Tennessee portion of our trip this summer, but reality was that we idled away our time by the pool and ate ourselves silly. The DSLR didn’t even make an appearance. C’est la summer.

Follow me on Instagram if you feel so inclined @themodernhome.

(P.S. It’s a REQUIREMENT if you are related to me. Or you are my friend. Or you read my blog.)