I know you have been awaiting the reveal of my baking session with the secret chef! Today is the day!
As I mentioned, over the weekend I had the pleasure and opportunity to be in the kitchen testing some Fall recipes with one of my favorite bakers. And that baker is...Pip Vogel of @pips_sweet_treats! She also happens to be my firstborn! :-)
I wanted to recruit Pip's help because I am not a baker and I needed the expertise in the areas of recipe development, flavor, and baking and she has experience with all of those! Some of the criteria I Iaid out for her was keeping this recipe easy, Fall-flavored, delicious, AND packed with nutrients. After a bit of brainstorming, she had a brilliant idea--let's try something semi-homemade!
We know a lot of us wear multiple hats and need shortcuts from time to time, so we set out to find a box-mix that met our criteria and we would add to it! We found @simplemills Pumpkin Muffin & Bread mix and we were sold on the nutrition facts--7 g of sugar per serving (as a rule of thumb we like to keep grams of sugar around 9g or so per serving for items that aren't desserts or other sweets), it also had 2 grams of protein AND 2 grams of fiber (one of my favorite nutrients).
We followed the directions on the box except we used 3/4c of water (instead of the 1/2c) since we were adding some 'bulk!'
We followed the baking directions on the box and voila--20 mins later we had quite perfect and delish pumpkin-plus muffins! By adding these ingredients we not only added texture and flavor we also added antioxidants, more fiber, healthy fats, beta carotene, potassium, vitamin C, and more!
We had a blast creating our first mother/daughter business collaboration and I enjoyed every minute I spent with @Pips_Sweet_Treats since I know these years will fly by. 😢 There will be more collaborations in the near future!
Just like we remind our clients, being healthy doesn't have to mean taking things away, restricting, or depriving yourself of the foods or the activities/social events that you love. A lot of times we are working to ADD foods, nutrients, experiences, new movements, joy, rest & much more into your daily life in order to fill you up, not tear you down!
We hope you enjoy the recipe! If you try it out--we would love to see pics and hear how you liked our Pumpkin+ Muffins!!