A healthy little indulgence during the holidays.

First off, if I have any regular readers, sorry I don't update frequently. I'm barely ever online, let alone blogging. I wish I could be like one of those people who blogs all day long. I don't know how they do it! But moving ahead, I made us some muffins that are pretty darn healthy and delicious! Pumpkin Banana Muffins! I like my muffins slightly dry, because in the mornings I warm them up with a little nut butter, which adds moisture. One of these muffins plus a piece of fruit keeps my going until lunch. Plus during the holiday season full of decadence and no time to grab a decent snack, these are wonderful to have on hand. Make a batch or two and freeze them to get you through until 2011.

Pumpkin Banana Muffins
3 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup almond flour (also called almond meal. I use the Bob's Red Barn name brand)
4 tsps baking powder
2 tsps baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tbls cinnamon
1 tbls ground nutmeg
2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp allspice
3 ripe bananas mashed
15 ounce can pumpkin puree (or 1 3/4 cup fresh pumpkin puree)
1 cup grapeseed oil
4 eggs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 cup chopped and toasted walnuts

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease or line muffin pan with paper liners.
2. Combine flours, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices in a bowl and mix well.
3. Combine rest of the ingredients aside from the nuts in a large mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
4. Gradually beat in dry ingredients until just combined.
5. Spoon into prepared pans with cups being just about full.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.


I hope that with all the hustling and bustling around in what could be bad weather, you're trying to stay healthy and include fruits and veggies in every meal. This is just a quick and easy example of what I try to do during this season. Of course I always have chopped up fruits and veg in my fridge for easy access so I have no excuse for not eating well and taking care of myself. Any other good tips floating around out there? What do you do to stay on track during the holidays?