Beautiful, delicious muffins!
I used coconut oil instead of canola, and 1/2 cup of Xylitol and 1/4 tsp stevia powder for the sugar. Substituted 1 1/2 cups of oat bran for the oats and mixed it with the applesauce to absorb some of the moisture. Added 1 tsp vanilla and 1 cup chopped walnuts and these came out wonderful and look great. Beets are one of the most healthful vegetables because of their high mineral content--even better than carrots. THANK YOU for this recipe!!
Read MoreI really wanted to like this recipe because of the use of the fruit, vegetables, whole grains, etc..... but just did not. There was a really earthly, soil like flavor that came from these muffins that was just not appetizing. (This flavor was much more pronounced when they were warm.) Although they looked appetizing, the texture was too spongy & the spices too mild. I will be tossing these in the trash. :-(
Read MoreI used coconut oil instead of canola, and 1/2 cup of Xylitol and 1/4 tsp stevia powder for the sugar. Substituted 1 1/2 cups of oat bran for the oats and mixed it with the applesauce to absorb some of the moisture. Added 1 tsp vanilla and 1 cup chopped walnuts and these came out wonderful and look great. Beets are one of the most healthful vegetables because of their high mineral content--even better than carrots. THANK YOU for this recipe!!
A fantastic way to get your kids to eat beets! I shy away from using oil and refined sugar in my baking when I can so I used 1/2C of honey instead of the canola oil & white sugar - worked out great! I took them to the daycare my son goes to and all the kids ate (and loved!) them :)
I'm reviewing this because it was the inspiration for the way I made these moist, delicious muffins! I used 1 1/4 cup sorghum flour and 1 1/4 cup rye flour instead of the wheat flour, I added an extra cup of oatmeal, omitted the soda and salt, and changed the sugar to honey. Next time, I will cut amount of honey to 1/2 cup because they were very sweet! I loved having beets in these muffins, that is a fantastic idea!
January 9, 2012: Thank you Blue Clements. These were delicious. I have to admit, I was skeptical as I was grating beets and mixing the ingredients. I kept thinking, "this seems too healthy to be good." I didn't have fresh blueberries, so I used defrosted blueberries and saved the juice as part of the 1/2 c of water. I also used whole wheat pastry flour to make it a little lighter. These are so light, fluffy, have a gorgeous golden color and a slightly sweet taste. No one was able to tell that there were shredded raw beets in the batter. These are definitely a hit with the family, including my 23-month old toddlers. Thank you for creating (and sharing) a healthy and delicious blueberry muffin recipe. UPDATE (9 months later): We love these so much that we make them at least once every other month. We ran out of whole wheat pastry flour, we used whole wheat flour and it was still light and delicious. We just made these with vanilla Greek yogurt instead of oil, still very moist. UPDATE December 11, 2012- Almost a year later and still a favorite. We sometimes substitute two very ripe bananas for half the applesauce. We continue to use Vanilla Greek Yogurt instead of the oil.
Awesome! I did replace the white sugar with ¾ cups of agave nectar. I also had to cut ¼ cup off all wet ingredients to make up for the substitution.
I was looking for a somewhat healthy muffin for my family and happened to have all the ingredients for this one. For texture, I only put in 2 cups of whole wheat flour & substituted 1/2 cup of all-purpose flour. I actually used frozen blueberries, and it turned out just fine. I also used canned beets & shredding was cumbersome. I just threw the canned beets into a quick chopper (it turned out as more of a chunky puree). This turned out just perfectly and gave the entire muffine a nice, red coloring. Love this recipe!! Yum!
These were delicious and the beets were well disguised (as I have kiddos who "don't like" beets yet scarfed these muffins down)! I did have to make some changes. I used King Arthur Gluten Free Flour mix (the best tasting GF in my opinion ) , 2 tsp Xanthum Gum, 2 1/2 TBS King Arthur Gluten Free Cake Enhanser (increases shelf life & makes things lighter/moister) and Ener G brand Egg Replacer. I also used 1 cup Agave light colored sweetener and reduced the water by 1/4 cup per others' comments. The results were very moist and the color was just "fun" for my boys to make! I have some extra shredded beats in my freezer and will be making these again!
I can't believe I loved it! This was totally a guilt menu item from realizing I don't eat veggies, but they were SO GOOD! I did cheat by switching in about 1/3 of the flour to white and adding a strusel topping (1 Tbs flour, 4 Tbs sugar, 2 tsp oil), but my husband was amazed at how much he liked them. We played a guessing game on "guess the secret ingredient" and I won. :)
I don't care for beets much, but found some in my cropshare box, so thought I try something sweet with them. These muffins were fairly good for health muffins. I could taste the beet flavor in them, but I think the beets I used were very "earthy" to begin with. The blueberries were a must for sweetness, I also added more cinnamon and used 1/2 whole wheat flour and 1/2 all-purpose for a more tender crumb. I used palm oil also. I think if you put a bit more berries or some nuts in it, it would be even better. I just don't care for the beet taste.
I was trying to find a recipe to tolerate beets that I grew in my garden and saw this almost as a joke for my husband. He likes beets, I can't stand them but the recipe is actually really good. My only thing I might do differently is either drizzle some honey over the top or use half whole wheat and half spelt or white flour so it's not quite so harsh with the whole wheat. Pretty amazing for someone who really has hated beets all their life!
Very moist. I followed previous advice and subbed 1/2 cup honey for the oil and sugar, and it was perfect. The texture and taste was grand.
These muffins are great! They did an excellent job of "hiding the veggies"... I did not notice the beet at all! They were popular with friends. The only modification I made was to use a little less than half of the sugar called for in the recipe.
BEETS??? I'm thinking, how odd this is. Made this recipe although I thought my kids would never eat this. Muffins just came out of the oven and I have to hide them from my children (made it for school lunches). They LOVE IT !!! I feel like the mother of the year, baking muffins so healthy lol. I always substitute applesauce for oil when baking so I added 3 cups of applesauce. Fantastic!!!! Btw, my children think they are eating blueberry muffins only...no way I'm telling them I added BEETS ...still chuckling about it!
Sssshhhh.... I didn't tell my family about the beets and they LOVED these muffins!
Very moist! I may reduce water next time. I added more blueberries and beets than called for. I could probably reduce the sugar as well. They were pretty sweet. I'll be making these again for sure.
Oh wow! Talk about your power food and delicious too!! I replaced a half a cup of the flour with bran and cut the sugar in half and they were scrumptious! A definite make again recipe!
Very good muffins! I used a 50/50 mix of AP and WW flour and doubled the blueberries. It made 24 regular sized muffins and 20 minis. We couldn't taste the beets at all. Whole family loved them!
These were fabulous, and the recipe makes so many! I replaced the sugar with 3/4 cup honey and cut down on the water a bit. I also used coconut oil. Thanks for this healthy recipe!
I make these all the time. I've used plain yogurt in place of apple sauce and it made the muffins fluffier but the taste wasn't quite as good. I've also used sugar and sugar alternatives. Either way, the muffins were delicious. They make a great quick morning snack. My super picky husband even came up to me one day to compliment me on the muffins. He had eaten like 6. I was confused because he doesn't like beets. I guess he thought they were just blueberry muffins. He quit eating them after I told him there were beets in them too.
I really wanted to like this recipe because of the use of the fruit, vegetables, whole grains, etc..... but just did not. There was a really earthly, soil like flavor that came from these muffins that was just not appetizing. (This flavor was much more pronounced when they were warm.) Although they looked appetizing, the texture was too spongy & the spices too mild. I will be tossing these in the trash. :-(
I accidentally put regular bread flour in this, but maybe that was why everyone like so well. anyway I was afraid since I used diced beets that they would not be liked. But everyone ate them well. Great recipe.
I just made these (in fact, the last of them are in the oven now) and I am not impressed. I was looking for a way to use some beets I got in my produce box this week and thought this was great. I must admit, I did change the recipe slightly. I used 1 cup applesauce and one pumpkin. The beets still make them taste like dirt. I hope my coworkers don't hate me for bringing these in tomorrow
Yum! These were delicious. Modifications of course :) In place of the sugar and the oil, I used around 3/4 cup of honey. For flour I used a mix of hard white wheat, spelt, barley, and brown rice. No blueberries around so I used dry cherries and a little extra water. I've been receiving beets in my weekly CSA package and I'm not particularly a fan. With an even bigger bunch this week I started looking for recipes and glad I found this one!
I have made this many times, first as a healthy family staple, then later for friends. I thought it might be too healthy to bring to social gatherings, but was surprised when my friends loved them and wanted the recipe. I chop the beets after grating them, and add about a cup of nuts which helps the texture. I also reduced the sugar, and use 1/2 coconut oil and 1/2 avocado oil instead of the canola oil. Thank you so much blueclements for this recipe!
I had high hopes for this recipe, since I'm trying really hard to like beets. Like another reviewer, I wasn't impressed. They are edible, but do NOT disguise the beets well. Instead, they taste earthy and have the consistency of a wet spongecake. I did add extra blueberries, but to no avail. I may suggest adding more sugar to perhaps hide the beets better, but that seems counter intuitive to the idea of a healthy(er) muffin.
This was a great muffin recipe. I did make a couple of adjustments based on what I read from other peoples comments. I used Bolthouse Farms Daily Roots drink in place of the water. This drink is mainly beet juice. I then left out the shredded beets but doubled the blueberries to keep the volume of food about the same. I used home grown frozen blueberries not fresh. Wonderful recipe. I will make more of the muffins to give to my family and friends.
The muffins were moist and no one was able to guess that beets were an ingredient. Will certainly make again and share this recipe.
Healthy and good to have on hand for quick breakfasts. This recipe made 30 muffins for me.
Oops, out of oil, short on cinnamon, and no blueberries. In spite of all the changes I made they came out delicious. Used fresh cooked beets, butter instead of oil, plus the following changes were also necessary, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp nutmeg, frozen cherries, and I only had gluten free oatmeal. I will make them again I'm sure.
Once I started this recipe I realized I didn't have any applesauce so I used 1 mashed avocado and 1 mashed banana instead. As another reviewer wrote, I too used coconut oil instead of canola. And I used brown sugar instead of the white sugar for a richer flavor. I was a bit apprehensive about how these would taste - especially with the avocado thrown in there! - but they were much better than I thought they would be! Will probably make these again.
Made as written and they were awesome - probably equal to my current favorite summer breakfast, chocolate - chocolate chip zucchini muffins. Makes A LOT. Kids and adults devoured them.
I joined a CSA and had an overflowing supply of beets. I was intrigued by this recipe because it's a different way to cook beets. My intent was to make the recipe as is but I ended up making some changes after reading the full recipe. First, I don't like raw beets. Second, I don't like the taste of oil in baked goods. Third, I don't like the way blueberries get mushy and sink to the bottom of just about anything I bake them into. Fourth, I don't like applesauce generally, and it's flavor tends to get lost in baked dishes. So, I cooked the beets and then chopped them with the blueberries in my mini chopper to make a rough puree. Then, I measured it out and added enough applesauce to get to the applesauce measurement in the recipe. I substituted brown rice syrup for the oil and sifted the whole wheat flour to get a fluffier muffin. I didnt think the batter was sweet enough so ended up mixing the 1/2 cup sugar with the water and adding it at the end. This is a very thick batter so I don't think I would have the usual issue with the blueberries sinking to the bottom. I do like how the blueberries were smaller and more evenly distributed after I pureed them. The recipe is still not as sweet as I like my muffins, but I can play with different sweeteners and ratios when I make this again. Overall, it's a keeper.
I loved the muffins! I didn't have beets instead I added a cup of shredded apple (that might have been overkill with the applesauce)!!!! I used coconut oil instead of canola and orange juice instead of water and reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup. They were not too sweet which is great for us.
