With the days getting busier and seemingly shorter, many individuals have changed their daily meals to accommodate a lifestyle on the run. While most quick, on-the-go meals aren't exactly healthy for our families or us, there are a few healthy swaps you can make to your recipe routine that will bring nutritious breakfast back to your kitchen. Muffins are a quick meal, and when made with wholesome ingredients, they can be a healthy one too. While there are many reasons to enjoy muffins, some reasons stand out more than others. Keep scrolling to discover why we think muffins are an essential part of any breakfast. Many foods can be used to create and top your perfect muffin, from wholesome ingredients to nutritious toppings. Let's get started!

Why We Love Muffins

They’re an Easy Boost of Vitamins

Muffins are an excellent way to get an added boost of vitamins in your daily diet. Not only are they easy to make, but they can also be made relatively quickly. If you're running short on time in the morning, mix your muffin mix the night before and bake your muffins when you wake up. Muffins generally take about ten to fifteen minutes to cook, meaning you can have a freshly baked breakfast before you're done getting dressed. So should you skip out on a healthy breakfast? Not at all, muffins are an easy way to create a nutritious and flavorful breakfast in minutes. 

Muffins Are Easy to Make

Muffins are easy to make. If you can follow along with a recipe, then you can make a muffin. Muffin making requires minimal ingredients and novice baking skills, meaning that just about anyone can make them. Once you have the base ingredients for muffins together (flour, salt, water, eggs), all that's left is to decide on the ingredients you'd like to add. Made quickly, whipping up muffins can be worked into the busiest of schedules. Whether you choose to make your batter beforehand or dedicate a few hours to making a week's worth of muffins, it's easy to make this delicious breakfast. Plus, if you don't plan on eating all the muffins in one sitting, they can quickly be frozen and saved for when you're ready to enjoy them.

Muffins Are Extremely Versatile

Muffins are one of the most versatile foods out there! Depending on the recipe you choose, muffins can be made as a healthy breakfast, snack option or even a side to your favorite dinner dish. Loaded with nutritional goodness, by merely adding nutritious ingredients like zucchini, flax, honey, avocados and chia seeds, you can turn a regular muffin recipe into one that's overflowing with health benefits. Or, if you genuinely need a boost of nutrition, work a protein powder into your muffin recipes. Protein powders like our Chocolate Protein Powder Nutritional Booster are a great way to amp up your muffin recipe's nutritional value.

An excellent way to get twenty grams of protein on the go, this nutritional booster is a complete protein source and features a delicious chocolate flavor. Made with pea protein powder, chicory root fiber, chia seeds, beneficial probiotics and monk fruit extract, it's also entirely vegan!

Toppings for Muffin Lovers

Blueberries

Blueberry muffins are one of the most loved muffin varieties around. Not only are blueberries a great muffin ingredient, but they also make an excellent topping. When it comes to fruit, blueberries top the list in terms of nutrition. While they may seem like a seasonal summertime staple, we believe blueberries should be enjoyed year-round. Nutritional powerhouses, these tiny berries are loaded with antioxidants. In fact, they have more antioxidants than almost any other fruit or vegetable. Antioxidants are crucial to a healthy diet and work to provide your body with added agents that help boost your immune system, keeping you from getting sick. However, antioxidants aren't the only thing blueberries are suitable for. This superfruit can do everything from boost your immune system to helping improve your gym workout.

To make the perfect blueberry muffins, use our Grain Free Blueberry Muffin Mix. Delicious, easy to prepare and quick-baking, this mix replicates the traditionally loved flavor of blueberry muffins, sans the grains. Whip up a batch today and top your muffins with extra blueberries to discover the grain free dessert you've been missing! 

Cranberries

With fall and winter weather rolling in quickly, cranberries take center stage when it comes to baked goods. Whether you use cranberries to adorn this year's Christmas feast or add color to your favorite holiday desserts, there's more to this flavorful fruit than just decoration. With more and more health benefits being discovered daily, cranberries are quickly gaining superfood status. Not only is this powerful berry low in sugar, but cranberries are also loaded with antioxidants. Vitamins A, C and plant-based proanthocyanidins fill this flavorful fruit, making it a real treat to your health. Like blueberries, the antioxidants found in cranberries work to boost your immune system and keep you protected from dreaded winter illnesses like the flu.

For a healthy and flavorful treat, make these Cranberry Orange Muffins. In these muffins, sweet cranberries are used as an ingredient and a topping. The citrus flavor of orange is combined with tart, baked cranberries for sweet treats you can enjoy on Christmas or any time of the year. Once your muffins are baked, top them with cream and cranberries, or warm up a bit of homemade cranberry sauce and slather it on like jam. You'll love the unique taste it provides. 

Honey

You've heard the saying "we are what we eat," and when it comes to our favorite toppings for muffins, who wouldn't want to be as sweet as honey? Honey is a flavorsome and sticky treat that tastes great when drizzled over the top of a freshly baked muffin. Aside from being great tasting, there are some real benefits to topping your muffins with honey. Honey is loaded with good bacteria that are essential to a healthy gut. These good bacteria, most commonly referred to as probiotics, help you in several ways. From fighting off harmful bacteria to helping you feel better after a sickness, probiotics are an essential part of a healthy diet—and so is honey. Boost your intake of good-for-you probiotics by topping your favorite muffin recipes with honey.

A honey-filled, paleo treat, these Paleo Lemon Blueberry Muffins are the perfect way to work more honey into your diet. Made with fresh blueberries and grated lemon zest, this muffin recipe uses honey as a natural sweetener. Once bakes, drizzle a dollop of your favorite honey onto your muffins for the ideal paleo breakfast dish. 

Nut Butter

There's nothing quite like a healthy, homemade muffin. However, depending on the recipes without toppings, some muffins may be a bit bland. If you're searching for a healthy way to sweeten your favorite muffin top, we suggest using nut butter. A time-saving and nutritious alternative to icing, nut butter can be used in the same way to coat your muffin with a creamy flavor. Salted almond butter on a banana muffin or peanut butter atop of your favorite apple crumble is sure to make your taste buds jump with joy. Besides being a delicious way to sweeten up any treat, nut butter is also loaded with vitamins, minerals and protein that will turn this healthy snack into a robust meal.

For the ideal nut-butter topped muffin recipe, make these Banana Chocolate Oat muffins. In this recipe, regular rolled oats and whole wheat pastry flour are combined to create a healthy base. Banana puree, semi-sweet chocolate chips and cinnamon are then added to make a drool-worthy muffin flavor. Once fully cooked, top these banana muffins with your nut butter choice for a real protein-packed treat.

Unsweetened Greek Yogurt

Greek Yogurt isn't just to eat by the spoonful. In fact, it makes an excellent muffin topping. When choosing which yogurt to top your muffins with, select one of the full-fat varieties. Creamier, thicker and just as great for you, topping your muffin with tart greek yogurt will balance out the sweetness of your muffin perfectly. Are you sticking to a dairy-free diet? No problem, swap greek yogurt out with a plant-based yogurt like coconut yogurt. The perfect vegan icing substitute for muffins, they'll turn out delicious each time!

For the perfect sweet muffin to top with yogurt, make these Paleo Lemon Blueberry Muffins. Moist, flavorful and oh-so-delicious, these muffins are made without refined sugar or butter. This recipe's lemon zest adds a depth of flavor while giving this muffin a lovely bright, citrusy taste. These muffins are so delicious; when eating them, you'll forget how great they are for you. Once cooked, top these muffins with Greek yogurt, or follow along with the coconut butter glaze featured in the recipe.

Use this list of flavorful and healthy muffin toppings as inspiration when whipping up your next batch of muffins. From sweet honey to tart yogurt, there's bound to be a topping on this list that you'll enjoy. From everyone at Bob's Red Mill, happy baking!