Yes, yes, it’s January and we all know what means. Resolutions, clean eating, green juices, early morning workouts, stop skipping breakfast, get 10k steps a day, go to sleep at a reasonable hour, less screen time, eat more fiber, floss more, yadda yadda. But hear me out-what if you could knock a couple of those out with something that is actually delicious, and you’ll genuinely look forward to eating it? My Healthy Breakfast Muffins are naturally sweetened with ripe bananas and dates, packed with oats and seeds, and ridiculously moist thanks to buttermilk and oil. They are super quick to make, and all those oats and seeds mean they keep you full.

They’re flexible too — apples, berries, stone fruit, whatever you’ve got hanging out on the counter. Just don’t expect a fluffy cupcake situation here. These are hearty, nourishing, and exactly the kind of muffin you can feel good about grabbing on your way out the door, so let’s get into it.

If you took a glance at the photo above, you may be asking yourself, where’s the sweetener in the recipe? My personal challenge was to make a muffin without any. So none of the usual suspects made it into my line up. And for once, this isn’t a photo blooper with a missing item (Guilty!), but rather an intentional collection of whole ingredients that boost sweetness without adding any sweetener. If you’re looking to move away from SAD (Standard American Diet for those who missed this cute little acronym) breakfasts full of sugar, processed meats, and refined carbs, look no further. Every ingredient here we use will boost your energy and fuel your body with good nutrition.

While I love something quick and healthy in the morning, I’m not a huge fan of eating something just because it’s healthy. And my biggest pet peeve is a dry, heavy, flavorless bran/oat/fiber muffin. Well I can guarantee that this is not one of those. These muffins are super moist and have a smooth texture that doesn’t taste like a traditional muffin. For those of you burned by bad healthy muffins, I humbly ask you to give these a try.

Healthy Breakfast Muffins start by combining the dry ingredients in a bowl. I like to always mix my dry ingredients together first. I know many recipes dump all the ingredients into one bowl and then ask you to mix; however, I like to know that the leavening agents are mixed with the flour before adding anything else. I used all purpose unbleached flour here, but you could also use whole wheat or even a combination of white and whole wheat flours:

Give it a good stir to combine:

Then I blend the rest of the ingredients. Blending the oats and seeds with the wet ingredients may seem unorthodox, but it gives the muffins a smooth texture instead of a coarse, gritty one. Add the oats, hemp and ground flax seeds to the blender along with the buttermilk, banana, dates, egg and vanilla:

Blend until smooth (you can also use an immersion blender):

Then I add the fruit to the blender. You can choose whatever you have on hand or whatever looks good at the market. Berries, apples, more banana, stone fruit are all good choices. (Avoid citrus or pineapple — their acidity can keep the muffins from setting properly.) I used one honey crisp apple that I peeled and cut into chunks:

Pulse the fruit a few times to incorporate it into the batter while still leaving nice little chunks of fruit:

Then it’s time to add the blended ingredients into the dry:

Whisk/mix until just combined (it’s ok if there’s a few lumps):

Now they are ready to bake! Spray a muffin tin with baking spray and evenly distribute the batter. You could also use papers to line the cups:

Bake for 16-18 minutes. A toothpick test should come out mostly dry with a few crumbs attached.  Transfer to a wire rack to let cool. I know, I know, you want a bite immediately but these muffins are super moist, giving them time to cool helps them set.

These will keep at room temperate for a couple days. Any longer than that and you should refrigerate or freeze. They reheat beautifully but they are also great straight from the fridge. On the go breakfast, afternoon snack, late night a little something sweet, these healthy breakfast muffins can do it all! Bake these once this week and you’ve already knocked a couple of those January goals off your list. Let me know what you think down below, and let’s see those muffins! Tag us @funkyasiankitchen.

Looking for more quick and healthy breakfast options? Check out these Tropical Overnight Oats, my Avocado Smoothie, or this easy Korean Egg Souffle.

Healthy Breakfast Muffins

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• Author: Funky Asian Kitchen
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 18 minutes
• Total Time: 28 minutes
• Yield: makes 12 muffins 1x

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Ingredients

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• 1 ⅓ cups buttermilk
• 1 very ripe banana
• ½ cup neutral oil
  
• 15 dried dates, pitted
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 large egg
• ¼ cup ground flax seeds
• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ½ cup rolled oats (any kind except instant is fine)
  
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (you can also use whole wheat flour)
  
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder (preferably aluminum-free)
• 1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon table salt
• 1 cup chopped fruit (I used 1 honey crisp apple, but you can use mixed berries, more bananas, or stone fruit. Do not use pineapple or citrus fruit)  

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Instructions

Preheat the oven to 425 and move the oven shelf to the middle.

Prepare the wet ingredients

Add the buttermilk, banana, oil, dates, vanilla extract, egg, flax seeds, hemp seeds, and oats to the blend cup (You can also use an immersion blender). Blend until smooth. Add the fruit and pulse 1-2 times to break it up (Do not blend-just pulse).

Combine the dry ingredients

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk until well combined. 

Make the batter

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and whisk until just combined.

Bake the muffins

Spray a 12-cup muffin tin with baking spray and divide the batter evenly into the cups. Bake the muffins for 16 to 18 minutes, rotating halfway through for even baking. Test the muffins with a toothpick. It should come out with a few crumbs attached but should not be wet.

Cool the muffins for 10 minutes in the pan first and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

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Notes

*These muffins keep for 2 days at room temperature. Refrigerate or freeze afterwards as they are very moist. You can eat them cold from the fridge or reheat for a couple minutes in the microwave.

* If you don’t have any buttermilk, you can use sour cream or yogurt thinned with a little milk. You can also add 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to 1 ⅓ cups whole milk (do not use lower fat or plant milk) and let it sit for 10 minutes. The milk will curdle. Stir it up and then continue with the rest of the recipe.

Keywords: breakfast, back to school, grab and go, healthy, baking, muffins

Ahhhh, Christmas in Miami. Twinkling lights wrapped around palm trees swaying in the balmy tropical air, light-up flamingos glowing from your neighbor’s lawn, and “snow” trucked in for kids who’ve never needed a winter coat. Christmas in Miami just hits different.  And with our famously multicultural influences, there’s never any shortage of delicious sips and nibbles to indulge in. Speaking of indulgence…this is the time of year when an adult beverage seems to magically appear in our hands more often than not, because nothing brings out the cocktail shaker quite like a house full of family… I adore the classic mojitos my hometown is known for, but I wanted something that kept the festive vibes without the next-morning regret. Enter my Sake Mojito—bright, fun, and surprisingly gentle, even when the holiday chaos isn’t.

Sake is famously clean-tasting and tends to deliver fewer hangovers than the usual holiday suspects, which means you can sip, mingle, dodge intrusive family questions, and still wake up ready to do it all again tomorrow. Whatever you’re celebrating this season these sake mojitos will be a hit, so let’s get into it.

Traditional mojitos start by muddling the mint at the bottom of the glass to release its sweet, fragrant oils. But for this Sake Mojito, I actually prefer blending the mint right into the base. Since sake isn’t as naturally sweet as rum, blending helps pull out more of that bright mint flavor so the drink still tastes vibrant and balanced. It also gives the cocktail that gorgeous, fresh kick our holiday drink deserves. I put everything in a cocktail shaker and my immersion blender, but you could also toss in a standard blender and pulse.

Add mint leaves to cocktail shaker:

Cut the lime into 8 wedges, and add 6 of them to the shaker (you’ll use the other 2 to garnish your mojitos):

Add the sugar:

Measure the sake and put into the shaker:

If using an immersion blender, blend for 10 seconds:

Add ice cubes to to serving glasses:

Strain the sake mojito over the ice, little bits of mint will be wonderful, just keep out big chunks of lime:

Now top your sake mojitos with sprite. Sprite gives them delightful effervescence and more citrusy goodness:

Grab those 2 lime wedges you saved and squeeze one into each drink:

Garnish these beauties with some fresh mint leaves and they are ready to enjoy:

My sake mojitos are the perfect way to spread a little cheer this holiday season, without massive regret in the morning. Perhaps served with my Matcha Chocolate Cashews or some Roasted Chestnuts. Can’t wait to hear what you think about them, and see your festive mojitos, tag me @funkyasiankitchen.

Sake Mojito

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• Author: Funky Asian Kitchen
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Total Time: 10 minutes
• Yield: serves 2
• Category: drinks

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Ingredients

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• 4 sprig mint leaves
• 1 lime (cut into 8 small wedges)
• 10 oz sake
• 3 Tablespoons sugar
• ice cubes
• 1 can of sprite or other lemon/lime soda

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Instructions

Blend the drink Add half the mint, 6 lime wedges (saving 2 wedges for garnish), sugar, and sake into a cocktail shaker or tall cup. Use an immersion blender and blend for 10 seconds. You can also use a standard blender and pulse 5-6 times.

Pour the sake base into 2 cocktail glasses filled with ice. As you are pouring, push back on the limes, but it’s fine to let small bits of mint leaves pour into the drink. Top with sprite, and garnish with a sprig of mint and a wedge of lime.

Serve Sake Mojito immediately.

 

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Notes

*To make batches for a group, you can make the base ahead of time. Add the limes, mint, and sake to a blender (I would triple the recipe until you make the amount you need) and pulse several times until the limes and mint are coarsely chopped. Strain the liquid into a pitcher and chill until ready to serve. Then pour the drinks over a glass of ice and top with some sprite and garnish with mint sprigs and lime wedges.

*Sake is strongly flavored and muddling the mint and limes is not enough to extract flavor for the drink. Even with the sprite, I found the drink not sweet enough for my taste. Of course you can adjust the sweetness to your own liking by increasing or decreasing the amount of sugar listed. 

 

Keywords: mojito, asian mojito, sake, sake mojito, asian cocktails,