{"id":577,"date":"2021-03-11T01:12:09","date_gmt":"2021-03-11T01:12:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/my17.com\/?p=577"},"modified":"2021-04-25T11:09:26","modified_gmt":"2021-04-25T11:09:26","slug":"i-have-high-cholesterol-can-i-have-muffins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.my17.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/11\/i-have-high-cholesterol-can-i-have-muffins\/","title":{"rendered":"I have high cholesterol, can I have muffins?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

*Continue reading for the recipe below*<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you stay away from muffins thinking they are high in calories, sugar and fat? Or do you think blueberry muffin is so healthy and it’s good for breakfast? According to Harvard School of Public Health<\/a>, <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

“the average coffee shop blueberry muffin got almost 470 calories\u2014nearly double what you\u2019d get from a chocolate frosted donut\u2014and most of those calories come from refined carb – white flour and sugar. Perhaps the healthiest thing about these muffins is the fat \u201419 grams worth, largely from soybean oil\u2014a heart-healthy source. (Only one of the three national chains reviewed used butter as a fat source in its muffins.)” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How much sugar in a blueberry muffin then? <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dietary information from Costa’s<\/a> website revealed one blueberry muffin contains 27 gram sugar, that is 90% of our daily allowance! Do you think that’s a good choice for breakfast? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutrition information of a Blueberry Muffin based on UK Colour-coded nutrition labels<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/td>per portion<\/td>per 100g<\/td> <\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Energy<\/td>407 kcal<\/td>370 kcal<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Fat<\/td>19 g<\/td>17.4 g<\/td>High<\/td>red*<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
Saturated fat<\/td>1.6 g<\/td>1.5 g<\/td>Medium<\/td>amber<\/td><\/tr>
Sugar<\/td>27 g<\/td>24.3 g<\/td>High <\/td>red*<\/span><\/td><\/tr>
Salt<\/td>0.6 g<\/td>0.5 g<\/td>Medium<\/td>amber<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
Information obtained from Costa website<\/a> [Accessed 10 Mar 2021]<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

So you are right, the calories, fat and sugar are quite high in this innocent-looking muffin. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

But I like muffins. Is it easy to make a healthier version? <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure is. Let’s try to tweak the recipe from BBC Good Food Banana & Blueberry Muffins<\/a> as it said a muffin that tastes as good as it looks. So here’s my modified version: Apple Banana Blueberry Walnuts Oat Muffins, quite a long name isn’t it? That’s only because I had a bottle of apple sauce I wanted to use up but there’s a benefit of using it, see below. I also added walnuts on top of porridge oats to increase a mix sources of fiber which help to lower cholesterol. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among all the ingredients, apple sauce perhaps is the one we need to worry about due to its sugar content. So, let’s find out how much sugar in applesauce. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brand<\/td>Sugar
per 100 ml<\/td>		<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Sainsbury<\/td>31.8g<\/td>High (red)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Coleman<\/td>26g<\/td>High (red)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
ASDA<\/td>23g<\/td>High (red)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Tesco<\/td>23g<\/td>High (red)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Morrisons(Shop)<\/td>21.5 g<\/td>Medium (amber)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Morrisons(online)<\/td>17.6g<\/td>Medium (amber)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr>
Waitrose<\/td>16.9g<\/td>Medium (amber)<\/td><\/td><\/td><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>
Above information were obtained from their websites on 10 Mar 2021. Subject to change. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I was surprised to find out that there’s such a huge difference in sugar content among different brands. Thanks to online shopping, all these information are readily available for us on their website to study and compare – shop smart, eat wise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Benefits of using apple sauce<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

  1. Since I’m using apple sauce, I can skip the oil in the recipe – substituted 5 tablespoons of applesauce for 5 tablespoons of oil – saved 69 g fat and 617 calories – that’s quite a lot, isn’t it? No wonder the nutrition label of Total Fat on the traditional muffin came out red! <\/li>
  2. Since applesauce contains sugar, using overripe banana means the sugar can be cut back by 60% in this recipe. That’s a good trade. <\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    Eggs:<\/strong> Even if you have high cholesterol, you can still enjoy the eggs, as the most important thing is cut down on saturated fat<\/a> instead, such as butter. But this time, I used two egg whites so that the batter won’t be so dense. The muffin indeed came out very light and fluffy – I really enjoyed it. I saved the yolks for dinner. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    So, here’s the great muffin makeover! These muffins had been shared among my friends and family, and received high praise, so sharing it with confidence. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Apple Banana Blueberry Walnuts Oat Muffins<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Prep: 10 mins. Cook: 20 mins. Serves: 16 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ?\u200d? Ingredients:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n