Sick of eating that morning bowl of oatmeal for breakfast? Not crazy about the taste or texture of oatmeal? Try these spring oatmeal berry muffins for a change of pace!

Heart healthy oats are a filling whole grain that you should try to incorporate into your morning breakfast or as a mid-afternoon snack on most days of the week. Whole grains are considered “good” carbohydrates with their nutrient dense composition compared to processed white grain products.

For better heart health, the recommendation is to consume at least 3 servings of whole grains everyday (remember, “3 is key”). Examples of whole grain products are oatmeal, granola bars, whole grain cereals, whole grain bread/English muffin, brown rice, quinoa, barley, whole grain pasta, and the list goes on! If you are not sure if a product is whole grain, the first ingredient on the food label’s ingredient list needs to say “whole grain” to be considered a whole grain product!

Try this week’s whole grain heart healthy recipe of Berry Oatmeal Muffins!

Recipe : Berry Oatmeal Muffins

Filing and satisfying heart healthy breakfast baked good or afternoon snack.

Yield- 12 muffins (1 muffin = ¼ cup of wet oatmeal mixture)

Ingredients:

• 2.5 cups of rolled oats
• 1.5 cup of unsweetened almond milk (or soymilk)
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup of 100% pure maple syrup
• 1 tsp of vanilla extract
• 1 tsp of baking powder
• 1 tsp of cinnamon
• 1 cup of berries (your choice of cherries, blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and/or blackberries)

• Optional: 1/8 cup ground flaxseed and/or chia seeds

Directions:

In a medium size tupperware container, add the rolled oats and unsweetened almond milk and mix together. Place a cover on the tupperware container and refrigerator for 4-8 hours until most of the liquid is absorbed.

Pre-heat oven to 375 ºF and grease muffin tin with canola or olive oil. Add the egg, syrup, vanilla, baking powder, and cinnamon to the oatmeal mixture and mix well. Scoop ¼ cup of the oatmeal mixture into each muffin cup. Place a few berries on top of each oatmeal cake and bake the oatmeal cakes for 30 minutes. Remove the muffin tin and let the oatmeal cakes cool for 10-15 minutes before removing them from the muffin tin and enjoying a healthy snack!

Nutrition Information Per Serving:
Calories: 104 kcal, Fat: 2g, Cholesterol: 18 mg, Carbohydrates: 20g, Dietary Fiber: 2g, Protein: 3g, Sodium: 29 mg