Chocolate Chip Cookie Muffins

Apparently, I think everything should taste like chocolate chip cookies.  I mean, the world would be a better place, wouldn't it, if more things tasted like chocolate chip cookies?

The thing is, as a mom, I feel sort of obligated to try to make sure that the things my children eat have some nutritional value.  So, I can't just feed them chocolate chip cookies all the time.  (It's true.  I think it's in my contract.  What?  You didn't get a contract?   hmmm....)

Anyway...

Kaia loves to take muffins in her lunchbox.  Since Kaia doesn't love to take many things in her lunchbox, I try to vary the muffins, and to make them somewhat nutritious.  I like to use whole grain flours and include things like pumpkin, banana, zucchini... Of course, they still have to taste good.  I've found I have to be careful not to go so far over the nutritious line that she won't eat it.  Because food can't be nutritious if they don't eat it.

Well, I have been sick for weeks.  I don't want to waste a lot of time talking about that, but I mention it because it relates directly to my decision to bake muffins today.  I've been sick.  The kids have been getting a lot of their own meals, because the sight of food has kind of pushed me over the edge most days.  Shane has been helping, and they have gotten by all right, on things like veggie burgers and jarred sauce that I prepared when I was well, and an occasional carry-out meal.  Everybody has been pitching in to help with the housework, and they have managed to keep the mess somewhat at bay...somewhat.  I happened to notice last night that there was a fine layer of dust over most of the furniture, and, while the floors were all swept, they could use a good, thorough mopping.  The refrigerator needs to be cleaned.  We're almost out of laundry detergent.  It's time for Mama to try to reemerge from her sickly cocoon.

Now, I won't say I am feeling better yet.  Just...hmmm...well, to be honest, I think I just got tired of sitting around watching the household fall apart around me.  So, last night, I prepared some eggs with potatoes, cheese, crumbled veggie bacon and kale in a muffin tin, so Hallie and Justice can heat them and pop them inside English muffins on busy school mornings for a quick breakfast.  Then, this morning, I got up, had Shane help me rearrange a little furniture to open up the room, swept, dusted, wiped up and cleared away as much of the mess as I could manage, and started a pot of bean soup, because I think I might be able to keep down a spoonful or two.

Since I made the eggs, I had been thinking that I really ought to make something quick and easy for Kaia to grab, too.  She has been doing well getting her own breakfast (usually oatmeal or dry cereal ~ sometimes with a banana, yogurt or milk), so I decided to make some muffins.  They'd make a nice afterschool snack today, and then the kids could put them in their lunches, if they wanted.

We had already designated the one can of organic pumpkin we have to be used in the making of tiny pies, and the bananas aren't quite ripe enough, so I decided to try something new.  I had been thinking for some time that "Chocolate Chip Cookie" would be a great muffin variety.  I looked around on the internet a bit, but none fo the recipes were exactly what I was going for.

I thought, if I just started with a basic muffin recipe, used some brown sugar instead of all regular sugar, replaced some of the flour with almond meal (both for nutrition and for taste), and added chocolate chips, it should taste a lot like chocolate chip cookies.

I decided to fall back on my favourite "Basic Muffins with Milk or Cream" recipe from the Joy of Cooking, and make adjustments.  I knew I wanted to sue whole grain flour, in addition to the other adjustments I was making.  Then, when I was reading over the recipe (which is a wonderful basic muffin recipe, BTW), I noticed that if offers a variation in which yogurt can be substituted for the milk or cream called for in the original recipe.  I wondered if I might be able to use fat free Greek yogurt, thus amping up the nutrition even more than I anticipated.

The muffins mixed up and baked beautifully.  The younger girls just got home from school and gave them an enthusiastic thumbs up, and I anxiously await Justice's review.  I have to admit, due to the dairy, I have not tried them, but I trust my girls.If anyone wants to figure out how to make these dairy free, that would be awesome.  In the meantime, I will make them for the kids.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Muffins

Preheat oven to 400℉ and line 12 muffin cups with paper liners (or grease them)

In a large bowl, whisk together:
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup almond meal
1 TBS baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels

In a separate bowl, whisk together:
2 large eggs
1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
4-8 TBS melted butter or vegetable oil
2 tsps. vanilla extract

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients with a few quick strokes.  Do not overmix.  Batter should not be smooth (and it won't be, with all those chocolate chips, but you know what I mean).  Divide batter between muffin cups and bake for 12-15 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in 1 or 2 of the muffins comes out clean.  Let cool for 2-3 minutes in the pan before removing muffins to a wire rack.  Muffins are best right away, but they keep for a few days, and can even be frozen.