We are well into January now and I’m curious, how is everyone’s healthy eating plan going? Are you all still managing to stick to it, or are bad habits starting to creep back in? I don’t really follow any super strict diets as such. I just try to stick to a balanced diet and enjoy a little of everything. But being as cake obsessed as I am, sugar can be a bit hard to cut down. Hence why I love muffins so much because you can reduce the sugar without sacrificing flavour. Just like these reduced sugar banana cranberry muffins that I am sharing with you today. Often when I make muffins, I make reduced sugar ones and no one can ever tell!
Jump to Recipe:
Sugar.
I just want to talk a little about the sugar I have used in these reduced sugar banana cranberry muffins. I used a sugar called Demerara, here in the UK, I think it may be called raw or sugar in the raw in the USA. It’s basically a cane sugar that has been a lot less refined, has a lot larger crystals than regular granulated sugar. It has a caramel taste to it and is perfect for these muffins. If this sugar is too hard for you to find then light brown sugar would probably be the best substitute to use.
Cranberries.
I love cranberries but they are coming towards the end of their season now. I made these twice, once with fresh cranberries and once with frozen and both tasted perfect. But if they are just to hard to come by now for you, then raspberries would make a wonderful substitution. You want a fruit/berry that has a little tartness to it as the banana is so sweet.
And the colour really does pop so well! But seriously the sweet and tart flavours do pair so well with muffins.
Oats & Flour.
Like a lot of my muffins, I like to add some oats. They are packed full of good vitamins and fibre and they do help to keep you fuller for longer, which is a good thing if you are eating them for breakfast. I use good ol’ plain / all purpose flour but a wholemeal/whole wheat flour would also probably work well if you wanted to make them a little bit more healthy.
And also don’t do as I did and slather them in butter, because that to will save you a few calories!!! Won’t taste as good though….lol.
Recipe:
- 50 grams oats (1/2 cup)
- 300 grams plain / all purpose flour (2 and ⅓ cup)
- 100 grams demerara sugar (1/2 cup)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 medium ripe bananas - mashed
- 2 large eggs - beaten
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 120 grams cranberries - fresh or frozen (1 and ⅓ cup)
- Preheat your oven to 220C / 425F / Gas mark 7 and line or lightly grease a 12 hole muffin pan and place to one side.
- In a large mixing bowl add in the oats, flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk it all together until well combined, then place to one side.
- In a large jug or another mixing bowl combine the oil, mashed banana, eggs and vanilla extract. Vigorously mix everything together until well combined.
- Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and with a gentle hand bring it all together.
- Fold in the cranberries very gently.
- Scoop the batter into your prepared muffin pan, filling each cup ⅔rds full.
- Pop the muffins in your hot oven and leave for 5 minutes then reduce the heat in your oven to 190C / 375F / Gas mark 5 and bake for a further 15 minutes. Check the muffins for doneness at this point. If a pick comes out of the centre clean then your muffins are baked through if not then give them a further minute or two.
- Once baked through remove your muffins from the oven and allow them to rest in their pan for 5 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to fully cool down.
- Stored in an airtight container these muffins will last up to 5 days. They also freeze well for up to 3 months.
Other posts you may enjoy:
Gluten Free Cranberry Banana Bread 
Reduced Sugar Oatmeal Pumpkin Banana Breakfast Muffins 
Reduced Sugar Apple Banana Bread 
One Bowl Skinny Sugar Free Fruity Muffins 
Reduced Sugar Strawberry Banana Bread 
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28/01/2018
fantastic muffins! i hardly ever use coarse sugar for anything except sprinkling on top of bread or muffins for a little crunch. including it in the muffins themselves sounds delicious!
03/02/2018
Course sugar makes a lovely addition to muffins in the actual recipe and sprinkled on top 😀
25/01/2018
Yum! These muffins seem so palatable and finger-licking, Emma! Can I use olive oil rather than vegetable oil?
25/01/2018
Yes, you can totally use olive oil in place of vegetable oil.
25/01/2018
Strict diets are not for me either – a nice balanced diet is best in my opinion and I also tend to reduce sugar in my recipes. I am sure the ripe bananas give these muffins a nice sweetness and moistness. They look delicious!
Miriam x
25/01/2018
Thanks, Miriam. I am 100% in agreement, strict diets just make you want to cheat more. A little of everything is definitely the way to go.
24/01/2018
OH yum Emma, this really sounds like the perfect breakfast. I am going to settle for dried cranberries though, because the fresh ones are out of season here now. Definitel pinning to make for breakfast.
Thank you for the delicious recipe, hope that you are having a great week 🙂
25/01/2018
Thanks Ashika, I’m sure dried cranberries would be lovely 🙂
24/01/2018
I would eat these delightful muffins in a heartbeat. Thanks for the recipe!
25/01/2018
Thank you Balvinder 🙂
23/01/2018
oooh i normally just put demarara sugar on top of my muffins for crunch, but i really should put some into the muffin as well. and love that there’s so much banana in them, since i’m always trying to decrease the amount of sugar i use!
25/01/2018
I find banana is a great sugar replacement as they are so sweet when they start to get all spotty. I love Demerara sugar in baked goods, it adds such a good flavour and it’s perfect for muffins. Thanks Heather 🙂
23/01/2018
Haha, I can’t help slathering my muffins in butter. It just tastes so good! I have never tried the banana cranberry combo. It sounds like a winner!
25/01/2018
Butter on muffins just takes them to the next level…..lol I’m glad I’m not the only one that thinks that!
23/01/2018
I love cranberries and every year I kick myself for not stocking up on bags in the freezer. Why can’t we eat them year round? Your muffins are beautiful.
25/01/2018
I always stock pile them in the freezer as I do love them year round, thank you Mimi 🙂
23/01/2018
I’m a huge fan of cranberries specifically because I love their sourness! I bet the combination with the banana is amazing 🙂
25/01/2018
I too love cranberries for the same reason, there is something about that sourness when paired with other super sweet fruits. Thank you
22/01/2018
Delicious little bites perfect for breakfast and snacks on the go. Cranberries are perfect addition to your moist muffins. Hope the weather is behaving in the UK. Take care.
25/01/2018
The weather is terrible here in the U.K. storm rains everyday! These do make a great breakfast though, thank you
22/01/2018
These look great and with the reduced sugar would be perfect as breakfast muffins!
25/01/2018
If I’m making them for breakfast I always try to reduces the sugar because I really struggle with the 11am sugar crash!
22/01/2018
These muffins look so beautiful and wholesome!
25/01/2018
Thanks Angie 🙂