Homemade Low-Calorie Muffins

Size matters

Muffins come in all sizes, from mini to jumbo. Unsurprisingly, the larger the muffin, the more calories you'll consume.

For the perfect serving, choose standard metal muffin tins and fill them three-quarters full with batter before baking. Enjoy one or two mini muffins as a snack with a glass of skim milk, or two or three for breakfast with a cup of low-fat yogurt and fresh fruit.

Liquid ingredients

Here are a few substitutions you can make to use lighter ingredients.

• Replace half of the vegetable oil with unsweetened oil. apple sauce, banana puree or apple jam
  
• Replace buttermilk with low-fat buttermilk
  
• Replace 1 cup buttermilk with 2/3 cup plain low-fat Greek yogurt and 1/3 cup low-fat milk.
  
• Replace 1 cup vegetable oil with 0.75 cups plain, nonfat Greek yogurt.
  
• The main dry ingredients are flour, baking soda, and salt. Half of the all-purpose flour can be replaced with whole-wheat pastry flour.

Supplements

Nuts, seeds, chocolate chips, and dried fruit can enhance any muffin. But don't overdo it with these tasty and calorie-dense additions, as they can impact your waistline. Use just enough to achieve the desired flavor, no more.

If you want to sprinkle the muffins with sugar or nuts, you'll need no more than 0.5 teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of nuts per serving. For a more vibrant flavor, you can use lower-calorie toppings such as cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon or orange zest, and vanilla extract.