Strawberries are starting to appear in the grocery stores now......it must be spring! I truly love any type of berry so I am just ecstatic it when the first strawberries of the season appear. The next thing you know, it will be blueberry and raspberry season! Do you need a reminder about why you should feed your children these yummy berries? (I think that it is always fun to remind ourselves about just why certain foods are so nutritious).
Here is the nutrition "scoop" on strawberries: One cup of strawberries has about 149% of your daily vitamin C requirement. It also has 3 grams of fiber, plus other nutrients such as folate, manganese, magnesium and potassium. Strawberries (and other berries) are also a great source of healthy antioxidants! All this for just around 50 calories. So you can see that strawberries are not only yummy, they are a nutrient-rich food!
Here is a recipe for strawberry muffins that I have not tried yet. I plan on trying it soon (and probably tweeking it a little to make it more nutritious). Let me know what you think if you try it first! I will post my "tweeked" version soon.
Strawberry Muffins
2 1/2 cups enriched all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1 cup lowfat buttermilk
1/3 cup margarine or butter, melted
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tablespoon sugar
Combine flour, sugar, soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl and stir well. Add the sliced strawberries and stir. Make a well in the center of the mixture.
Combine the buttermilk, margarine, vanilla, and eggs. Add to the dry mixture, stirring until just moistened.
Divide the batter between 18 muffin cups sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle the remaining 1 T. of sugar over the muffins.
Bake at 350 degrees or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove muffins from the pan to a wire rack. Cool and serve.
Crediting information:
1/2 of a muffin is creditable for 1 bread/bread alternate at any meal for 1-5 year old children.
Here is the nutrition "scoop" on strawberries: One cup of strawberries has about 149% of your daily vitamin C requirement. It also has 3 grams of fiber, plus other nutrients such as folate, manganese, magnesium and potassium. Strawberries (and other berries) are also a great source of healthy antioxidants! All this for just around 50 calories. So you can see that strawberries are not only yummy, they are a nutrient-rich food!
Here is a recipe for strawberry muffins that I have not tried yet. I plan on trying it soon (and probably tweeking it a little to make it more nutritious). Let me know what you think if you try it first! I will post my "tweeked" version soon.
Strawberry Muffins
2 1/2 cups enriched all purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sliced fresh strawberries
1 cup lowfat buttermilk
1/3 cup margarine or butter, melted
1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tablespoon sugar
Combine flour, sugar, soda, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl and stir well. Add the sliced strawberries and stir. Make a well in the center of the mixture.
Combine the buttermilk, margarine, vanilla, and eggs. Add to the dry mixture, stirring until just moistened.
Divide the batter between 18 muffin cups sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Sprinkle the remaining 1 T. of sugar over the muffins.
Bake at 350 degrees or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove muffins from the pan to a wire rack. Cool and serve.
Crediting information:
1/2 of a muffin is creditable for 1 bread/bread alternate at any meal for 1-5 year old children.
P.S.
My favorite book to read to children about strawberries is:
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don Wood! My kids loved this book and I'm sure yours will too!
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don Wood! My kids loved this book and I'm sure yours will too!
Have you tried these yet?
ReplyDeleteAnother good book about strawberries is Sweet as a Strawberry by Sally Smallwood. My kids really like this book.
ReplyDelete