Just because it is Ironman week, I'm not gorging myself with Carbs. Sure, I'll increase my total percentage of carbohydrates by 5-10% on Thurs, Fri and Sat but in order to keep my blood sugar stable on race week (and keep repairing damaged tissues), I will continue to emphasize protein in the diet. My Ironman-week diet consist of lots of fruits and veggies to keep my immune system healthy and to provide my body with lots of vitamins and minerals and antioxidants) and good sources of carbs such as oatmeal, whole grain bread and wasa crackers (my fav with PB).
So, you might be wondering why I decided to make muffins if I am gradually increasing carbs yet also emphasizing protein?
Rather than using only wheat flour, I decided to bump up the protein of my typical muffin recipe by adding soy flour.
Here are some facts about soy flour that I gathered from SoyFoods.org (http://www.soyfoods.org/products/soy-fact-sheets/soy-flour-fact-sheet).
-Soy flour is derived from soybeans and is the main ingredient for soy milk and textured vegetable proteins (ex. veggie burgers).
-Soy flour is packed with protein and provides a nutty flavor to baked goods.
-Defatted and low-fat soy flour will stay fresh for up to one year in an airtight container.
-Replacing more than 40% of a recipe calling for flour, with soy flour, is not recommended. Soy flour works as a substitute for 10-30% of wheat or rye flour.
-Soy flour is gluten-free.
-Soy flour is a great source of quality protein, fiber and isoflavones and provides a good source of iron, b vitamins and potassium.
Here's the protein content of various flours:
-Full fat soy flour - 40% protein
-Low fat soy flour - 52% protein
-Defatted soy flour - 55% protein
-Whole wheat flour - 16% protein
-Enriched white flour - 12% protein
Here are some ways to incorporate soy flour into your recipes:
-Pizza dough - replace 1/4 flour with soy flour
-Cookies - replace 1/3 all purpose flour with soy flour
-Muffins or pancakes - 1/3 soy flour, 1/3 wheat and 1/3 all purpose or 1/3 soy flour and 2/3 wheat
-Bread - replace 1/3 all purpose with 1/3 soy flour
-Cakes - replace 1/3 all purpose with 1/3 soy flour
Here's the recipe I created yesterday.
Berry-licious and nutritious muffins
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup soy flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 whole egg + 1 egg white
3 ounces low fat vanilla yogurt (you can use plain)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tsp. honey
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 raisins
1/4 cup walnuts
1/3-1/2 cup water
1) Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
2) In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (first 5 ingredients) and mix together and set aside.
3) In another mixing bowl, whisk together milk, vanilla extract and eggs for 2 minutes with a fork or whisk.
4) Add vanilla yogurt to wet ingredients and mix well.
5) Add honey, followed by blueberries, cranberries, raisins and walnuts into wet mixture. Mix well.
6) Combine wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix well with a large fork.
7) As you are mixing, slowly add water (1/8 cup at a time) until you get a consistency similar to pancake batter.
8) Scoop 1/4 cup batter into each tin of non-stick muffin tin (spray with non-stick spray, 1 squirt each tin).
9) Cook for 20-25 min. until sides of muffin turn slightly brown or muffin is slightly firm on top.
10) Optional: top with 4-5 chopped walnut pieces and switch your oven to broil for 5 minutes.
Enjoy!
*I recommend serving 1 muffin w/ 3-4 scrambled egg whites and 3-4 slices strawberries for a healthy and balanced breakfast or 1 muffin topped with 3 ounces low fat yogurt/greek yogurt for a healthy snack/desert.
*Place the muffins in a container or freezer bag and when you are ready for a warm and delicious muffin, microwave for 20-25 sec.
So, you might be wondering why I decided to make muffins if I am gradually increasing carbs yet also emphasizing protein?
Rather than using only wheat flour, I decided to bump up the protein of my typical muffin recipe by adding soy flour.
Here are some facts about soy flour that I gathered from SoyFoods.org (http://www.soyfoods.org/products/soy-fact-sheets/soy-flour-fact-sheet).
-Soy flour is derived from soybeans and is the main ingredient for soy milk and textured vegetable proteins (ex. veggie burgers).
-Soy flour is packed with protein and provides a nutty flavor to baked goods.
-Defatted and low-fat soy flour will stay fresh for up to one year in an airtight container.
-Replacing more than 40% of a recipe calling for flour, with soy flour, is not recommended. Soy flour works as a substitute for 10-30% of wheat or rye flour.
-Soy flour is gluten-free.
-Soy flour is a great source of quality protein, fiber and isoflavones and provides a good source of iron, b vitamins and potassium.
Here's the protein content of various flours:
-Full fat soy flour - 40% protein
-Low fat soy flour - 52% protein
-Defatted soy flour - 55% protein
-Whole wheat flour - 16% protein
-Enriched white flour - 12% protein
Here are some ways to incorporate soy flour into your recipes:
-Pizza dough - replace 1/4 flour with soy flour
-Cookies - replace 1/3 all purpose flour with soy flour
-Muffins or pancakes - 1/3 soy flour, 1/3 wheat and 1/3 all purpose or 1/3 soy flour and 2/3 wheat
-Bread - replace 1/3 all purpose with 1/3 soy flour
-Cakes - replace 1/3 all purpose with 1/3 soy flour
Here's the recipe I created yesterday.
Berry-licious and nutritious muffins
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup soy flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup milk
1 whole egg + 1 egg white
3 ounces low fat vanilla yogurt (you can use plain)
1 tbsp vanilla extract
2 tsp. honey
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4 raisins
1/4 cup walnuts
1/3-1/2 cup water
1) Preheat oven to 350-degrees.
2) In a large mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients (first 5 ingredients) and mix together and set aside.
3) In another mixing bowl, whisk together milk, vanilla extract and eggs for 2 minutes with a fork or whisk.
4) Add vanilla yogurt to wet ingredients and mix well.
5) Add honey, followed by blueberries, cranberries, raisins and walnuts into wet mixture. Mix well.
6) Combine wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix well with a large fork.
7) As you are mixing, slowly add water (1/8 cup at a time) until you get a consistency similar to pancake batter.
8) Scoop 1/4 cup batter into each tin of non-stick muffin tin (spray with non-stick spray, 1 squirt each tin).
9) Cook for 20-25 min. until sides of muffin turn slightly brown or muffin is slightly firm on top.
10) Optional: top with 4-5 chopped walnut pieces and switch your oven to broil for 5 minutes.
Enjoy!
*I recommend serving 1 muffin w/ 3-4 scrambled egg whites and 3-4 slices strawberries for a healthy and balanced breakfast or 1 muffin topped with 3 ounces low fat yogurt/greek yogurt for a healthy snack/desert.
*Place the muffins in a container or freezer bag and when you are ready for a warm and delicious muffin, microwave for 20-25 sec.
