Excerpted from The Golden Door Cooks Light & Easy by Michel Stroot (Gibbs-Smith 2003)

MAKES 12 MUFFINS

Yogurt adds lightness and moisture to these fragrant, hearty muffins. I make them for breakfast at the Golden Door, but they can also be served for supper with roasted pork or turkey, or enjoyed as a snack to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Vegetable oil in a spray bottle, or 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1 1⁄2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⁄4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 1⁄4 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup applesauce
1 Fuji or Gala apple, peeled, cored and diced
4 egg whites, lightly beaten
3⁄4 cup honey
3⁄4 cup raisins
1⁄2 cup nonfat plain yogurt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray or grease a 12-cup muffin tin with vegetable oil.

In a wide-based blender or a food processor fitted with a metal blade, process the rolled oats until they become fine flour.

Sift the baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and nutmeg into a large mixing bowl. Stir in the whole-wheat flour and oats.

Using a spatula, make a depression or "well" in the center of the dry ingredients and add the applesauce, diced apple, beaten egg whites, honey, raisins and yogurt. Stir gently but thoroughly, just until all the flour is incorporated into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared muffin cups, filling them about 2⁄3 full.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Turn onto a wire rack; serve warm or let cool.

Courtesy of The Golden Door