Coach's Oatmeal Banana Muffins

When Lizzy at the Coach's Oats blog asked me if I thought her oats would work in my steel cut oatmeal and POM Wonderful muffin recipe, I behaved like a brazen hussy and suggested that she send me some of them thar oats and I'd do my darnedest to see what I could come up with. I'm telling you people, I've got to get a grip on this freebies problem I have!

I'm a huge fan of steel cut oats. Studies have shown that while the overall nutritional profiles of all types of oatmeal are similar, the way the oats are processed does have a different and significant effect on our body's metabolism. The less processed a grain is, the longer it takes to digest and the longer it helps keep our blood sugars stable. The problem with using steel cut oats in baking is that the short baking time doesn't allow the oats to soften and the result is a muffin or cookie with hard crunchy bits in it. That's why I pre-cooked the oats for my POM muffins.

Coach's oats however, are toasted before they're cracked and because of this process, they cook in just five minutes. Lizzy assured me that I could substitute Coach's oats for regular rolled oats in my recipes, so I set out to experiment with them when I received the oats in the mail.

The first thing I did was eat a serving of the oats just to see if I enjoyed their flavor. I cooked them as directed and then added some brown sugar Splenda and a little vanilla and maple extracts. Delicious! Great oatmeal flavor with just the right amount of the steel cut chewiness I've come to love.

Since I was out of my free POM Wonderful samples Not wanting to repeat the POM Wonderful muffin for you, I decided to incorporate the Coach's oats into my whole grain banana muffin recipe instead. I am happy to report a complete success! These muffins are fantastic and you'd be smart to tuck this recipe somewhere you'll easily be able to find it when you start your big diet after New Years. (Hey, you won't be alone.... I'll be right there beside you.)

Coach's Oatmeal Banana Muffins (makes 16 muffins)

1 cup coach's oats (see note below)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup Splenda brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
8 oz fat-free plain yogurt
1 1/2 cups mashed,very ripe banana
1 egg
6 TBSP canola oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin tin with muffin papers and spray lightly with cooking spray.

Whisk together oats, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together the yogurt, banana, egg and oil. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Do not overmix. Fill muffin cups two thirds full with batter. Bake in preheated oven for 24-26 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes on cooling rack before removing muffins from tin.

Note: You may substitute regular rolled oats in this recipe if you can't find Coach's oats. They are not available in my neck of the woods either. I've seen from other online sources that some Costcos carry Coach's oats so you may have luck there. Or you can order directly from the company.