Recently I had a meeting with Stefanie, our integrative physician at Nourish, during which she offered me a cup of ginger tea and one of these muffins. It was such a delightful gesture – I’m grateful every day that I have a company where meetings are conducted at a kitchen table over homemade muffins! (My friend Erin would tell you that I’ve held that vision for a very long time and sometimes I can’t believe it’s really happening.) Her sweet gesture lifted my mood for the entire day – muffins just have a way of doing that.

As much as I love them, sometimes muffins are more like, well, cake! These aren’t. Moistened with nonfat yogurt and a little canola oil, these have a reasonable amount of sugar and use white whole wheat flour. That makes them guilt-free on top of being delicious. Try them the next time you’re hosting a meeting (or the next time you want to fill a lunchbox with a special treat for morning snack)!

Lemon-Blueberry Muffins

makes 1 dozen

Ingredients:

3/4 cup plain nonfat yogurt

1/3 cup canola oil

1 large egg

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar, divided

3 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest, divided

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups white whole-wheat flour (or sub 3/4 c. white and 3/4 c. whole wheat)

1/2 cup fine or medium stone-ground cornmeal

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups frozen blueberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or spray with cooking spray.

2. Whisk together in a medium bowl, yogurt, oil, egg, 1/2 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

4. Add the yogurt mixture to the flour mixture and fold until almost blended. Gently fold in frozen blueberries.

5. Divide the batter among muffin cups. Combine the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar and 1 teaspoon of lemon zest. Sprinkle evenly over the tops of the muffins.

6. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the muffins are golden brown and they spring back lightly to the touch. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack and let cool for at least an additional 5 minutes before serving.

Tabbouleh may be hard to spell and hard to pronounce, but thankfully, it’s not hard to make! This is a riff on tabbouleh that feels just right for the warm spell we’ve been having here in Ohio.  It’s finally March, everyone! We’re so close to spring I can smell it. You’ll be able to smell it, too, with the bright, fresh flavors and aromas in this cold salad.

Bulgur is simply cracked wheat – you can find it in the organic grains section – Bob’s Red Mill is a widely available brand. You don’t cook it but rather soak it in boiling water so that it hydrates. Once that is done, you just stir in some simple ingredients like chopped tomatoes, parsley, and shallots, and then add some oil and vinegar. Feta or goat cheese is the perfect finish, but if you’re avoiding cheese, perhaps a little chopped avocado would substitute nicely?

Mediterranean Bulgur Salad

serves 4

Ingredients:

1 cup medium-grind bulgur

kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

3 cups grape tomatoes, halved

1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1 shallot, minced

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 ounces crumbled feta or goat cheese

Directions:

1. Place bulgur and salt to taste in a heatproof bowl. Add 2 cups of boiling water. Cover and let stand until tender but intact, about 30 minutes.

2. Drain bulgur in a strainer, pressing to remove liquid. Return to bowl. Add tomatoes, parsley, shallot, vinegar, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and toss. Top each serving with 1 ounce of crumbled feta or goat cheese.