Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Muffins

Sometimes I get experimental in the kitchen and start combining things that should NEVER go together and end up creating a new dish that I love - or that helps fill the trash...  Sometimes someone sends me a recipe for "Aunt Ethel's Double Dutch Chocolate Birthday Cake" or similar, and asks me if I can make it healthy - and I get lucky and make it work ( I fail more often than I succeed, but you guys never see those!).  And SOMETIMES I come across a recipe that just needs to be shared.  This one fits in the latter category.  

The recipe came from Europe - Germany I believe - and required some conversion from traditional European baking using WEIGHTS of ingredients instead of QUANTITIES.  I'm pretty sure that the vast majority of you would just close your browser and walk away if I told you to add 80 grams of ingredient XXX...  So..  I got out my scales, weighed all the ingredients and converted them to measures.  I DID add the hazelnuts, because...  HAZELNUTS!!!

These little muffins are the perfect 'grab and go' for breakfast or snacks.  They store perfectly in the refrigerator or freezer.  Oh!  and perhaps MOST importantly, they TASTE TERRIFIC!!

Modified from cleanleanbakes.com

Serves: 12 

Ingredients

3/4 cup rolled oats
3 scoops Chocolate Whey Protein (Isolate)
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp peanut butter (crunchy or smooth - your choice)
2 Tbsp (Sugar Equivalent) artificial sweetener
2 Tbsp coconut oil
1/2 cup quark (if you can find it - otherwise see Cook's Notes)
2 large eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or milk of choice)
1/2 oz mini chocolate chips
1/2 oz chopped hazelnuts

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400 F
Grease 12-cup muffin pan, set aside.
In a large bowl combine oats, whey protein powder, baking powder, and salt.
Set aside.

In a medium bowl combine peanut butter, sweetener and oil until well combined.
Add in quark and eggs, stirring gently until combined.
Add in milk, stir again until combined.

Pour wet ingredients into large bowl of dry ingredients.

Use large rubber spatula to gently combine.
Batter will be thick and wet.

(Above are the directions for how you SHOULD mix it..  Honesty here...  I just dumped it all in my Ninja blender and gave it a whirl!)

Evenly distribute batter into greased muffin pan, filling to top.
Garnish with mini chocolate chips and hazelnuts
Bake for 15-18 minutes, until middle is set.
Allow the muffins to cool in pan before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

Store in airtight container in fridge or freezer for longer periods of time.

Cook's Notes:

• Quark is a German farmer's cheese made without rennet.  It's an excellent replacement for butter in scrambled eggs, cream cheese in cheesecake or served with fresh fruit.  You can often find it in tubs at Trader Joe's or Whole Foods (and other upscale markets)
• Substitutes for 'quark': fromage frais, fromage blanc or marscapone - which is richer - OR - 2 parts ricotta and 1 part sour cream
• I added the hazelnuts to the original recipe, but peanuts or almonds would work beautifully as well
• Learn from my mistake: paper muffin cups recommended

I like to eat these warmed up drizzled with extra peanut (or almond) butter.

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Per Serving	% Daily Value*
Calories 109
Total Fat 6.4g	8%
Saturated Fat 3.2g	16%
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 33mg	12%
Sodium 96mg	4%
Potassium 112mg	2%
Total Carb 5.7g	2%
Dietary Fiber 1.1g	4%
Sugars 0.7g
Protein 8.5g