I promised you an apple recipe and here it is! I have apples on my mind now that it’s October, and this is a great apple muffin recipe! It’s pretty healthy, too, with whole wheat flour, Greek yogurt, honey, and olive oil as some of the ingredients.

I don’t use whole wheat flour in my baking very often–I’ve found it hard to substitute in many recipes because the flavor comes out a little too wheaty for my taste. But I think it’s perfect in this muffin recipe! I don’t really notice the wheatiness that much–maybe it’s because the spices and chopped apples give this muffin such a good flavor. I like to chop my apples into small chunks for these muffins, too–that way, there’s lots of apple taste in every bite!

The streusel topping does have a lot of brown sugar in it, but you can substitute raw or organic sugar if you like. Also, when you mix the topping, it will seem like a lot of topping, but you’ll be putting about a Tablespoon of it on top of each muffin. You’ll have extra, but it’s better to have too much topping than not enough, right? You can always save it for other muffins or a coffee cake. If you don’t want to put so much streusel topping on these muffins, cut the streusel ingredients in half, and you should have more than enough to lightly top each muffin!

WHOLE WHEAT HONEY APPLE MUFFINS by NancyC

Makes about 19 muffins

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup honey
• 3/4 cup light olive oil
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup plus 1 Tablespoon plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
• 2 1/2 cups peeled and chopped apples (if you use organic apples, peeling is optional–I like to use organic Gala apples)
• Streusel Topping: 1/3 cup whole wheat flour, 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1/2 Tablespoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon cloves, 2 Tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line two muffin tins with 19 paper muffin cups.

In a medium size bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground spices; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat eggs, then add the honey, olive oil, and vanilla extract, blending everything well. Stir in the Greek yogurt.

Add the flour mixture to the egg/honey mixture and stir just until combined, being careful not to overmix. Fold in the chopped apples.

Fill muffin cups with batter, filling about 3/4 full.

Mix streusel topping ingredients together in a medium size bowl, then top muffins with streusel topping–use a heaping 1/2 Tablespoon per muffin (or less, if you prefer).

Bake at 350˚F for 14 to 15 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or almost clean (be careful not to overbake, or muffins will be a little dry).

Let muffins cool in pan for a few minutes, then remove and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

I really like the flavor the ground spices give these muffins–and all the tasty chunks of apples in them!

What kind of recipes do you like to make with whole wheat flour?

Linked to Fiesta Friday, Meal Plan Monday, Weekend Potluck, Inspire Me Monday.