Millet Muffins with Honey-Pecan Butter

Look for millet, a round, pale yellow grain, in health-food stores or in the organic sections of large supermarkets. If you don't have a spice grinder, pulse the millet in a mini food processor or blender, or lightly crush with a mortar and pestle. If using paper muffin cup liners, coat with cooking spray before filling with batter. Make the muffins up to 2 days ahead, the butter up to 5 days in advance.

Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 1 muffin and 1 teaspoon butter)

Ingredients

• Muffins:
• 2/3  cup  uncooked millet
• 3/4  cup  packed brown sugar
• 1  large egg
• 1  cup  fat-free buttermilk
• 1/4  cup  butter, melted
• 1 1/2  cups  all-purpose flour
• 1  teaspoon  baking powder
• 1/4  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• Cooking spray
• 
  Butter:
• 2  tablespoons  butter, softened
• 2  tablespoons  finely chopped pecans, toasted
• 1  tablespoon  honey

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375°.

To prepare muffins, place millet in a spice or coffee grinder; pulse 6 times or until lightly crushed. Set aside.

Place sugar and egg in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well combined. Stir in millet, buttermilk, and 1/4 cup butter.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk. Make a well in center of mixture. Add buttermilk mixture; stir just until moist. Let batter stand 5 minutes. Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 375° for 18 minutes or until muffins spring back when touched lightly in center. Cool in pan 5 minutes on a wire rack. Remove muffins from pan; place on wire rack.

To prepare butter, combine 2 tablespoons butter, pecans, and honey, stirring well to combine. Serve with the muffins.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

229 (30% from fat)

Fat:

7.6g (sat 3.8g,mono 2.4g,poly 0.8g)

Protein:

4.3g

Carbohydrate:

36.3g

Fiber:

1.5g

Cholesterol:

33mg

Iron:

1.5mg

Sodium:

284mg

Calcium:

67mg