A "Healthy" Solution At Last!

For the longest time, I've been searching for a snack that would tide me over from "lunch" to my breakfast and stave off my hunger pangs. I didn't want it to be empty calories that would just leave me high on sugar and reaching out for more nosh after some time. It had to be substantial, relatively guilt-free and interesting enough to make me wait eagerly in anticipation for snack time!

Here's what my nightly schedule is like:

7.15 pm: Drag myself off the transport and into the pantry to leave my "lunch" in the fridge. Head to the labs to check for stuff that needs handing over and join colleagues in the cafeteria.

8.00 pm: Begin work proper.

11.30 pm: If I'm lucky, I get to have my "lunch" before midnight. If not, it'll be at about 1am which is a pretty agonizingly long wait...

3 am: Head to the pantry to "forage" for food in the cupboard and fridge - often unsuccessfully. Bang in a sweet potato if I brought one. Or cross my fingers and head over to another building to see if they have anything nice in stock at the cafeteria.

6.30 am: Run down to the cafeteria for breakfast!

So if I can't get anything to eat at 3, it's quite a nightmare trying to quiet a rumbling stomach!

Those dark days look to be over though, after my first batch of Whole Wheat Banana Muffins came out of the oven looking all golden brown and irresistible...they're not *exactly* guilt-free with the butter and sugar in them but I'll be glad to have one of these in my bag when the gnawing hunger pangs start.

The whole wheat flour (much better than plain flour) is chock full of fibre and really gives these muffins a pretty chewy but soft interior which tricks your mind into thinking its full before you're even halfway through one! And the banana...well it's amazing how the smell of this fruit in the oven just seems so comforting and homely. Like a warm blanket around a freezing you. The yoghurt also adds a nice full flavour to these muffins!

Anyway, this muffin is pretty much a blank slate and is versatile enough to take on a couple of extra ingredients like a handful of chopped roasted walnuts, or chocolate chips if you're not too concerned about the calorie count, or fresh blueberries for a tangy zing.

Just let your imagination take over!  Probably should take more photos next time though...