Pineapple Upside-down Muffins

Tonight I made Pineapple Upside-down Muffins. They are packed with fruits and vegetables, plus they make your entire house smell delicious. So once again, I am attempting to make something healthy, but still taste really good. They are super moist and if you want to just make carrot muffins, just omit the topping.

Tip: Unlike cooking, when you're baking you should stick the measurements exactly.

Pineapple Upside-down Muffins

 Ingredients:

Topping

• 2 Tbl packed light brown sugar
• 2 Tbl chopped walnuts, or pecans (optional)
• 1 10-ounce can pineapple slices

Muffins

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbl ground cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 Tbl pineapple juice, or orange juice
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 8-ounce can crushed pineapple, not drained
• 1 cup grated carrot (about 1 large)
• 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
• 3/4 cup raisins
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, or pecans (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Coat 12 muffin cups with cooking spray.

Topping: Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar into each muffin cup. Sprinkle nuts, if using, over the sugar. Stack pineapple slices and cut into 6 wedges. Place 2 wedges in each muffin cup. (I didn't have pineapple slices, but I did have an extra can of crushed pineapples, so I took out the juice and placed a couple crushed pineapple in each muffin tin.)

Muffins: Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.

Whisk eggs and brown sugar in a medium bowl until smooth. Whisk in oil, juice and vanilla. Stir in crushed pineapple.

Make a well in the dry ingredients; add the wet ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until just combined.

Stir in carrot, oats, raisins and nuts, if using. Scoop the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake the muffins until the tops are golden brown and firm to the touch, 15-20 minutes (or until golden). Immediately loosen edges and turn muffins out onto a baking sheet. Restore any stray pineapple pieces and nuts. Let cool for at least 10 minutes. Serve upside-down, either warm or at room temperature.