Sunshine Upside Down Muffins

I just found a great blog called Eat 80/20; it's run by a dietician who recommends eating healthy 80% of the time and allowing yourself to indulge for the remaining 20%.  (This one is an 80-ish recipe.)  I can't wait to try more of her recipes, but these muffins looked so good that I made them over the weekend with just a couple of changes.

This recipe makes 12 muffins or 6 muffin tops; I know I've already professed my love for my muffin top pans.  I opted for the muffin tops here, which ended up making the whole family happy. 

Buck loves pineapple and breakfast breads and muffins, so I knew these would be right up his alley.  Little did I know that these are also right up Teak's alley.  While I was changing the sheets on the bed in the other room, Teak's Go-Go-Gadget-tongue managed to reach one of these huge muffin tops off the cooling rack on the kitchen counter.  Let it be known that these were not close to the edge of the counter.  Apparently the old adage is true: where there's a will, there's a way.

Sunshine Upside Down Muffins

1 (8oz) can crushed pineapple, drained and divided
1 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 cup applesauce
1 egg
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (all-purpose would be fine)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1 large carrot, grated

Preheat oven to 350.  In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.  Add brown sugar and 3/4 can of pineapple.  Continue to heat over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, as the rest of the muffin batter is prepared.

In a mixing bowl, combine remaining pineapple, applesauce, egg, vanilla, and white sugar.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and pecans.  Fold flour mixture into wet mixture until just moistened.  Gently stir in grated carrot.   

Spray the cups of a muffin tin generously with cooking spray (without flour).  Spoon about one tablespoon of the warm pineapple mixture into the bottom of each muffin cup, spreading evenly.  Spoon muffin batter on top of pineapple mixture, filling each cup about 2/3 full.  Bake muffins for 18-20 minutes on middle rack or until toothpick comes out clean. 

Remove from oven and use a sharp knife to run around the edges of each muffin.  While muffins are still warm, turn tin over onto cooling rack to release muffins.