Keep kids happy with these nutritious Mini strawberry muffins as a meal or snack this summer! Our recipe creation is made possible by our partnership with Megaphone Influence/The Women Bloggers, LLC to share the goodness of Nestle Gerber Cereal. All content is my own. (FTC required disclosure– ugh, FTC. )
Summer is now officially here. That means my kids are looking to me to produce more a constant supply of snacks and food to eat all day long. But I’m still just as busy even with the kids at home.
So having easy tasty snacks for my constantly hungry munchkins is crucial to making my summer go smoothly. That’s one reason why I love these mini cinnamon strawberry muffins.
Being a new mom for the 4th time I don’t have a lot of time to cater to my kid’s “I’m hungry” every few seconds all summer long. Because once I get one child set, then the next one is looking for something to munch on.
Time to bake up something tasty that they all can enjoy in between meals so I can still spend time with our new Little Rosie, get SOME cleaning accomplished and hopefully keep my sanity through the summer.
But in all honesty, I just want to be able to use the bathroom in peace without someone knocking on the door saying they are hungry and what can they eat!
Secrets to Easy Mini Strawberry Muffins
My first secret ingredient includes using freeze dried strawberry bits. This way I don’t have to worry about not having fresh berries on hand.
Honestly, my kids eat them too fast to keep them in stock. And while I can plan ahead and have strawberries available for special desserts, it’s a whole new story when it comes to an easy breakfast or tasty snack for the middle of the day.
I don’t always have fresh fruit. So I always keep freeze dried fruits on hand.
Another secret ingredient is one that may really surprise you. Gerber Baby Cereal. Yes! Gerber Baby Cereal. The same ones you can easily find at Walmart. And if you have a little baby at home you probably already have a pantry full of the stuff!
Gerber baby cereal is a great food substitute in recipes and is not just baby food!
The great thing is what while little rose LOVES the Gerber baby cereals she goes in spurts. Some weeks all she will eat is the Gerber baby cereal. And then the next week all she wants are the fruits and veggies baby food. So now I can still use the Gerber baby food even when she is in her fruits and veggies only mood.
Plus, Gerber Baby food is iron-fortified and includes Vitablocks® blend of six B Vitamins, Vitamins E and C, iron, zinc, and calcium. Gerber takes pride in only using high-quality ingredients that meet rigorous Nestlé® standards. So it is a great choice to include in your favorite baking recipes!
Make your recipe even easier by using the Gerber ‘Lil Bits Oatmeal for more fun flavor!
Mini Cinnamon Strawberry Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/3 Cups Flour
- 3/4 Cup Gerber Oatmeal Baby cereal
- 1/3 Cup Sugar
- 2-3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 Beaten Egg
- 3/4 Cup Milk
- 2 four oz jar/pack Gerber baby food - applesauce, strawberry applesauce (or 8 oz applesauce)
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 cup cooking oil
- 2/3 cup freeze dried strawberries crushed
Instructions
- Mix dry ingredients
- Mix wet ingredients separately.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients together, mixing just until wet.
- Fold in Freeze Dried Strawberries
- Fill the cups of the mini muffin pan two-thirds to three-quarters full
- Bake 375 for 10-15 minutes (Mini sized) OR
- Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes (regular size)
This recipe makes 40 of these perfectly bite sized Strawberry muffins.
These delicious mini strawberry muffins are really easy to whip together for easy finger food snacks for your kids.
Combine the dry ingredients together in a bowl.
Combine the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl.
Another secret ingredient is the Gerber Applesauce type baby food. It makes the muffins extra moist and lets you cut down on the amount of oil used.
Plus it adds a great flavor too! So you can use any fruit based Gerber baby food actually. But my family tends to really love the apple based flavors.
Or you can use just regular applesauce if you don’t have any Gerber baby food around.
Add the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
Mix until moist.
Fold in crushed freeze dried Strawberries.
Fill the cups of your mini muffin tin 2/3-3/4 full.
Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes.
Remove and allow to cool on a wrack.
If you want to use fresh strawberries instead, chop up you strawberries and add them. To make the recipe still turn out simply reduce the amount of Milk by 1/4 cup. (Freeze dried fruit requires additional liquid).
Once the mini muffins are cool to the touch, you can turn them loose on your kids. Or I should say turn your kids loose on the strawberry muffins!
And let me tell you, these will probably go fast!
The kids love that they are small bite sized.
The absolutely perfect kid-friendly finger food for summer day snacks.
Plus you can feel great knowing they are filling up on an enriching food packed with nutrients and a few secret ingredients.
Pair them with yogurt, fresh fruit, or juice for a complete meal if you’d rather serve it up as a fresh breakfast or a luxurious lunch.
Would you ever think to use Gerber baby cereal in regular recipes for your family? They make great ingredient substitutes! You just have to try these Cinnamon Strawberry Muffins!
You can pick up one of the four varieties of the Gerber baby cereal at Walmart in the baby food section. Don’t go away yet, we have a cool $50 giveaway for you down below!
Check out these other amazing recipes that use left-over Gerber Baby Cereal as an ingredient! You will just love them!
- Blueberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake
- Sweet Potato Banana Pancakes
- Banana Flavored Teething Biscuits
- No Bake Protein Bites
- Strawberry Yogurt Popsicles
- pancake muffins
- chocolate oatmeal waffles
- strawberry cheesecake bites.
- Frozen Berry Yogurt Mini Tarts
- Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal Crepes
Want to find more great recipes? Search the hashtag #CookingWithGerber and you can find all kinds of yummy creations using Gerber Cereal! Also, check out this fantastic Gerber Recipe eBook.
Want to give some of these recipes a try? Enter our $50 prepaid credit card below!
- Giveaway is open to the USA only
- Closes June 28, 2016
- Entries are valid if directions on entry form are followed.
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Lily Kwan
Wednesday 29th of June 2016
I like to use it to add flavor to baked items.
Leela
Wednesday 29th of June 2016
I like mixing it into fruit purees.
Tosha H
Tuesday 28th of June 2016
Hmm well I've never used baby food in recipes before, but I'd be interested in using it for some blueberry muffins~