Sweet Potato-Beet Swirl Muffins are a sneaky breakfast treat or afternoon snack. This post is brought to you by Netflix.

When we first learn that we’ll be parents, we make mental lists of all the things we will and won’t do. We’ll read to them every night. We won’t let them watch TV for more than 30 minutes a day. Dinner will always be homemade, and we’ll never lie to them about what we’re eating.

Reality can sometimes hit us hard, and when you’re struggling to find a balance between healthy food and just eat it, we’re all eating it and nothing is wrong with it for crying out loud it’s not an Instagram-worthy time around the family table.

So we lie. We lie about the food, we lie about ingredients. We lie about why we don’t eat at certain places. And, once we start being real with ourselves, we realize we’ve been lying to them for years, ever since they’ve been born. About safety. About recommended age for toys. About anything to get them to stop asking questions for fifteen minutes. And that’s OK.

You see, once we accept that we have certain limitations, it all sort of comes together in an easier way. As I told a friend the other day, I’ve come to realize that my role as a parent mostly revolves around not apologizing for the choices I make for my kids. And lying to help my kids’ safety or health is so far down on the bad deeds list, The Rayburns, Emily Thorne, and the entire cast of Pretty Little Liars would just roll their eyes at me.

I didn’t really have to lie when it came to these sweet potato-beet swirl muffins. (I certainly didn’t have to blackmail anyone or learn mixed martial arts.) All my older son was interested in was finding out if they had blueberries, and all my younger son wanted to know was if he could eat one immediately. Still, being able to feed them a snack that has veggies filled with vitamins, potassium, and fiber feels like a sneaky win.

Sweet Potato-Beet Swirl Muffins are a sneaky way to get your vitamins.

The swirl in these muffins is muted, because it relies on the natural coloring of the sweet potato and beet. You can add food coloring if you want a more vivid beet swirl, but I prefer to leave out coloring when I can. Note that the recipe calls for the sweet potato and beets to be mashed ahead of time, which is a good project for the night before. Roast your potatoes and beets in an oven for about an hour, and they should be easily mashed.

They’re best eaten hot from the oven, but keep well in an airtight container for a few days.

And hey, if you need to be reminded that your lies are tiny, check out Bloodlines, now streaming on Netflix.

Sweet Potato-Beet Swirl Muffins

Name: Sweet Potato-Beet Swirl Muffins
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 12
Ingredients: 2 cups all-purpose flour; 1/2 cup packed brown sugar; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 4 teaspoons baking powder; 1/2 teaspoon baking soda; 1 teaspoon ground cardamom; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1 large egg; 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract; 1/3 cup whole milk; 2 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil, at room temperature; 2/3 cup mashed cooked sweet potato; 2/3 cup mashed cooked beets

Yield: 12 muffins

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Sweet Potato-Beet Swirl Muffins are a sneaky breakfast treat or afternoon snack.

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup whole milk
2 tablespoons melted butter or coconut oil, at room temperature
2/3 cup mashed cooked sweet potato
2/3 cup mashed cooked beets

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F and grease a 12-cup muffin tin or line with paper liners.
In a large bowl sift together flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cardamom, and cinnamon.
In another bowl, beat egg, then mix in vanilla, milk, and butter or oil. Stir egg mixture into flour mixture until combined, but do not overmix.
Pour half the batter into another bowl. Mix sweet potato into one bowl and beets into the other.
Pour batter into muffin cups, alternating between flavors. Swirl batters together in each cup, using a toothpick.
Bake for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1 muffins
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 159Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 21mgSodium: 341mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 1gSugar: 9gProtein: 3g

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Join the Conversation

Steff says
April 16, 2015 at 7:22 pm
One for me, too, please!
SS says
February 14, 2016 at 1:26 pm
I just made these today. I had a few issues with the recipe as written. The batter was very dry, like dough. I had to add a little milk to just get it to pouring consistency. The spices were very muted – I would add more, and also some dry ginger powder. The final product was a little under-sweet for our tastes, so I would adjust the sugar, or add some maple or agave syrup into the batter. Other than that, I liked the incorporation of beets and sweet potatoes into the muffins.
- Megan says
  February 14, 2016 at 7:30 pm
  @SS I’m sorry you had problems with the recipe. The batter shouldn’t be as thick as dough, but definitely thicker than a cupcake batter and not quite “pourable”. The spices are definitely easily adjusted to taste, and the age of your spices will also make a difference because they lose potency after time. Thanks for trying the recipe and I appreciate the feedback!
liz says
June 10, 2017 at 10:38 am
The ratios in this recipe seem to be wrong. I tried it and there was way too much flour compared to milk. I could hardly mix it into a batter. And there was very little sweetness compared to the amount of batter. I tend to use less sugar than what’s called for in recipes, but for this one, it was way too little sweetness. I think you need to readjust the measurements.