Strawberry Muffins

It finally feels like summer around here & strawberries are finally in season, so I figured nothing is more appropriate than making & baking some fresh, healthy strawberry muffins :) This recipe is super easy and only takes about 15 min prep work (plus 15-20 minutes bake time), and minus the fresh strawberries I bet you have all the other ingredients in your kitchen already.

What You'll Need:
- About 1 1/2 cups sliced strawberries -- I sorta just eyeballed this, sliced up almost an entire 16 oz package of strawberries. I used organic strawberries, which I think made this taste even better (& better for you!)
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose or whole wheat (or split) flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup ground flax seed
- 1 cup low-fat buttermilk or milk substitute. I used vanilla almond milk - delicious ;)
- 1/4 cup light olive oil or vegetable oil
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 12-cups in muffin tins with paper liners.

2. Toss together strawberries and sugar. Using a potato masher, lightly mash berries & set aside.

3. In a large bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients: the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, rolled oats, and ground flax seed. In a glass 2-quart measuring cup or a medium bowl, combine all the wet ingredients: milk, oil, egg, and vanilla.

4. Pour in the milk mixture and the berry mixture into the dry flour mixture. Fold just until combined, be careful not to mix too thoroughly or else muffins will have a "harder" texture.

5. Using a large spoon, divide the batter among the muffin cups. Sprinkle the tops with rolled oats and/or sugar.

6. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer muffins to a rack/plate/container to cool completely, & enjoy!