Sweet strawberry muffins with beets for color and nutrition! We used very little sugar, no oil, and 100% whole wheat, so moms and kids can agree on these colorful strawberry beet muffins.
Preheat oven to 350* F. Grease or line a standard muffin tin.
Rinse and dice a 16 ounce package of strawberries into very small pieces. Rinse, peel, and grate 1 cup of fresh beets (be careful, they stain!).
Mix dry ingredients: flour, baking powder and soda, cinnamon, and salt.
In a large bowl, combine applesauce, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Stir in 1 cup beets and all but about 3/4 cups of the strawberries (this is reserved for topping later). Smashing the strawberries as you mix is a great way to release their juices into the batter.
Slowly add dry ingredient mixture into the applesauce mixture.
Spoon mixture into muffin tin, filling each about 3/4 full. Top with sprinkles of set-aside strawberry chunks. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow to cool to room temperature before eating.