Is that breakfast or dessert?
Even though most people are aware that muffins are just a fancy word for cake, they are still hot sellers at fast food restaurants, coffee shops, and breakfast diners. Customers can choose from numerous varieties of muffins; apple bran, chocolate chip, banana nut, cranberry, and blueberry (just to name a few) and have the option of adding butter, cream cheese, honey, and the like.
I believe it is of general consensus in the nutrition world to stay away from muffins, particularly those that are bigger than a softball and contain more chocolate chips than a large cookie! However, people want muffins. They love the taste, texture, and concept, and just don’t want to give that up.
The GOOD news is, I’m not asking you to “give up” muffins. I would never tell anyone to give up something COMPLETELY, especially if it was their absolute favorite food.
The BAD news is, I AM asking you to limit how many you eat, not to eat a muffin larger than your computer mouse (ish) in one sitting, look for healthier options, and try to avoid any muffin made with trans fat, zero whole grains, and more calories than a double cheeseburger.
So what about the VitaMuffin line? Are THEY healthy? If you have yet to hear about VitaMuffins, pop over to their website now and you can find all their products, nutrition facts, ingredient lists, and ordering information.
After scanning through the nutritional profile and the ingredients list of several varieties, I’ve determined that the VitaMuffin line might be a healthier alternative to your muffin eating needs.
Vitamuffins and Vitatops are between 80-100 calories each, contain 0-2.5 grams of fat, 4-7 grams of fiber, roughly 4 grams of protein, and zero grams trans fat. The ingredient list is also decent, although sugar is technically the second ingredient.
Example: BlueBran VitaTops:
Water, whole wheat flour, organic sugar, egg whites, whole wheat flakes, blueberries, molasses powder, soy bran, oat fiber, wheat protein isolate, oat bran, inulin, leavening (potassium bicarbonate, sodium acid pyrophosphate, monocalcium phosphate), wheat gluten, fruitrim (grapejuice, brown rice syrup), acacia gum, natural flavor, sea salt, cinnamon, xanthan gum, lecithin, vitamin A, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, folic acid, iron, biotin, zinc. CONTAINS EGG, SOY, WHEAT
The biggest downfall of Vitamuffins? They are going to cost you! A dozen BlueBran VitaTops will run about $15.00!! Considering most varieties cannot be found in stores, you’ll also probably get stuck with a large shipping and handling fee.
Another downside; I’ve sampled multiple VitaTop flavors and have never been very impressed with the taste. I thought they were dry, bland, and hard.
My ultimate opinion is that VitaMuffins can be a healthy addition to your diet, IF you enjoy the taste. If not, don’t even bother. You can always try making your own!! Check out this recipe for banana-apple-pumpkin pie muffin tops from Bridezilla Bakes! Click HERE.
Don't they look incredible?
QUESTION: Have you tried VitaMuffins or another VitaMuffin product? What are your thoughts?
Good advice! I found the VitaMuffin mixes in a salvage grocery store, and they were $1 a box! Previously, I was paying $4 for a box of 4 frozen Vitatops. These mixes make 12 muffins per box. Score!
The Vita Topps are a good healthy breakfast. Some flavors are not wonderful. But I love the Chocolate ones and the Banana Nut ones.
I like Vitatops for breakfast and currently have the CranBran version. I bought them at Targ@t where the price was $4.29 per box, with four in a box. They are in the freezer section. I have one Vitatop with a glass of skim milk before I leave for work. This really fills me up and I don’t have ANY cravings for more. One Vitatop is 100 calories and has no fat. The dried cranberries to the flavor.
I was able to do a product review on these a while ago and did like them!
love this post! most people get so sucked into trends that they forget to even read the labels!
I haven’t tried them, but I always hear such good things that I’m curious.
The sugar content is definitely questionable, though.
I used to eat 1-2 Deep Chocolate or Banana Nut VitaMuffins every day! Eating them made me feel virtuous (all those vtamins!)– like I was doing something super healthy for my body. When I was forced to give them up (they’re not GF), I was initially pretty bummed, however now I’m grateful because going Vitamuffin-less inspired me to bake healthier (moister) alternatives.
Bleh i am so with you on this one. I am not a fan of the taste of vitamuffins at all!!!
Vitalicious also sells VitaMuffin mixes so you can make their VitaTops at home. With the mix each muffin still ends up being about 100 calories with 15 vitamins and minerals along with 4g of protein and 8g of fiber. They sell online for $6.25 and make a dozen VitaTops.
What a great post! I’ve actually never heard of vitamuffins. I’m not a huge fan of muffins but I’d say that I would rather bake my own over buying the vitamuffins. $15?! I’d love to try them sometime though just so I know what they taste like. But I guess for a muffin lover this would be a healthier way to go. Thanks for sharing your review!
I’ve tried the dark chocolate vitatops and I love them! It’s like a little brownie
Good alternative to a high calorie muffin
I haven’t tried the vitamuffins but I have tried the vitatops. They are pretty yummy!
I agree, I’m not a huge fan of Vitamuffins. I like healthy homemade muffins so much better!
I used to buy vitamuffins all the time but then stopped and haven’t bought them in over a year. I just stopped craving them. I don’t know…it was weird. One day I loved them and the next day I didn’t care about them anymore.
For me, the best part of vitamuffins is the vitatop concept. Isn’t that what we all want anyway. I agree with you ingredients are so, so. I had tasted the chocolate in the past. I would say it was good but more of a dessert than a breakfast, as you said. I wish they made a GF version but seems their muffins contain every allergen.
I still prefer my corn muffins. But Vitamuffins are…okay. I wish they had a better muffin top, though. I’ve tried their muffin tops before too, but wasn’t too impressed. I guess you can’t have everything!
Hi Erin, thanks as always for your great info. I’ll be passing this post to a friend of mine who LOVES vitamuffins. Have a great day.
I’m so glad that vitamuffins passed because I love them! I was scared to read this post because once I have the knowledge than I can’t ignore it!
Great post Erin.
I have tried these before and to me they only tasted decent after heated in the microwave and served with some cold ice cream or butter. I agree with you, they are not the best tasting by themselves. Still, a much better alternative than a regular bakery muffin!
I’ve never tried VitaMuffins before. I prefer the taste of homemade ones better!!!
I used to buy them years ago, but they aren’t my favorite. (And I’m really not a muffin person anyway so no need!)
this is an awesome post, erin! thanks!
i have never tried a vitamuffin. here in canada (southern ontario) i have only seen 1-2 flavours available. i’d never heard of them until i read blogs with rave reviews about them. but, truth be told, after i read the ingredient list, i wasn’t that impressed! why not make a choco chip cookie or healthy squares if you want something flat?! then you can control the ingredients, too! love how you say the taste is not that wonderful…think i’ll hold off!
I’ve never tried a Vita Muffin. I completely agree with you though, really most muffins are just another word for cake.
I never had a Vita Top in my life. Is that weird? Muffins are amazing but I stay away from them, because yes, they are like cake. Good to know that the Vita Muffins are a better alternative—but $15.00! Wow!
No vitamuffins for me — I haven’t tried one ever b/c they are a little pricey for the amount you get in a box PLUS muffins are the ONLY thing I can successfully bake! hehe =) So i can nutrient those effers up in my kitchen <3
love your is it healthy posts!
I love Vitamuffins! I’ve only tried the chocolate, but I was really surprised by how tasty it was. I don’t think it’s the healthiest thing in the world, but I don’t buy them too often anymore
I love the Zen Bakery Muffins. The Carrot Cake ones are delicious and they are huge. The serving size is 1/2 a muffin, but even if you eat the whole thing it is only 220cal. The ingredient list is short and it is made with whole grains and sweetened with white grape juice. They are my favorite.
I’ve tried a few of the vitamuffins. While I do like them, I wouldn’t say they’re anything amazing. They come in handy when you want something sweet and don’t wanna indulge in something too heavy!
I bought the vitatops thinking it would be a healthy alternative…ick!! I still have a couple boxes in the freezer. I would much prefer to make homemade!!!
I have tried Vitatops..the cornbread is quite good and the chocolate is good with a little PB on it
I love Vita Tops especially the dark chocolate ones with some peanut butter on top
I found that I could get a ten pack (or something) at Costco for a decent price. Plus Target seems to have them cheaper than most other places.
I used to buy those muffins when I lived under my parents; however after I moved out and was on my own, they quickly disappeared from my grocery list….too pricy. I do however like the chocolate flavor one though.
I have tried VitaTops. I like them, but not as much as homemade
I am kind of obsessed with muffins, though…I eat them probably 1-2 days a week, on average.
I got a sample of vitamuffins at FNCE and was not impressed with the taste either. I am thinking making a homemade muffin would be your best bet. That way at least you can limit the ingredients. It might still be a bit of a treat, but hey, might as well enjoy it.
I feel the same way about Vitatops as I do about most “healthier” versions of the real thing. Better to enjoy a real muffin once in a while as a treat than substitute a less satisfying version more often. But those banana-apple-pumpkin pie muffin tops look INCREDIBLE!
Never tried VitaMuffins – maybe we can all work together to try to re-create our own recipe for cost savings!
ive never tried vitamuffins.. mainly becuz well they arent vegan, but i do think they would be better than a real muffin.. but i agree- they sure aren’t a free ticket to vitamuffin indulgence!
I am a big fan of vitamufins:-) I like having the bran versions with greek yogurt and nut butter or the chocolate versions for dessert with low fat ice cream.