Chocolate Banana Muffins

I absolutely LOVE this recipe because I am a sweets girl and a chocolate girl especially so this muffin recipe basically came about to help satiate both those desires. I found the starter for this recipe in the Fixate cookbook by Autumn Calabrese, and then modified it to fit not only my taste, but my lifestyle. The original recipe is delicious and I've made it several times for myself and for clients, but I find this helps me really work through the sweet cravings more than the original recipe. 

Chocolate Banana Muffins

Ingredients:

2 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 medium bananas, ripe and mashed
1 tbsp. extra-virgin coconut oil, melted
1 cup almond flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder, unsweetened
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1 dash sea salt
1/2 cup or 1 container apple sauce, unsweetened

Directions:

1. Preheat over to 350 degrees F. Prepare 9 muffin tins by lining with muffin tin liners or coating with non-stick spray. (I've tried liners and personally have found that any healthy muffin always sticks to the liner so I always forgo them, use spray and put them directly in the cups).

2. Combine eggs, banana, apple sauce, and coconut oil in a medium bowl and mix well. Set aside. 

3. Combine almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl; mix well. 

4. Add almond meal mixture to egg mixture; mix until blended. 

5. Divide batter evenly between prepared muffin cups. 

6. Bake 16-18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack and cool.

Notes: I use a Kitchen Aid when I make these which really speeds up the process. I also just slice the bananas quickly, and if they're ripe enough they should just mash when you mix them with the eggs and apple sauce. I do sometimes add a little cinnamon if I feel like it, and like to leave the bananas with some texture within the muffin as you can see in the close up picture. As long as you use gluten-free ingredients this is an AWESOME recipe for those with a celiac allergy. 

Honestly, I had to keep myself from eating more than one a day because they are so tasty, but I would HIGHLY recommend placing these in the fridge because the ingredients are perishable, and if you're not going to eat them over the week, freeze half of them and take them out of the freezer when you want to phase them back into your meal plan. I've tragically had some go bad before and had to throw them away (the only downside to using good, fresh ingredients). 

I hope you enjoy these as much as we do in my house. They're so tasty that even my not-so-healthy boyfriend packs them in his lunchbox!

Orange-Scented Almond and Olive Oil Muffins:

Breakfast Synergy at It's Best

I truly believe that breakfast is the most important part of any person's day.  It's a hard reality that skipping this meal basically sets you up for food-failure the rest of the day.  EAT BREAKFAST PEOPLE!

I'm done yelling. Now, this is basically one of my, "Look how yummy your day can begin!" pictures, and it can, but the focus here should be on the muffin in the upper part of the picture that looks so sad and alone.  I came across this recipe, again watching Giada on Food Network, while doing some other mundane task, and said to myself, "I like Almond Flour, and OJ, and Greek yogurt, and EVOO!"  But, more importantly, I LOVE muffins!  So I rolled my sleeves up, turned on the Kitchen Aid and made some muffins.

Orange-Scented Almond and Olive Oil Muffins

I did, of course make two important substitutions when making these muffins.  First, I eliminated the sugar for Stevia, and in place of the AP flour I substituted Whole Wheat Flour.  I've found that at times this change in flour can make baked goods a little denser in texture (not unbearable, just different), but because it's mixed with Almond flour in this recipe, you barely notice the difference at all.  The are SOOOO delicious, and the best part is that your entire house smells like citrus and almonds while you're cooking.  

But, remember, a single muffin does not a meal make!  Eat your muffin as your carb/grain/fiber, but add some FF Greek yogurt or Cottage Cheese, some fruit, and maybe some egg whites.  You'll feel like a new person at the beginning of your day, and an even better person at noon when your stomach isn't cursing you for feeding it that Special K bar (which BTW has nothing but crap in it, so just walk by the damn box in the grocery store and leave it for some other person).