Banana Chocolate Chip Coconut Muffins (vegan & easily gluten free*)

If you’re anything like us, you always have a bunch of bananas sitting on your counter. Most weeks we eat them in time, but other weeks we don’t quite get them all eaten and have quite a few extra-ripe bananas to use. A lot of times we freeze them for smoothies, or for use at a later date. Today though, I really wanted a snack that wasn’t all kinds of bad for me, so I came up with these muffins. And I wasn’t disappointed! Perfectly banana-y with just the right amount of chocolate and coconut. Mmmmm. Delish! These made for a great snack, but would also be a great addition to any breakfast. I hope you like them as much as I do!

Banana Chocolate Chip Coconut Muffins
3 very ripe bananas
1/2 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup melted coconut oil
1/3 cup soy milk (any non-dairy milk would work)
2 T ground flax seeds + 2 T warm water, whisked together
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour (*sub favorite gluten free flour blend here)
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup vegan mini chocolate chips (I used Enjoy Life)
1/4 cup unsweetened, flaked coconut

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line muffin pan with liners and set aside. Using a paddle attachment, beat together banana, brown sugar, coconut oil, soy milk, flax mixture and vanilla extract. Mix until well combined. Add flour, baking powder, and kosher salt. Mix until just combined. Fold in mini chocolate chips and coconut. Scoop into prepared liners and bake for 16 minutes, or until lightly golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Immediately transfer to a cooling rack. (I got 14 muffins)

Add a slather (or two) of Earth Balance and enjoy!

Mini Blender Muffins (vegan & gluten free)

I love Instagram. (feel free to follow me, @jlburgart and Nick, @njburgart) I check it ALL the time. It’s so much fun! I love seeing little snapshots into peoples lives, and I have found out about so many great new products, recipes, etc. Last week I came across a recipe from Averie Cooks (@averiesunshine) for mini muffins that you make IN YOUR BLENDER. Believe me, I was totally intrigued. Not only do you make them in a blender, but they’re flourless, too! I knew I had to make them. They weren’t vegan to start, so I tweaked the recipe just a bit to make them vegan. The result? Perfect little bits of deliciousness. Totally satisfying! It’s so easy to pop 2 or 3 of these babies. Yum!

Mini Blender Muffins
(recipe adapted from Averie Cooks)

1 medium ripe banana, peeled
1 “flax egg” (1 T ground flax seed + 2 T warm water)
heaping 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (store-bought works best)
3 tablespoons agave nectar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of kosher salt
1/2 cup vegan mini semi-sweet chocolate chips (I love the Enjoy Life brand)

Preheat oven to 400F. Spray mini muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside. To the canister of a blender add first 7 ingredients, and blend on high speed until smoothy and creamy, about 1 minute. Add chocolate chips and mix in by hand. (using the blender will pulverize them) Using a cookie scoop place rounded 1 tablespoons into prepared pans. Bake for 9 to 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. Watch your muffins closely, and bake until done. (mine took 10 minutes) Allow muffins to cool in pans for about 10 minutes. Store in an airtight container.

I hope you’ll give these a try! These will definitely be something we keep on rotation. They are super easy to make, and we almost always have all the ingredients on hand.

Enjoy!

Banana Chocolate Muffins (vegan and gluten free)

Nick had to go into work on Saturday morning to get some extra work done. He wanted to do something nice for his employees, so he decided he’d stop by Starbucks on his way to pick up a coffee traveler. Food is always a good motivator, and I so I offered to make some muffins. Of course I wanted to make a ton of different kinds, but I had to get serious. I quickly realized that I had a few very ripe bananas on the counter, so I immediately thought of Banana Chocolate muffins. And so I made them. And they were great. I made them vegan the first time and then made another batch the next morning gluten free. (I was getting together with Lil Sis, so why not?) The best part? They are a cinch to throw together. One bowl and you’re done. What’s easier than that?

Banana Chocolate Muffins
recipe adapted from Eat Live Run
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
4 T earth balance, melted
3/4 cup evaporated cane juice
egg replacer equal to one egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (sub gluten free of choice – I used Better Batter)
3/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare muffin tin by spraying with nonstick spray, or line with liners. In a medium bowl, mash the banana. Add the melted earth balance and sugar and mix well. Stir in egg replacer and mix well. Add vanilla, kosher salt, baking soda and flour. Mix until just combined. You don’t want to overmix. Fold in chocolate chips. Fill muffin tins (you should get 12) and bake for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack and dig in!

Gluten free goodness: