Chunky Monkey Muffins

Dessert is a rare occasion in our household. Pre-paleo, I used to bake fairly often, but once we went gluten-free, I sort of lost interest in baking. Plus, to be honest, dessert should be a once in a while TREAT! If you peruse our Recipe Index, you will see a whopping 9 recipes (now 10!).

Not sure why, but I really felt like a good banana bread this morning. I had an over-ripe banana sitting in the fridge, and a hankering for some chocolate. Oh yes…Chunky Monkey Muffins! After a quick Google and Pinterest search, I decided I wasn’t pleased with any of the gluten-free recipes that popped up. Too much added sugar or they used coconut flour/oil or butter/ghee, which I absolutely love, but cannot have right now due to some recent allergy testing. Time to get creative. I gift to you my take on Chunky Monkey Muffins.

Chunky Monkey Muffins

Ingredients:

1 over-ripe banana, mashed

1 green-tipped banana, sliced into 24 coins

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

8 ounces (about 2 cups) blanched almond flour

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

1/4 cup Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips (The only brand I have found that are Gluten/Soy/Dairy-free.)

12 walnut halves (preferably soaked)

What to do:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and place the rack in the middle of the oven.

Line a muffin tin with 12 parchment liners.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the mashed banana, the eggs, and the vanilla. In a separate bowl, mix together the almond flour, sea salt, and baking soda. Dump the dry ingredients into the wet and add the apple cider vinegar. Stir to completely combine. You might have a few banana chunks, but don’t leave any almond flour lumps. Stir in the chocolate chips. Divide the batter among the 12 muffin liners, it will fill each one about 1/2 way. Now it’s time to get fancy! Nestle 2 banana coins onto the top of each muffin, pressing them into the batter a little bit. Then snap each walnut half into 2 pieces and tuck them in around the banana coins. Pretty, right?!

Place the muffin tin into your preheated oven and bake for 18-22 minutes. The muffins are done when they are lightly browned and only give slightly to touch. Remove from the oven and let them rest in the muffin tin for 30 minutes. Then remove to a cooling rack. When ready to devour, grab a cup of hot tea, some coffee, or a tall glass of almond milk and dig in!!

Enjoy!!

P.S. I would recommend storing any leftover muffins (haha!) in the fridge. Although they are quite tasty straight from the fridge, a few minutes in the toaster oven makes them super delicious!!