Just Bananas Muffins

I've tried making gluten free and healthy muffin recipes before. A lot of the recipes are gloppy in the middle, as if they didn't cook all the way through. This recipe is not like the others. It rises nicely and has a nice texture throughout. It has no added sugar (if you don't add chocolate chips) or oil, and is gluten free if you use gluten free oats.

I added some Camino chocolate chips to half the batter, and raisins to the other half. It may not be a good idea to add wet things like fresh fruit. Serve your berries on the side instead.

For the oats, you can grind them in a blender, or buy oat flour. 2 cups of oats grinds into 2 cups of oat flour, so if you buy it already ground, just measure 2 cups.

LINE YOUR PAN. This is important. Regular paper liners will stick because these muffins don't have oil or butter. I rarely have good luck removing muffins from the pan with no liner at all, so I just don't do it. The Forks Over Knives recipe says that you can use silicone muffin pans, but I have had no luck with those either. Maybe they will work for you? I had some paper liners in the cupboard that were made of parchment, but you don't have to buy them, you can make your own. Here's a good tutorial.

Just Bananas Muffins
Original recipe by Forks Over Knives

Makes 12 Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups oats, ground into flour
• 2 tablespoons ground chia or flax seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ tablespoon baking powder (without aluminium)
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 4 ripe bananas
• ½ cup apple juice, unsweetened (apple cider works too)
• ½ cup apple sauce, unsweetened
• ½ tablespoon vanilla
• ½ tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup add ins such as chocolate chips, nuts or raisins

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line your muffin tin with parchment paper liners.
2. Combine the oat flour, chia, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda in a medium bowl.
3. Place the bananas in a blender and puree until there are no lumps. Add the apple juice, apple sauce, vanilla and vinegar. Blend just until combined.
4. Add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir just to combine. Add the add ins.
5. Divide the batter among the 12 prepared muffin cups, and bake for about 25 minutes. You can over-bake these a little because they won't burn. There's no fat, and lots of moisture. I baked mine for 25-30 minutes just to ensure that the centre would be cooked through. Use the usual toothpick text to determine doneness.
6. Allow to cool before consuming. They will also come out of the liners easier when they are completely cool.
7. Store on a plate covered with a towel for a day or two. I assume they can be refrigerated for about a week, or frozen for longer - if they last that long.