Banana Muffins

As always, gluten free, egg free, corn free, soy free, and dairy free. I try to keep all of my baking recipes vegan.

These are one of my nephew's favorites, and I have to keep Lance away from them when they are still hot. I'm always careful to leave out the nuts when I am making this for my nephew - until he is a few years old, I don't want to risk him not being able to tell us if he is reacting to them.

Depending on how ripe the bananas are, you can cut way down on the sweeteners in this recipe. If you leave the sugar levels as is and your bananas have a lot of black on them, this recipe would be great for cupcakes with icing. The banana and olive oil really keep the muffins moist without compromising the texture. You'll note in recipes to follow that bananas are one of my favorite go-to's for recipes that require a nice cake texture.

Banana Muffins

3 very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 vanilla bean, scraped
1/3 cup olive oil
1/4 cup agave
1/4 cup raw turbinado sugar

1.5 cup brown rice flour
1 cup sorghum flour
3/4 cup tapioca flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

1--2 tsp coconut vinegar (can replace with apple cider vinegar)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Combine the wet ingredients and sugar first. In a separate bowl, sift the dry ingredients in a fine strainer, using a whisk to break apart any clumps. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and add the nuts. Add the coconut vinegar right before you are ready to put the muffins in the oven. I use cupcake paper as a liner. It's easier to manage that way. If you don't have cupcake liners, you can rub coconut oil on the muffin tin and lightly flour with rice flour. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until you can put a toothpick in the center and it comes out clean.

I like to make a batch of muffins on the weekend and send them with Lance to work. He rations them out throughout the week and has breakfast every day, or it's a hearty snack when he's feeling a little low on calories. I suggest putting them in the fridge because they are preservative free and won't last as long as the muffins people buy in stores, but they will taste moist and great for around a week if kept in the fridge.