Chocolate Chip Espresso Banana Bread Muffins

My cousin Rachel shared this recipe with me... major winner!

Recipe copied from: PaleOMG

Serves: 12 muffins

Ingredients

• 3 brown bananas, mashed
• ⅓ cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup almond butter (or other nut/seed butter)
• ¼ cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon instant coffee grounds (I omitted this)
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• ½ cup Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips (I will use 1/3 cup next time)
• organic powdered sugar or powdered maple sugar, to garnish (I omitted this)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a muffin pan with oil.
2. In a large bowl, mix together bananas, maple syrup, vanilla extract, eggs, and almond butter.
3. Then add coconut flour, instant coffee, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt and mix well. Fold in chocolate chips.
4. Pour mixture into 12 muffin cups and place in oven to bake for 25 minutes.
5. Let cool before removing from muffin cups. Garnish with powdered sugar.

Cinnamon Apple 2-Minute Mug Cake

One Sunday morning, I was craving a muffin-like breakfast. This was quick, easy, and hit the spot.

Copied from: The Paleo Mom

Ingredients (for one cake):

• 1 egg
• 1/2 apple, peeled and cored
• 3 Tbsp almond flour
• 2 Tbsp walnuts
• 1 Tbsp shredded coconut
• 2 Tbsp honey
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• pinch salt

1. Very finely chop apple (I think it’s fastest to just throw it in a mini food processor or Magic Bullet and pulse a few times).  Chop walnuts.
2. Combine all ingredients in a microwave-safe mug.  Stir to combine (I like using a fork to really incorporate the egg).
3. Microwave on high for between 1 minute 45 seconds and 2 minutes (less if you have a high powered microwave, more if you have a lower powered microwave).
4. Enjoy! (fire in the fireplace optional)

Almond Flour Zucchni Bread/Muffins

This recipe is from Against All Grain's website (and cookbook!) It's so simple... minimal ingredients, nothing too fancy. These are very moist and in high demand at my friend Louise's house! :)

 

Recipe copied from here! 

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 cup blanched almond flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• 3 eggs, beaten
• ¼ cup honey
• 1 ripe banana
• 1 cup shredded, unpeeled zucchini (about 1 medium zucchini)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Farenheit.
2. Combine the dry ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Place the wet ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer, then beat on medium for 1-2 minutes until frothy and fully combined. Add the zucchini and beat again just enough to incorporate.
4. Slowly add the dry ingredients with the mixer running, until all of the flour mixture has been incorporated.
5. Spoon the batter into 2 mini loaf pans. You can also use this batter to make 12 muffins.
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the middle is set and a toothpick comes out clean (or about 20 mins for muffins!)

Paleo pumpkin breakfast "cookies"

Love these! My new favorite muffins maybe?? 

Click here for the original recipe----> Beyond Diet

Makes 12 cookies or muffins 

1/2 cup almond butter (I'll try with peanut butter next time since it's way cheaper!)

1/2 cup canned pumpkin purée 

1/4 cup pure maple syrup or raw honey 

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla 

1/2 tsp baking soda 

1.5-2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 

1/4 tsp salt 

2-3 cups mix-ins (I used diced apple, dried cranberries, sliced almonds, and chopped walnuts and pecans)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients in a bowl with a fork. 

2. Drop onto baking sheet OR in a greased muffin tin (batter seemed too thin to do cookies! If you do cookies, use only one egg) 

3. Bake for 15 mins. 

Paleo Lemon Poppyseed Muffins

My cousin Rachel encouraged me to make these. I would have never given lemon poppyseed muffins a second glance. But I'm glad I did! They are fantastic!! 

Recipe copied from: Civilized Caveman

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins

• 2 cups almond flour (185 grams)
• 3/4 cup coconut flour (90 grams)
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 tsp baking soda (3 grams)
• 2/3 cup raw honey, melted
• 2/3 cup coconut oil, melted
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons unsweetened full-fat coconut milk
• 2 tablespoons pure lemon extract
• Zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit (176 Celsius).
2. Sift almond flour, coconut flour, sea salt and baking soda in a large mixing bowl and stir with a whisk to combine.
3. Place oil and honey in the bowl of a food processor and process for 2 minutes.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.
5. Add coconut milk, lemon extract, and lemon zest, and poppy seeds. Continue to process until well combined.
6. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the wet ingredients and thoroughly combine using a wooden spoon until smooth
7. Pour batter into muffin liners in a muffin pan and bake for 20 minutes (Mine made about 16 muffins!)
8. Remove from the oven, remove from the pan and let cool
9. Enjoy

 

Pumpkin Bread

I wanted to do a little something for our sweet realtor. She went above and beyond to get us into this house!!

I asked my mom, and she suggested baking pumpkin bread. She always knows what to do. :) I agreed that pumpkin bread would be the perfect little "thank you." 

When I need to find the best recipe of its kind, I check www.allrecipes.com and search by rating. This pumpkin bread has over 5,000 5-star reviews!

"Downeast Maine Pumpkin Bread"

Original recipe makes 3 - 7x3 inch loaf pans

1 15-oz can pumpkin puree

4 eggs

1 c. vegetable oil

2/3 c. water

3 c. white sugar

3 1/2 c. flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. nutmeg

1 tsp. cinnamon 

1/2 tsp. ground cloves 

1/4 tsp. ground ginger 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
2. In a large bowl, mix together pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water and sugar until well blended. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Stir the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture until just blended. Pour into the prepared pans.
3. Bake for about 50 minutes in the preheated oven. Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

***I baked mine for at least 65! Just keep checking. 

Randy's Story

When Billie and I moved to Arizona and prayed for a good church, God kinda blew us out of the water with Thunder Mountain Community Church. Just by introducing ourselves to some people on Sunday morning and then connecting with the church on Facebook, twitter, etc, we were able to make friends and plug in almost immediately. Because of the church, I met my friend Charity the day before my first triathlon... and she was competing in it too. That alone was a blessing since I was scared out of my wits, and she had done the race before! 

We immediately bonded with our pastor. One reason was that he recently had tongue cancer. After his surgeries and treatment were completed, he received speech therapy. Yay for speech! :) (I'm a speech therapist, if you didn't get that.) That all happened before we moved to Arizona. The video below is a commercial promoting UAMC in Tucson. Pretty cool.

But Pastor Randy and his wife Kim are such a cool couple... I adore them, and I've told them so. It's been a huge blessing to work at the church office a few days a week. Often even in passing, Pastor Randy has passed on bits of encouragement or wisdom that seemed to be just what I needed at that time. If you want to grow spiritually, surround yourself with older, wiser Christians and see what happens. 


A few of my favorite Randy quotes:
"I believe there are more answers in heaven than there are prayers on earth."

"It's imperfection that allows us to represent Christ the best."

"Be willing to step over offenses and see the person's heart."

"I don't trust God if... I don't trust God when... I trust God period." --- in relation to cancer

"Ladies: focus on your husbands strengths and he will grow in those areas. Dwell on weaknesses and you will have a wimp!" --- Simple, Not Easy marriage series

 

Back to my main point for this post: This is Pastor Appreciation Month. So the church staff is doing little things for Randy all month.

I offered to make paleo muffins this week, and that's what I did!

Randy has a friend and a fellow pastor of his who are now "paleo," and we joke that maybe God is trying to tell him something. :) Next month, Billie and I are having Pastor Randy and Mrs. Kim over and cooking a paleo meal to give them a taste. Pun intended.

Anywho, I made paleo cinnamon pecan pumpkin muffins and my other favorite- coconut apple muffins for the occasion.

Paleo Cinnamon Pecan Pumpkin Muffins

Paleo Coconut Apple Muffins

Pastor Randy sent me this picture... eating his 4th... I think muffins were a success.

Paleo Cinnamon Pecan Pumpkin Muffins
From: Fit Paleo Mom

To make muffins you will need:
1 cup almond flour
1 cup almond butter
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 eggs, whisked
1/2 cup raw honey
1/3 cup coconut oil
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Mix almond flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl (I also added pumpkin pie spice)
3. Add eggs, almond butter, honey, pumpkin and coconut oil
4. Mix well
5. Add chopped pecans
6. Pour into individual greased muffin tins in equal amounts
7. Bake for 15-20 min (I baked mine longer)

Banana bread- off

A while back, I planned to test out several different banana bread/muffin recipes and give you my vote. The problem is.... I made these two so far apart that I can't remember which one we liked more! But I do know we liked them both. :) So have at it. Both get my approval. 

1. Paleo Banana Bread from Civilized Caveman:

Ingredients

• 4 bananas, (2 1/2 cups mashed or 575 grams)(they can be yellow bananas)
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup almond butter (140 grams)(or coconut, sunflower seed, macadamia nut, etc butter)
• 4 tablespoons grass-fed butter, melted (can substitute coconut oil)
• 1/2 cup coconut flour (75 grams)(or almond flour, macadamia nut meal, etc)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (gluten free or homemade)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• pinch of sea salt

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit
2. Combine your bananas, eggs, and nut butter, and grass-fed butter in a blendtec, blender, food processor, or mixing bowl and mix well (if using a mixing bowl you need a good hand-mixer)
3. Once all of your ingredients are blended, add in your coconut flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, vanilla, and sea salt and mix well
4. Grease a 9×5 glass (see notes) loaf pan with a fat of your choice (I used grass-fed butter). If you use a metal pan it will probably bake in 35-40 minutes so start checking at 35 to ensure the middle stays moist
5. Pour in your batter and spread it evenly throughout
6. Place in your preheated oven and bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean
7. Remove from oven and flip your bread out onto a cooling rack
8. Slice and serve

Variations

1. Cranberry Orange – Only use 3 tablespoons of butter. Add zest of one whole orange diced, juice of one whole orange, and1 cup dried cranberries or fresh if you want
2. Chocolate Blueberry – Add 1 cup of fresh blueberries and 1/2 cup of cocoa powder
3. Pumpkin Pecan – Reduce the almond butter to 1/4 cup and add 1/2 cup of pumpkin puree and 1 cup of roughly chopped pecan pieces

Notes

If you want to make these into muffins, use the same recipe and for mini muffins bake approximately 25 mins and normal size muffins 30-35 minutes.

Nutrition Information

Calories: 206 Fat: 17 grams Carbohydrates: 10 gram Sugar: 1 gram Sodium: 207 grams Protein: 6 gram

2. Paleo Banana Walnut Muffins from Crossfit Frederick 

DRY INGREDIENTS
2 cups almond flour
1/3 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt (I would do less.)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup baking walnuts (chopped)

WET INGREDIENTS
2-3 over-ripe bananas
1 tbsp vanilla
3 eggs (at room temperature)
1/3 cup honey
3 tbsp coconut oil (I like coconut oil the best, but olive oil also works fine.)
2 tbsp almond butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place walnuts on a baking sheet, and put them in the oven to roast. Watch them closely, as they do burn easily. Mash bananas into a liquid. Mix in honey and almond butter.
Beat eggs, oil and vanilla. Add to banana mixture.
In a separate bowl, mix all dry ingredients, including toasted walnuts.
Mix wet and dry ingredients.
Spoon batter into lined muffin cups.
Bake 15–20 minutes.

Makes 12 muffins

Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chip Streusel Topping

This recipe is from Against All Grain. If you have a chance, you should read her amazing story about ulcerative colitis and recovering from debilitating illness by eating grain-free. Now she has a cookbook with award winning recipes. She is the master of grain-free baked goods! I don't have her cookbook, but I got this recipe from her website.

Although these muffins are grain-free, I wouldn't exactly call them "paleo." They are more like a treat!! But they were delicious. As much as I love chocolate, I am not used to chocolate in my breakfast. So next time, I will use less chocolate chips.

Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chip Streusel Topping

Author: Danielle Walker – Against All Grain

Serves: 1 dozen

Ingredients

• 4 medium eggs, room temperature
• 3 tablespoons honey (optional, but may be needed if bananas aren’t too sweet)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons coconut oil, softened
• ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup coconut flour
• ¼ cup blanched almond flour
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 3 overly ripe medium sized bananas (we’re talking big brown spots)
• ¼ cup milk (I used coconut, but almond works well too)
• ¼ cup chocolate chips (optional)
• 
  For the Streusel
• ¼ cup pecans
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons chocolate chips (either homemade or Enjoy Life)

Instructions

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Using a paddle attachment in a stand mixer, cream together the coconut oil, honey, and vanilla until is light and fluffy.
3. Add your eggs one at a time, mixing well after each one. Add in the apple cider vinegar.
4. In a separate bowl, combine the flours, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.
5. Slowly incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary.
6. Mash the bananas and the milk in a bowl until it has reached a similiar consistency to baby food. Fold the banana mixture into the batter and the chocolate chips if you’re using them.
7. Spoon the batter into muffin tins lined with cute parchment squares (thanks Martha!) or these handy and reusable silicone muffin cups. Fill to about ¾ full.
8. For the streusel topping, chop the pecans, honey, and cinnamon in a blender or food processor until finely chopped. Mix in the chocolate chips, then sprinkle the mixture over the muffins.
9. Bake for 15-20 minutes, until the tops have browned lightly and a toothpick comes out clean. (I had a bake mine longer!)
10. I like the store anything made with coconut flour in the fridge for 3-4 days or the freezer for 3-4 months.

Coconut Apple Muffins

These are my favorite paleo muffins BY FAR. They don't taste any different from regular muffins! And you're not getting all the dairy, wheat, and processed stuff. These were quick and simple to make. You will love them.

I actually got a text from my Aunt Susan, who made them earlier in the week. And I had just bought the ingredients to make them myself! So these are a hit with my family so far.

This recipe is from www.fitpaleomom.com
For the muffins:
1 cup almond flour
1 cup almond butter
3 eggs
1/2 cup honey (I used 1/3 cup)
1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (I used sweetened shredded coconut instead)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
Pinch of cinnamon (I used more)
1 apple, cored and chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Grease a muffin pan (I lightly greased the muffin tin with a paper towel dipped in melted coconut oil)
3. Mix all ingredients in a mixing bowl, and fill muffin tin about 3/4 full
4. Bake 15-20 minutes (I baked on TOP rack so that the bottoms wouldn't burn)