Paleo Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

I'm in the kitchen again and can't help but experiment to see what yummy healthy goodness I can create!  It's seriously like a fun project for me.  Everyone needs a hobby to take them away from the hectic stressful life... and right now, mine is kitchen experimenting time!

If you've already subscribed to my YouTube Channel - KHo Loves You, you may have seen my easy KHotCakes recipe.  I'm obsessed.  Just two ingredients - bananas and eggs... and voila... pancakes that are not only delicious but also grain-free, gluten-free, and Paleo!  It's one of the easiest breakfasts to make. 

So today, I had some really ripe bananas sitting on my kitchen counter and didn't want them to go to waste.  I've done the banana pancake thing... let's try something new... BANANA MUFFINS!!!  Pinterest to the rescue...LOL... I came across this one blog called "Tessa the Domestic Diva" and she had an easy recipe using bananas, eggs, and nut butter.  I've made Paleo bread in the past with cashew butter and I remember that the consistency was surprisingly very bread-like so I thought why not run with it.  I was inspired and now I'm sharing with you my version!

Ingredients
2 really ripe bananas (the browner the better for sweetness)
2 eggs
1 cup nut butter (any kind - almond, cashew, peanut, Brazil nut, sunflower seed)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla or 1 tbs honey (optional)
Enjoy Life Chocolate Chips (1/2 cup)


Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place all ingredients (except chocolate chips) into a blender or food processor.
3. Blend until well mixed: batter will be sticky.
4. Fold in chocolate chips.
5. Pour batter into a greased mini muffin tins.
6. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes for mini muffin tin or 12-15 minutes for regular muffin tin.

So, like I mentioned earlier, I love me some easy recipes and this one is just that.  I literally threw everything in my Blendtec, pressed a button, and bam, I had banana muffin batter.  "Tessa the Domestic Diva" said cashew butter was her favorite for this recipe. I like to mix things up and went ahead and used 1/3 cup raw almond butter, 1/3 cup honey Brazil nut butter, and 1/3 cup cashew butter.  I got my nut butters from Essential Living Foods.  If you haven't tried their products, I highly recommend it.  They have tons of super-foods and high quality, organic products... which I'm sure you'll be seeing more blogs and recipes from me using their products.  Their honey Brazil nut butter is pretty amazing so I'm sure it definitely added to these muffins.  I didn't use vanilla or honey when I made these but that's a personal preference on how sweet you like your treats.  For me, the bananas were sweet enough and everyone who tried them thought they were perfect as is.  I didn't put this in the ingredients list but I also added about 2 tbsp of chia seeds.  I like to throw in chia seeds whenever I can for some added protein and fiber.  If you have chia, go ahead and toss some in for fun.... you won't even be able to taste it.  I added the chocolate chips last since I knew my Blendtec would probably just disintegrate them.  I also suggest sprinkling some on top of the muffins to give them a really nice presentable chocolate chip muffin top.

I'm excited for you to try out this recipe.  I'll be posting a video soon so stay tuned.  Aren't you excited to get your muffin fix in without the guilt?!?  It's all about cheating smart and picking the right ingredients!  I know that living a healthy lifestyle is hard so I hope I can keep inspiring you and giving you tips on how to keep it simple and easy!  Now go make some muffins and enjoy every bite!  KHo loves you!!!!!