Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

 Another spur-of-the-moment baking experience that yielded great results.  After finishing up the Apple and Carrot Nut Bread, I needed another grab-and-go breakfast item and, as usual, wanted to go about it with little or no additional shopping.  

This recipe fits the bill, especially, because of its flexibility.  I used agave nectar, but that can easily be substituted with an equal amount of honey or maple syrup.  I almost always have a few bananas in the freezer, but you could also use roughly 1 - 1 1/2 cups of another mashed item like pumpkin or sweet potato.  Everything else is pretty much always in my house! 

I have now made these twice and am still enthusiastic about the results.  I've mixed in about 1/2 cup of chopped nuts (whatever you have on hand - for me, it was a mix of walnuts and almonds) on one occasion and then 1 cup of frozen blueberries handpicked in Vermont last season on the second.  Each worked nicely, so I've recommended a "grab bag" of 1/2-3/4 cup mix-ins of your choice.  Leave your variations in the comments if you play with this recipe!

Whole Wheat Banana Muffins

• 1/3 cup organic agave nectar
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 3 large ripe bananas (or 1 1/2 cups pumpkin or sweet potato puree)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp ground cloves
• 3 tbsp plain whole milk (or lowfat) yogurt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2-3/4 cup mix-ins (nuts, dried fruit, berries - fresh or frozen, grated carrot or zucchini, have fun!)

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. Combine all ingredients until well mixed.
3. For 6 large muffins, cook 20 minutes (for 12 regular, cook 10 minutes).  For loaf bread, cook 35-40 minutes.

Comments

[Alissa]

I was waiting for this post! Is there really no egg in the recipe? I will be trying these soon :)

[Kristin, the Brooklyn Forager]

I had to give the recipe another try since I forgot pictures the first time. :) No egg in this recipe. Let me know what you think!

[miriam]

these are the muffins we were talking about! they look so good! yum.