Gluten-free, Dairy-free, and Packed with Healthy Goodness
When the kids go back to school, I immediately start making muffins! They make a quick breakfast, a good lunchbox addition, and an easy after-school snack. But most muffins are about as healthy as a cookie, so I do my best to sneak as much healthy goodness into my muffins as possible, without scaring off the kiddos. Oh, and of course I have to make them gluten & dairy free for my celiac and lactose-intolerant household members. Well, these healthy Banana Oatmeal muffins got two thumbs up from both of my teens, which means I'm ready to share the recipe with you.
Now, don't go making these muffins until you have three nice ripe bananas going to waste on your countertop. They should be full of brown spots! The ones in the picture are NOT good for muffin making - they are the ones I didn't use.
I used chickpea flour in these muffins as I've been trying to use flours that add protein or fiber in my muffin recipes. Chickpea flour (aka garbanzo bean flour) adds a generous dose of both! While chickpea flour has a stronger taste than some other choices, the banana flavor of these muffins is strong enough to drown it out. That said, if you don't have chickpea flour on hand, you can use regular flour or a gluten-free all-purpose blend. You could go wild and try another type of flour too, but I can't vouch for the results. If you do, let me know how it goes!
This recipe makes 12 large muffins.
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats (use GF oats if you need to)
1 1/4 cups chickpea flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
1 tsp vanilla
3 ripe bananas
3/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional, I like the extra protein)
Topping:
1/2 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 tsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp melted butter or non-dairy butter substitute
Making the Muffins
Start by preheating your oven to 375F and prepping your muffin tins with some cooking spray or liners.
In a large bowl, mix all the dry ingredients together (old-fashioned oats through nutmeg).
In a smaller bowl, mix egg, oil, and vanilla. Add this wet mixture into the dry mixture and stir just to combine.
In that same messy small bowl (because I hate washing dishes), add your 3 ripe bananas and mash them up well. Then add them to the muffin mixture in the large bowl and give it another stir.
If you want to add nuts, this is your time! I like chopped walnuts in muffins, but you add whatever you like.
Now let this muffin mixture sit for a minute while you do the rest. Gluten-free flours typically benefit from a little time to soak up liquid before baking so the end product will be less grainy.
Making the Topping
I realize this topping isn't the healthiest part of the muffin, but for a small amount of sugar and fat, it really make these muffins taste decadent! I'm sure this is what won my kids over. Since my son avoids dairy, I used Earths Balance buttery sticks but you could use real butter, coconut oil, or whatever you like in your household. Just melt it first!
Combine topping ingredients in a small bowl. That's it. Easy peasy.
Assembly & Baking
Scoop the muffin batter into a 12-muffin tin. It should fill them to about 3/4 way. Because I added nuts, mine were a little fuller but it wasn't a problem. They are just a little trickier to get out of the tins once baked.
Sprinkle some of the topping onto each muffin. Make sure it's touching the wet muffin batter so it adheres (smoosh it in if you need to)
Pop those muffins into your 375F oven. They took 20 minutes in my oven but everyone's is a little different so you may want to start checking yours at 18 min. They are done when a toothpick comes out clean (note, the topping will still be a little sticky so ignore that and look to see if the muffin itself is dry inside).
Let them cool in the muffin tin for about 10 min and then gently remove onto a cooling rack to finish cooling. Store any muffins that don't get eaten right away in an airtight container lined on the bottom with a paper towel. For a moist muffin like this, the paper towel helps prevent them from getting soggy as they sit.
Muffin Mania
Mmmmm, muffins. I love to make these on the weekend to ease the start of a busy week with simple snacks. I hope your household enjoys these muffins as much as mine does! I am in the midst of a "month of muffin making" so follow my Facebook page for more muffin recipes. If you have any favorite healthy gluten-free muffins, I'd love to hear about them too! Please comment below.
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