Ingredients
Bowl 1 – Wet Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- 3 tablespoons luke warm water
- 3 medium ripe bananas (ca. 280 g), mashed into a puree with a fork
- 320 ml unsweetened almond milk
- 90 ml melted virgin coconut oil
- 90 g soft brown sugar (I recommend GEPA organic raw cane sugar mascobado)
Bowl 2 – Dry Ingredients:
- 200 g buckwheat flour
- 3 tablespoons arrowroot powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder (Phosphate-free)
- 2 tablespoons raw cacao powder (see notes below)
- 100 g dark chocolate (70 % cacao), finely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F/ 175° C and grease a standard 12 hole muffin tin with coconut oil or line with muffin liners.
- Place the chia seeds and water in a small bowl and let stand for about 5 minutes (or until it takes on a gel-like texture).
- Mix together the banana puree, almond milk, coconut oil, sugar, and chia egg in a large mixing bowl until well combined.
- In a second bowl, add the buckwheat flour, arrowroot powder, baking soda, baking powder and cacao. Whisk together until well combined.
- Add the flour mixture to the bowl with banana mixture and mix together until well combined. As this is a gluten-free recipe, you don’t need to worry about over mixing. Stir in the chopped chocolate until incorporated.
- Divide the batter between 12 muffins.
- Transfer to the pre-heated oven and bake for 25-27 minutes. Check for doneness by touching the muffin top lightly. It will spring back when ready. Normally, I use a toothpick to test this, however it will come out chocolatey due to the melted chocolate.
- Let muffins cool slightly before removing from the muffin tin. Transfer to a wire rack to fully cool or enjoy these dark chocolate banana muffins while they are still warm!
- Once fully cool, store in an airproof container.
Nutrition
Notes
- The chia seed mix can be replaced with 1 large egg if preferred. Otherwise, feel free to use another type of vegan egg alternative. Ground flax seeds are also a good alternative, but personally I find chia seeds work best.
- I like use ripe bananas that JUST begin to spot as they are not quite as sweet as the really brown spotted ones. Either work fine.
- For this dark chocolate banana muffin recipe, I use highly de-oiled cocao powder (10-12% cacoa butter). As a dark chocolate lover, I prefer it for it’s stronger flavor. I use this brand. Slightly de-oiled cocao on the other hand has a higher cocao butter content (20-22%) which gives it a balanced, full-bodied flavor. Use this if you prefer a more delicate chocolatey note.
- I use my favorite organic chocolate for this recipe, however as not all chocolate is vegan or certified gluten-free, be sure to check the label if needed.