banana chocolate supermuffins

I am revisiting one of the very first recipes I posted when I started this blog. Seems fair enough to me - I receive constant notifications of updates to apps and software. The reason for the revisit is valid and not simple laziness. I have learned a lot about what is good and what is not (the pendulum will keep swinging) in terms of nutrition and have accordingly made changes to the original recipe. I didn't realize how changed it had become until I was making them with someone and they pointed out that what I was doing was not what I had written and why had I not told them!? The changes are small but add up to a much better muffin - in fact these muffins are so loaded with incredible power morsels as well as being extra-ordinarily delicious that the name simple begged to be upgraded to 'supermuffin' (power muffin being over-used and sadly inadequate).

These muffins are not cupcakes masquerading as a healthy snack. They are moist and thickly studded with chia, hemp and flax seeds snuggled up right next to rich dark chocolate and chopped pecans - more dense than light but a long way from being a dry and tasteless doorstop.

If gluten-free is important for you it is easy and successful to replace the spelt flour with your favourite gluten-free mix. When doing that I prefer a whole grain gluten-free flour* mix because just substituting an empty of nutrition gf mix for a nutritionally superior (even if it is not tolerated) sprouted whole wheat or spelt flour seems like a bad deal to me. 

Let your bananas get nice and freckled before baking them into supermuffins - or anything else for that matter - the taste is so much sweeter and richer.

banana chocolate supermuffins

1 1/4 cups oatmeal

1/2 cup sprouted whole grain spelt flour (substitute gluten-free flour here if you wish)

1/4 cup ground flaxseed

1/4 cup chia seed
1/4 cup hemp seed hearts

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

2 eggs

1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt

3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

1/2 cup agave syrup (or honey)

1/3 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly

1/2 cup chopped pecans

2 cups good quality dark chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375 F. Whisk together oatmeal, flour, flaxseed, chia seed, hemps seeds, baking powder, baking soda, and pecans. Combine eggs, yogurt, bananas, oil, and syrup. Fold into dry ingredients and add chocolate chips. Bake in greased muffin tin at 375 F for 22 minutes. Makes 12 large muffins.

Update: we have found we love these baked as mini-muffins. The recipe as written makes 48 mini-muffins. They freeze beautifully and are actually super good frozen. (Maybe a little odd? Give 'em a try before you judge.) The mini size is often just the perfect bite for when you want something to feel a gap or need a bit of energy. Also perfect for tiny hands.

* Note: I make my own blend of flours. This is the mix I use. It can be substituted cup for cup for all purpose flour.

whole grain gluten-free flour mixture
200 gm brown rice flour
150 gm sorghum flour
50 gm almond flour
50 gm potato flour
250 gm sweet rice flour
150 gm arrowroot
150 gm potato  starch

blueberry cornmeal muffins

gluten-free

While I remain chained to my sewing machine David and Thomas are having fun with Deacon, Aubrie, Jane, and Theo in Waterton. A stop at Uncle Dean's to ride the horses and then on to eat, sleep, and play in the mountains. Throwing rocks in the lake (endlessly entertaining), bike-riding, hiking, picnics, swimming. 

A weekend in Waterton needed some yummy 'vittles' to keep the troops happy. Since neither of the men wanted to be in the kitchen much (who would when Waterton is on the other side of the door?!) and it was a good idea for the food to be easily grabbed and absolutely portable (four kids between the ages of 2 and 8) I made a batch of muffins for them to take along. The qualifiers also included  gluten-free, major kid-appeal, and at least semi-healthy. I had a big box of perfect fresh blueberries in the fridge so that factored into the choice as well. Usually I class blueberry muffins in the cake category as far as nutrition goes and to be honest these are not terribly far off that mark but they are made with a gluten-free whole grain mix, no refined sugars, and coconut oil. And of course, blueberries! So although these are not loaded like my favourite (or these) muffins they are a pretty good compromise. Plus they have the obvious advantage of appealing to people who really have no appreciation for the virtues of hempseed hearts, flax, and dates.


These came out of the oven and went straight into the food bag (aside from the one that I wolfed on the spot) so I have no reports yet from my small taste-testers but the one muffin I ate was pretty yummy and I wish I had been a little more selfish.


If you don't have buttermilk just sour fresh milk by adding a bit of vinegar or lemon juice. You can also use any other oil of your choice but I like the health advantages as well as the taste of the coconut oil - butter is always a yummy choice. I used coconut palm sugar because it is an unrefined sugar - if you wanted to use regular sugar instead 3/4 cup would be the amount. Or 1/2 cup of honey and decrease the milk to 1 1/8 cups. And finally, although I haven't tried it yet I am confident that you could substitute regular flour for the gluten-free blend cup for cup with good results.


gluten-free blueberry cornmeal muffins


2 cups (275 gm) whole grain gluten-free flour mix ( or your favourite commercial blend)
 1/3 cup + 1 Tbsp (75 gm) cornmeal
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sea salt
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups (180 gm) coconut palm sugar
1 1/3 cups buttermilk 
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 1/4 cups fresh blueberries


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 12 cup muffin tin with parchment cupcake papers or grease thoroughly.


Whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a separate bowl whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, and melted coconut oil. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until all the flour is mixed in.  Gently fold the blueberries into the batter. Fill the muffin cups evenly and bake until the muffins are nicely golden and the top springs back when touched - about 25-30 minutes.