Chocolate Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Okay, I know that one of my new year's resolutions was to lower my sugar intake, yet all I seem to be doing is bake! I don't know what's gotten into me. I am going to work on that. Seriously. But in the meantime, I highly recommend making these Chocolate Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins!

This is what happens when you forget about a bunch of bananas in your snack drawer at work:

This is what happens when you add some chocolate:

I love banana baked goods, but never really get the opportunity to make them because bananas do not last long at my house. Every Sunday I buy 10-12 bananas and on Monday morning Pat and I eat take a bunch of 5 to work for the week. Last week I guess I wasn't feeling the 'nanas, because on Monday morning I discovered some very ripe fruit in my desk. So banana baked goods it was! (Another good alternative is peeling and freezing the bananas for smoothies, but I haven't been having many smoothies since its so cold out).

This is another recipe inspired by Jenna, but I made some changes to healthify it (swapping out the butter, reducing the sugar, using some whole wheat flour), not frosting them, and also adding the chocolate. Pat tends to only like muffins that have chocolate chips in them, so he inspired that addition!

Mash up two extra-ripe bananas (in the future I'd use three - I love that extra banana taste and texture).

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray your muffin tins (since I removed the butter from this recipe you'll want to spray the pans instead of using papers because cupcakes/muffins tend to stick to paper without the grease). 

In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, yogurt and applesauce.

Add the eggs, one at a time.

In a small bowl, combine the mashed banana with the vanilla and buttermilk. Stir well.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon).

Alternate adding the wet and dry ingredients to the sugar/yogurt/applesauce mix. Mix well after each addition.

...you get the idea.

Add the chocolate chips and mix until just incorporated.

Fill muffin tins. I used a 1/4 cup measure for each muffin. If you want larger muffins, fill all the way and increase cooking time.

Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into muffin.

Cool, and enjoy! Or, cool for a minute or two and enjoy immediately! These are best warm when the chocolate chips are melty.

Chocolate Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Adapted from this.

Makes 16 muffins.

Ingredients

• 1 cup white all-purpose flour
• 1 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 3/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 extra-ripe bananas, mashed with fork until smooth (in the future I'd use 3 bananas)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup nonfat Greek yogurt (I used vanilla)
• 2/3 cup sugar (I used organic evaporated can juice from Trader Joe's)
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/3 cup well-shaken buttermilk

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray muffin tins.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar, applesauce, and yogurt. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
3. In a small bowl, combine the mashed banana with the vanilla and buttermilk. Stir well until combined.
4. In a medium bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon).
5. Alternate adding the wet and dry ingredients to the sugar/yogurt/applesauce mix. Mix well after each addition. This can be done by hand (which I did) or with a hand mixer on low speed.Once batter is done, add the chocolate chips and stir until just incorporated.
6. Use a 1/4 cup measure to fill your muffin tins (this produces 16 smallish muffins - for larger muffins fill to top of tin and increase bake time).
7. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into muffin.

These are delicious bits of moist banana chocolate treats! The kitchen smelled amazing as these baked, and they came out to be so tasty. I thought I was making these for Pat, but it turns out that I made them for myself, too. Enjoy these warm with a cup of coffee, or maybe even some hot chocolate?! Can't get enough chocolate these days! 

Speaking of my rampant chocolate addiction - I need to go to the gym! Yesterday was basically a nothing day - I felt terrible and dragged myself to the gym, but just walked for 30 minutes and went home. Tonight I'm meeting my brother for dinner at our uncle's house, so I think I might hit up the WOW in Waltham before going. I'm in need of an interval or hills workout.