Whole Grain Banana-Date-Flax Muffins. Oil- and Sugar-free.

Banana Date Flax Muffins by An Unrefined VeganWe eat a lot of bananas – at least according to almost every grocery checkout person at our local store.  Between us, Kel and I eat about 3-4 bananas a day. I shop once a week, so I need to load the shopping cart with approximately 21-28 bananas.  To carry us through the week, I get a mix of very green, slightly green, and bright yellow ones.  Because of our high rate of consumption, it’s pretty rare that I have those lovely dark brown, very ripe bananas hanging around – the kind that are perfect for recipes.  When I do, I almost always make some form of banana bread, like these muffins.  To stick to an unspoken not-a-New-Year’s-resolution resolution, I wanted to create a muffin that contained no sugar and no oil.

Tip: Wrap the stems of bananas with plastic wrap (I like the sticky “press and seal” kind) to slow down the ripening process.

You can also bake these in a 9″ x 9″ pan.  Just bake about 5 minutes longer.  I shared this recipe on the awesome Healthy Vegan Fridays!

 

Whole Grain Banana-Date-Flax Muffins
Serves 10
It is possible to bake a healthy whole grain muffin that is also delicious! These dairy-, sugar-, and oil-free treats are packed with banana, dates, coconut, flax, nuts - and chocolate!
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Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
Prep Time
15 min
Cook Time
30 min
Total Time
45 min
314 calories
36 g
0 g
18 g
6 g
6 g
92 g
199 g
11 g
0 g
12 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
92g
Servings
10
Amount Per Serving
Calories 314
Calories from Fat 153
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 18g
28%
Saturated Fat 6g
28%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 5g
Monounsaturated Fat 7g
Cholesterol 0mg
0%
Sodium 199mg
8%
Total Carbohydrates 36g
12%
Dietary Fiber 6g
23%
Sugars 11g
Protein 6g
Vitamin A
1%
Vitamin C
4%
Calcium
7%
Iron
16%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ingredients
  1. 2 very ripe bananas
  2. 1/4 cup date paste*
  3. 1/4 cup tahini
  4. 1/4 cup + 1 tbsp. non-dairy milk
  5. 2 tsp. vanilla extract
  6. 1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
  7. 1/4 cup flaxseed meal
  8. 1/4 cup barley flour
  9. 1/4 cup brown rice flour
  10. 1/2 tsp. salt
  11. 1 tsp. cinnamon
  12. 1/4 tsp. cardamom
  13. 1/4 tsp. allspice
  14. 1/2 tsp. baking powder
  15. 1/2 tsp. baking soda
  16. 1/2 tsp. powdered stevia
  17. 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
  18. 1 cup pecans, chopped
  19. 1/2 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips**, optional
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees and lightly oil 10 muffin tins (or a 9" x 9" pan).
  2. In a medium-sized bowl, mash the bananas and then stir in the date paste, tahini, milk, and vanilla extract.
  3. In a large bowl, whisk together the whole wheat pastry flour, flaxseed meal, barley flour, brown rice flour, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, baking powder and soda, and stevia.
  4. Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry and stir until almost combined - batter will be thick - and then stir in the coconut, pecans, and chocolate chips, if using. Stir until mixture is thoroughly combined.
  5. Scrape batter into prepared muffin tins or pan.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let muffins cool for a few minutes in the pan, then remove them and let them cool completely on a cooling rack.
Notes
  1. *I make my my own date paste by taking a pile of dates and soaking them in water to cover for an hour or so. I put the dates with the soaking liquid in a blender and process until very smooth. Store in a mason jar or other air-tight container and pop it in the refrigerator.
  2. **I use stevia-sweetened chocolate chips to keep these sugar-free, but use your favorite vegan chips.
beta
calories
314
fat
18g
protein
6g
carbs
36g
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an unrefined vegan http://www.anunrefinedvegan.com/
Whole Grain Banana Date Flax Muffin by An Unrefined Vegan

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24 thoughts on “Whole Grain Banana-Date-Flax Muffins. Oil- and Sugar-free.

  1. tearoomdelights

    I agree with the checkout assistants, that is a lot of bananas. I think I would love these muffins, although I’d probably be tempted to stick a cup of walnuts in alongside the pecans. I love nuts and banana together. When I have a bunch of very ripe bananas I make banana and walnut loaf. I’m the only one in the house who likes it so I usually freeze most of it in slices.

    Reply
    1. An Unrefined Vegan Post author

      Walnuts or pecans would be great in these. How lucky you are that no one else craves your banana/walnut loaf :-)!

      Reply
  2. Fran Levy

    I’ve made two batches of banana chocolate chip muffins in the last couple of weeks because I’m craving them so much!

    I modify Colleen Patrick-Goudreau’s “Joy of Vegan Baking” recipe with spelt flour (it’s so tasty) and half the sugar, since semi-sweet chocolate chips add enough extra sweetness for me. I tried mixing in bittersweet chocolate chips for my last batch, but they’re not sweet enough for the lower-sugar batter. I’ve been thinking of subbing the sugar for date paste and wondering how to omit the oil, and here comes your post! Thanks to you, I’m gonna get another week of banana chocolate chip muffins ;-P

    BTW, I often end up with overripe bananas, so I freeze them at their most overripe to always have them ready for banana muffins. It’s so convenient! Also, I make date paste by simply soaking dates in a little water overnight and then processing or high-speed blending them. I store the paste in the freezer so THAT’S always ready, too.

    Man, I’ve become so handy in the kitchen since going vegan XD

    Reply
    1. An Unrefined Vegan Post author

      Isn’t that a wonderful cookbook? I refer to it again and again. Love the biscuits. Aren’t you organized?! I need to take a lesson from you!

      Reply
  3. The vegan 8

    These sound wonderful Annie. Love the addition of tahini! I’ve never heard of barley flour before, where do you find that? Oh, and that’s A lot of bananas…haha :)

    Reply
    1. An Unrefined Vegan Post author

      I found it at Whole Foods – I think the brand is Arrowhead Mills. Yes…we got through the nanners! Love ’em.

      Reply
  4. Samantha

    Oh, the cashiers at my local grocery store think I’m a nut in regards to bananas too~ I generally eat at least 4 bananas myself daily and always have to buy TONS when I go grocery shopping haha. I’ve actually just contacted the manager at my local grocery store and asked if I could buy them in bulk, currently trying to work out exactly how much I’ll be getting for my money’s worth. :*

    Anyway! This recipe looks lovely! I definitely need to try vegan banana bread! I’ve been on this vegan journey for almost 6 months now and have never made myself vegan banana bread! I think I’ll try it with my nuts or raisins, or maybe even some strawberries!? Oh the possibilities!

    Thanks a bunch for sharing,
    Samantha V

    Reply
    1. An Unrefined Vegan Post author

      THANK YOU, Samantha for making me feel okay about my banana consumption! I’m not a freak ;-)! And welcome to the Vegan Club!

      Reply
  5. Brittany

    I have been HOARDING bananas like crazy from Starbucks. I usually take 2 home with me almost daily when they are VERY ripe. I freeze them to make a smoothie, or I make banana chocolate brownies. I am a banana fiend. These muffins look so good.

    Reply
  6. Becky

    These look amazing! I think I could do a variant on this for my kid’s breakfast – maybe skip the chocolate. I’m always up for alternatives to refined sugar for my guy.

    Reply
  7. Herbivore Triathlete

    I like to make banana bread or banana muffins! I have never used date paste, but it sounds simple to make and very useful to have on hand. Thanks for sharing these on Healthy Vegan Fridays!

    Reply
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