Healthy Cranberry Banana Muffins
Yields: 12 muffins
 
These sweet banana muffins are irresistibly tender and full of bright tangy cranberries. They’re perfect for feeding your holiday guests—or enjoying any time of year! Leftovers will keep for at least one week if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and they freeze really well, too!
  • 2 cups (240g) whole wheat flour or gluten-free* flour (measured like this)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • ¼ tsp salt
  • ½ tbsp (7g) unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
  • 2 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • ¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
  • ¾ cup (200g) mashed banana (about 2 medium)
  • 2 tbsp (30mL) pure maple syrup
  • ½ cup (120mL) nonfat milk
  • 1 ½ cups (165g) whole fresh cranberries, diced
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly coat 12 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. (See Notes!)
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the butter, eggs, and vanilla. Mix in the Greek yogurt, stirring until no large lumps remain. Mix in the mashed banana and maple syrup. Alternate between adding the flour mixture and milk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and stirring just until incorporated. (For best results, add the flour mixture in 3 equal parts.) Gently fold in the cranberries.
  3. Spread the batter into the prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350°F for 21-24 minutes or until the tops feel firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes: For the gluten-free flour, use as follows: 1 cup (120g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Many store-bought gluten-free flour blends will also work, if measured like this.

White whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted for the whole wheat flour.

For best results, use the ripest, darkest, most spottiest bananas you can find! The ones with more brown color than yellow are ideal. (See my picture in the blog post above!)

The mashed banana and Greek yogurt combined need to measure 1 cup. If you have slightly more than ¾ cup mashed banana, then reduce the Greek yogurt by the same amount, and vice versa.

Honey or agave may be substituted for the maple syrup.

Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.

To quickly dice the cranberries, add them to a food processor (← that's the one I own and love!), and pulse until they’re no larger than ¼ of their original size.

Frozen and thawed cranberries that have been patted dry to remove any excess moisture may be substituted for the fresh. In a pinch, 1 cup of diced dried cranberries that have been hydrated may be substituted for the fresh cranberries. To hydrate the dried cranberries, add them to a microwave-safe bowl, add water until it rises ½” above the cranberries, and cover the top with a lid or plastic wrap. Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute. Let the cranberries sit while preparing the banana bread batter. Just before mixing them in, drain and pat dry.

I use these silicone muffin pans! Traditional metal muffin pans usually turn your muffin sides and bottoms really dark brown and slightly tough—but not silicone! They keep your muffins a light golden brown, just a few shades darker than the tops. True perfection!

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat}
Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2017/12/17/cranberry-banana-muffins/