Healthy Banana Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Muffins

©: Amy's Healthy Baking

Yields: 12 muffins

These are some of my all-time favorite muffins! They’re really moist and fluffy with lots of sweet banana flavor, and the chocolate chips pair so well with the fruit. Add in cozy oats and a hint of warm cinnamon, and you’ve got one absolutely irresistible breakfast! The muffins will keep for at least five days (if not longer!) if stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and they also freeze well.

¾ cup (75g) Bob’s Red Mill® Organic Quick Cooking Rolled Oats (gluten-free if necessary and measured like this)
¾ cup (195g) mashed banana (see Notes!)
¼ cup (60g) plain nonfat Greek yogurt
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups (240g) Bob’s Red Mill® Organic Whole Wheat Pastry Flour or Bob’s Red Mill® Gluten-Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour (measured like this)
1 ½ tsp baking powder
¾ tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
1 tsp unsalted butter or coconut oil, melted and cooled slightly
2 large egg whites, room temperature
1 ½ tsp liquid stevia (see Notes!)
2 tbsp (30mL) water
½ cup (120mL) nonfat milk
3 tbsp (42g) miniature chocolate chips, divided

Preheat the oven to 350°F, and coat 12 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. (If using liners, then line 12 muffins cups with liners and coat them with cooking spray.)
In a medium bowl, stir together the oats, banana, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. In a third bowl, whisk together the butter, egg whites, and liquid stevia. Stir in the water. Stir in the oat mixture, mixing until no large lumps remain. 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 2 ½ tablespoons of chocolate chips.
Divide the batter between the prepared muffin cups, and gently press the remaining chocolate chips on top. Bake at 350°F for 20-23 minutes or until the top feels firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with just a few crumbs attached. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes: Do NOT use an electric mixer to mix up the batter. This will result in dense or tough muffins. Use a whisk where instructed, and use a fork for everything else.

Quick cooking rolled oats are smaller and thinner than old-fashioned oats. To make your own out of Bob’s Red Mill® Regular Rolled Oats (aka their old-fashioned oats!), add ¾ cup (75g) of the regular rolled oats to a blender or food processor, and pulse until they’re ⅛ to ¼ of their original size.

Bob’s Red Mill® Ivory Whole Wheat flour, Bob’s Red Mill® Regular Whole Wheat Flour, white whole wheat flour, or all-purpose flour may be substituted in place of the whole wheat pastry flour.

The muffins require 2 full egg whites. The whites contain the majority of the protein in eggs, and that protein is required to ensure the muffins maintain their shape and texture while cooling. Without both egg whites, the muffins may collapse while cooling and turn out much denser.

Any milk may be substituted for the nonfat milk.

IMPORTANT MEASURING NOTE: Remember to measure your oats and flour correctly, using this method or a kitchen scale. Too much of either will make your muffins turn out dry. This is especially true of the oats because they act like sponges and soak up lots of moisture from the batter.

IMPORTANT BANANA NOTE: For best results, use the ripest, darkest, most spottiest bananas you can find! The ones that look almost entirely black or brown are perfect. They have a stronger and sweeter banana flavor than pure yellow bananas. Measure the bananas by cups or grams. Not all “medium” bananas are the same size!

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.

STEVIA NOTE: I do not recommend substituting for the liquid stevia, if at all possible. (You’ll use it in all of these recipes of mine, too!) I buy mine online here because that’s the best price I’ve found.

However, if you really prefer to omit the liquid stevia from the muffins, substitute ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (120g) granulated sugar, brown sugar, or coconut sugar and reduce the milk to ¼ cup (60mL). You may also substitute ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150mL) pure maple syrup, honey, or agave and omit the milk instead. The baking time may vary with either of those substitutions as well.

GLUTEN FREE OPTION: For the gluten-free flour, you can also use the following: 1 cups (120g) millet flour, ½ cup (60g) tapioca flour, ½ cup (60g) brown rice flour, and 1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum. Remember to measure the flours like this.

DAIRY FREE OPTION: Use the coconut oil option or stick-style vegan butter in place of the unsalted butter. Substitute non-dairy yogurt (ie soy-based, almond-based, oat-based, etc) for the Greek yogurt and your preferred non-dairy milk for the nonfat milk.

SPECIAL TRICK FOR THE BEST MUFFIN TEXTURE: In Step 2, combining the oats with the mashed banana, Greek yogurt, and vanilla extract lets the oats start absorbing moisture ahead of time. This helps softens the oats, which gives your oatmeal muffins the best moist and tender texture!

{gluten-free, clean eating, low fat, lower sugar}

Recipe by Amy's Healthy Baking at https://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2019/01/02/healthy-banana-chocolate-chip-oatmeal-muffins/