Apparently, vegan banana nut muffins do not exist in
Phoenix, until now. Let me share with you why this matters…at least to me. But
first, behold, I’ve made some mini vegan banana nut muffin bites, perfect for a
healthier holiday office party treat.
One of the foods I would get often at the Whole Foods bakery
when I lived in the SF bay Area were vegan banana nut muffins. Here’s a picture
of said muffins. Those vegan banana nut muffins are heavenly goodness because
they don’t taste “vegan.” You can’t tell the difference, the muffins are just
simply good! I’m not vegan, but I can eat these muffins because they are egg
and dairy-free….me with the food allergies.
I mention the “vegan”
tasting thing mainly because many people have preconceptions of what vegan
tastes like and it usually swirls around things like grassy, bran-ish, or “something’s
missing.” To me, the hallmark attribute of any excellent food is that it has
wonderful taste and a pleasurable texture. If you can nail those two things,
the ingredients are less important, vegan or not. People just want to have a
fabulous food experience.
Not even Whole Foods
has the vegan banana nut muffin
When I loved to Phoenix a few months ago, I went to all 5
Whole Foods in the area and all the other natural food stores I could find, and
not one had a vegan banana nut muffin, not even frozen ones. In fact, compared
to the Bay Area the vegan selections are very small in Phoenix. There’s plenty
of gluten-free offerings, but little in vegan choices.
Not to be discouraged, I then went in search on Yelp, blogs,
and food sites as well as tweeting , hitting up local foodies, and asking every
human being I’ve met in Phoenix where I could find any
place that sold vegan banana nut muffins. Amazingly, vegan banana nut muffins do
not exist ANYWHERE here. It is the weirdest thing especially since banana nut
is a popular flavor. It’s not like I’m trying to find an Acai berry macadamia
vegan muffin.
Phoenix metro is the 5th largest city in the US
and not one place makes a vegan banana nut muffin. I’m absolutely astonished! So,
for my final post for Viva paper towels, they are sponsoring this post and my
quest to bring a vegan banana nut muffin to Phoenix.
Here, I made some, and we
can now say the vegan banana nut muffin exists in Phoenix, and is no longer a
unicorn. Can you smell the delicious aroma right out of the oven? Thanks Viva! For some fun,
fork-free recipes including videos and snappy entertaining ideas, check out the
VIVA® Diva Café. And even cooler, today, someone will get the opportunity to win a $50 Gift Card to buy whatever you want courtesy of Viva. That's just so cool of them! More on how to win at the end of the post.
I made up this recipe from a mixture of different recipes,
but mine has one secret ingredient that I didn’t see anyone else use. It’s
different, and I think added to the moistness of the muffin. Moist is a key
texture thing for me in muffins as I dislike dry muffins. Many dairy and
egg-free muffins I’ve had tend to be on the drier side. But not here!
Ingredients* (makes
about 3 dozen mini muffins)
2 cups 100% whole wheat flour or 1 cup
all-purpose flour + 1 cup whole wheat flour
(See note below)- 2 tsps baking powder
- 1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg- ¼ tsp salt
- 1 cup organic sugar
- ½ cup + 1 tbsp canola oil
- ½ cup organic applesauce
- 1 6oz. container of vanilla flavored coconut
milk yogurt (I use So Delicious brand)
- 2 tsps vanilla extract
- 3 medium bananas smashed
- 1/2 cup walnuts pieces + half a handful to put
on muffin tops (use more if you like nuts)
*Notes: For my
batch, I used 2 cups of the 100% Whole Wheat flour, and they were good but they
did have a slight bran-like taste to them which is fine for the health nuts but
if you’re trying to impress to non-vegans or non-health nuts for the first
time, I’d go the half & half route (1/2 all purpose & half whole
wheat). I also use as much organic ingredients as possible because I like it.
You don’t have to.
Let’s get cooking!
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- You’ll need a mini muffin baking pan. I got a 24
muffin pan at Target. You won’t need to spray the muffin pan if it’s non-stick.
- In a mixing bowl, combine all the dry
ingredients together going down the list: flour, baking powder, cinnamon,
nutmeg, salt, sugar. Stir them all together.
- In another bowl, mix together the canola oil,
applesauce, vanilla extract, yogurt, and mashed banana. Pour into the dry
ingredients bowl, and mix everything together. Add in the walnut pieces, and
stir again until the nuts are blended in.
- Spoon the batter into the muffin pan. Fill so
batter is flush with the pan top. During baking the batter will rise to make
nice looking muffin tops.
- Bake for 16 minutes or when done when tested
with a toothpick.
Let the muffins cool for about 10-15 minutes before noshing.
Enjoy!
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Since it's the holiday season, I think one of the best gift's is gratitude, feeling grateful for the abundance we have like health, love, and friends. So, to enter to win the $50 Gift Card from Viva, in comments share one thing you are grateful for.
You have until midnight 12/22 MST to leave a comment. After that, I will close the comments. The winner will be picked randomly. I need a valid email address to notify you if you win. Not to worry, in my privacy policy I clearly state we're cool, and I never give out emails to 3rd parties.
U.S. residents only. Sorry, international noshers. Next time.
————————
UPDATE: The winner of the $50 Gift Card: Congratulations to Mendie!
Thank you again to Viva Paper Towels for sponsoring the giveaway.
“Aflata in vacanta, o jurnalista accepta sa plece intr-o localitate din apropiere, pentru a realiza un reportaj. Dar singurul mijloc de transport este un avion condus de un pilot betiv si nesuferit. In timpul zborului, avionul se prabuseste pe o insula pustie. Obligati sa stea impreuna si sa se confrunte cu pericolele unei vieti intr-o zona ce pare pustie, cei doi descopera ca se pot intelege. Relatia lor devine treptat o incredibila poveste de iubire.”
