A Sweet Treat for the Heart

Dr. Melanie’s Gluten Free Banana Flax Chocolate Chip Muffins

A Fiber Rich Energy Snack with a little Sinful Sweetness!

So here it is: One of my semi-sweet specialty snacks. I’ve been asked to share for so long so I’m finally releasing the recipe. The mild sweetness comes from the fruit based sugars and of course, the chocolate chips.  I have a habit of improvising and intuitively throwing ingredients together when I cook so it took me a while to remember to record the quantities. Use your senses when you prepare foods. Play with some of the proportions of wet to dry ingredients until you get the right consistency (in this case: moist, not runny).Makes this yours by trying different blends of gluten free flours (…..and here lies my recipe secret!) These make a nice breakfast dessert with coffee (after your protein) or a sweet reward after a good workout! Be warned: you can win your way to someone’s heart with these, so choose your recipient carefully but make sure your heart gets the first serving! Ingredients: 5 tblsp butter softened 1/4 cup raw organic coconut palm sugar ¼ cup organic extra virgin olive oil 1/4 cup organic unsweetened apple sauce 1 whole egg slightly beaten 1tsp bourbon vanilla 1.5 mashed banana 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds 1 + 1/4 GF flour mix sifted (You can substitute 1/4 c of the flour with protein powder) 1tsp GF baking soda ½ tsp GF xanthan gum (for binding and thickening) Optional: 1cup semi sweet choc chips (less to reduce sugar intake, especially for diabetics) ½-3/4 cup chopped walnuts ¼+ cup of almond or coconut milk Directions: Preheat oven to 350 deg Combine flour with baking soda, xantham gum and ground flaxseeds. In a separate larger mixing bowl: Cream the butter and sugar. Add the egg. Slowly mix in the vanilla and apple sauce. Add the banana and olive oil. Slowly add the dry ingredients and blend. Hint: As you are adding the flour mixture, monitor the thickness.  If it gets too thick, start drizzling in the almond or coconut milk until you reach the right consistency! Fold in the nuts and/or chocolate chips and presto! You are ready to pour into your greased muffin pans. Bake for approx 20-25min or until the tops have a niceslight browning crisp. I like to insert a little dollop of apple sauce 1 cm into the top of the muffin batter then cover with a chocolate wafer and sprinkle with cinnamon. It adds a nice touch and holds in some moisture during baking process. Enjoy and please share with me by posting a comment here or share feedback on your social media accounts! I would love to hear how your muffins turned out! A Quick Note to You….. If you have received this article by email, I want to thank you for following my blog. I am in the process of switching to a new email service so in case you do not receive the next article  “Heart Matters Beyond Diet and Exercise” by end of February, (my apologies in advance) please visit my website www.nakedtruthbydrmelanie.com to sign up for my FREE newsletters again. And if your next email is missing your name, shoot me an email so I can match your name to your email address! Pace your indulgences. Swimsuit season is coming!  ; ) Dr. Melanie