This recipe for chocolate banana muffins with fresh coconut results in chewy hearty muffins that feel like a treat but still somehow healthy. They are full of organic grains, and healthy coconut oil and meat, and sweetened with unrefined sugar. They are just sweet enough to erase the bitterness of the chocolate but not so sweet that it will induce a sugar high. All my recipes are made with ½ the sugar or more that modern and secular taste bud are is used to.
Fresh coconut is that star of this recipe. This recipe uses fresh mature coconut meat from our farm. It is relatively hard to open coconuts and extract their meat if you don’t have the right tools. I don’t exactly have the right tools but I was motivated. My machete was too dull and it was too hard to husk the coconut completely so that it could be easily handled. But I persevered and cracked one open extracted enough and shredded it. Only took me ½ hour total. Which I guess is ok considering I salvaged at least 800 calories from it. That just half the day’s worth of calories.
Coconuts are high in healthy saturated fats (medium-chain fatty acids) including, capris, caprylic, and lauric acid. Lauric acid, out of these three, has the most antifungal, antimicrobial and antiviral properties. Coconut meat. is an excellent source of fiber contains more than 7 grams per cup. It is high in minerals, especially manganese, copper, magnesium, manganese, potassium and selenium. It also has calcium, zinc, and phosphorus. Additionally, it contains vitamin B1, vitamin B3, vitamin B5 and folate and choline.
Owing to these nutritional characteristics coconut meat has been known to: a) help eliminate parasites from the body b) regulate bowel activity c) balance blood sugar levels d) destroy candida and other harmful organisms e) support the immune system f) aid in bone health and g) reduce the risk of heart disease.
The recipe below is written after the first time I made them. I’ll probably be updating it as I refine in during future batches. If you like the look of this recipe try my coconut oatmeal cookies as well as my banana blueberry spelt muffins or even my chocolate banana cookies with mac nuts.
Recipe for Chocolate Banana Muffins with Fresh Coconut
Equipment:
- oven
- muffin tin
- grater
- 2 mixing bowls
- measuring cups and spoons
Yield: 6 large muffins, 12 small-medium muffins
Dry ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups organic white flour
- 1/2 cup instant rolled oats
- ½ cup unsweetened cacao powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder (aluminum free)
- 1/2 tsp fine ground good salt (like Celtic Sea salt)
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
Wet ingredients:
- 2 eggs beaten
- 1/2 cup coconut oil (unrefined or refined) liquid form (but not hot)
- ~1/3 cup maple sugar (you can add a 10 drops of alcohol free stevia too)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2-3 ripe bananas mushed well
Add last
- 2 cups shredded fresh mature coconut meat
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
- Line muffin tin with coconut oil
- Mix wet ingredients well in medium bowl
- Mix dry ingredients well in separate smaller bowl
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well
- Fold in coconut at the end
- Bake for 40-50 minutes at 350 degrees F for 6 large muffins. Reduce baking time to 20-30 minutes for smaller muffins. Baking time varies on environment, keep a close watch on your muffins looking for a firm golden-brown edge and top.
- Tooth pick should come out clean when inserted. Cool 5 minutes and remove from muffin tin.
- Enjoy these chocolate banana muffins with coconut while still warm
