Skinny Double Chocolate Banana Muffins from Ambitious Kitchen

What a dome :P

So sorry for the dull content, I was quite the muffin maniac earlier this week. I tried these muffins from Ambitious Kitchen on Tuesday and they turned out mediocre, although that was with the changes I made. It wasn't chocolate-y enough for my tastes but that may be because the banana flavour also had a chance to shine. It was moist though, and it turned out rather pretty.

I replaced the honey with maple syrup and decreased the amount by half just to see what it would do. It turned out very dark tasting, almost barely sweet although it got sweeter the second day. I also omitted the chocolate chips as I don't really like chocolate chips in my chocolate baked goods. 

Now traditionally you shouldn't alter a recipe you've never made before without trying it out but on this one I took a chance because I was running low on honey and maple syrup. I would advise those less experienced in baking to not do as I have done.

I used my high domed muffin baking technique on these, which worked like a charm as you can see. All you do is bake it at 425 degrees F for 5 minutes, then turn the oven down to 400 degrees and continue baking for 10-15 minutes, until you stick a toothpick into the centre of the muffin and it comes out clean.

I think the recipe followed to a T should taste alright, but I don't think I'll try it again as I much prefer regular banana bread. Ambitious Kitchen has a very popular chocolate chip banana muffin recipe on her website, which I think I will try out next time I have a surplus of bananas.

Recipe from: https://www.ambitiouskitchen.com/2017/01/skinny-double-chocolate-banana-muffins/

INGREDIENTS:
3 medium ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 large egg
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (can sub melted and cooled coconut oil, avocado oil or butter)
1/2 cup 2% plain greek yogurt (nonfat also works)
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour*
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (use a high quality cocoa powder)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips, divided

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix wet ingredients together until well combined: ripe bananas, honey, vanilla, egg, oil and greek yogurt.
3. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients: whole wheat pastry flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Mix until combined. Stir in 1/3 cup of chocolate chips.
4. Pour batter into greased muffin cups. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips on top. Bake for 23-27 minutes until tester comes out clean.

NOTES
*You can use a mix of regular whole wheat flour and all purpose, but these are best when made with whole wheat pastry flour.

I recommend using 2% plain greek yogurt because it adds a hint of moisture, but you can also use nonfat.