Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini Blender Muffins

I really, really, really love Pinterest. Aside from the abundance of food porn & amazing crafts, I've also found many a fascinating tips and tricks. In fact, most of the baking tricks I know, I've learned from recipes I've found on Pinterest. Case in point...these AMAZING Blender Muffins!

I can honestly say, I've never, EVER considered mixing something up for baking in a blender. Maybe that's because my blender is absolute crap or maybe because my brain doesn't think outside the "bowl" (see what I did there? Like "outside the box" but BOWL, because, well, you get it). Either way, this way of preparing is amazing. Little to no mess, everything is contained and it makes for a very rich and velvety texture.

These mini muffins are amazing. There is NO refined flour, sugar, butter (the banana acts as the butter) or any dairy for that matter. That means they are gluten & dairy free. The best part? They taste like the most decadent dessert. They are actually so rich, you'll probably only need to eat just one to satisfy your chocolate craving (whether at breakfast or after dinner). Also, I love that no special ingredients are required...you'll probably have everything you need, already at home!

I highly recommend you try out this recipe!

[On a side note, I've started training for my next half marathon (Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon) that takes place on October! I'll be posting about my training over the next coming months so if you have any questions about it, shoot me an email (runningtobake@gmail.com), I'd love to answer it in my upcoming posts!]

Flourless Chocolate Peanut Butter Mini Blender Muffins

from Averie Cooks

makes about 16 mini muffins

Ingredients:

1 medium/large ripe banana, peeled

1 large egg

1/2 cup heaping with creamy peanut butter (best to go with regular peanut butter, not natural for this one)
1/3 cup cocoa powder

3 tbsp honey (maple syrup would work as well)

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp baking soda

pinch of salt

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips + more for sprinkling 

Method:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Spray 2 mini muffin pans with non-stick spray or line with mini muffin wrappers. 

In a blender (or food processor, or with a hand blender) combine banana, egg, peanut butter, cocoa powder, honey, vanilla, baking soda and salt and blend until creamy and smooth. Takes about 1 minute or so. Since my blender is not the best, I had to stop and mix with a wooden spoon once or twice to make sure everything combined properly. 

Remove blender from stand and stir in the 1/2 cup of chocolate chips with a wooden spoon. Mini ones would probably work best, but I only had regular size on hand and they were fine.

Using a tablespoon, spoon mixture into muffin tins, filling up about 3/4 of the way. Sprinkle a few chocolate chips on top of the muffins and press in lightly with your finger tips. 

Put in oven and bake for 8-12 minutes. The baking time really depends on your oven, the ripeness of the banana and size of the tins (I have 2 different sizes of "mini" muffin tins). Mine took about 12 minutes to cook, just make sure you watch them. They're ready when the tops are springy to the touch and a tooth pick is inserted and comes out clean. 

Allow to cool in the tins for 15 minutes (if you can!) then transfer to a wire rack. You may need to loosen the edges with a knife in order for them to pop out cleanly. 

Store up to 5 days in an airtight container or 6 months in the freezer (HA! Like they'll last that long). 

Enjoy! These are truly delicious! 

{Clean} Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites

Oh. My. Gosh.

I can't even EXPLAIN to you how amazing these bites are. They're like a decadent chocolate bar, mixed with a Reeses Peanut Butter Cup mixed with a little bit of rainbow/sunshine.

I haven't even told you the best part! They are actually GOOD for you. They are filled with fiber, protein and with a coating of dark chocolate, you're getting tons of great nutrients for your body!

Did I mention, they are DELICIOUS?

Now, I've made a couple of changes to the recipe for my home - first, I did HALF of them coated in dark chocolate and half of them coated in milk chocolate (there is only so much "health" my poor hubby can take). I also used whole wheat flour in mine, but if you are gluten intolerant, use coconut flour instead! If you have someone in your life that is allergic to peanuts, you can use a peanut butter substitute in its place (click here for awesome alternatives)

Finally, this recipe requires the use of a food processor. I only have a small one, so I had to do all the processing in steps. I measured out the ingredients first, then put a little of each into the food processor for a total of 3 different batches!

{Clean} Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites

adapted from: cleaneatingmag.com

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups pitted dates

1 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal 

1/2 cup large flake oats (rolled oats work as well)

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/2 tsp sea salt

9 tbsp creamy, natural peanut butter

1/4 cup raw honey

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

7 oz dark chocolate (just less than 1 cup)

1 tbsp canola or coconut oil

Method:

Put pitted dates in a medium size bowl. Bring a kettle of water to a boil. Pour water over the dates until they are completely covered. Allow to soak for about 5 minutes then remove with a slotted spoon. Save about 2 tbsp of the water and discard the rest.

Meanwhile, in a food processor (see note above), grind together the puffed rice, oats, whole wheat flour & salt until they are fine crumbs. Transfer to a large bowl.

Next, combine the dates, the 2 tbsp of water you saved, peanut butter, honey and vanilla in the food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer the mixture to the large bowl containing the dry mixture. Using your hands, combine the two until everything is evenly mixed.

Line a large baking sheet with tin foil or parchment paper. Using your hands, roll dough into 1" balls and place on the baking sheet. At the end, you should have anywhere between 30-36 balls. Place baking sheet in the freezer for about 30 minutes.

Next comes the dipping! In a double boiler (or a heat proof bowl over a pot of simmering water) add the chocolate & oil and stir until completely smooth. Remove balls from freezer. One at a time, place in the chocolate and roll around until evenly coated. Using a fork, scoop under the coated ball and allow chocolate to drip off. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet. If you're having troubles getting them off the fork, gently push them off with a knife.

If you want, sprinkle a little sea salt on top of them to add a little more flavour. 

When done, chill them in the fridge or freezer for about 30 minutes.

Store them in an air tight container in the freezer for up to 2 weeks!

Enjoy!