Okay, so for those of you who follow me on Instagram – Do you remember those green banana muffins that I’ve posted about a few times on my stories?  Yes, no, maybe? – Doesn’t matter because I’m gonna share them with you here today!  Unfortunately, I cannot claim that I’m the recipe developer for these tasty and healthy muffins.  I got them from Kristin Cavallari, who is a mom to three little ones and is married to Jay Cutler.  (If you’ve never seen “The Hills” or watched football, you won’t know who I’m talking about, and that’s fine!)  They are from her book, “Balancing In Heels.”

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Here’s a link to a clip from Dr. Oz with Kristin talking about the muffins:

Kristin Cavallari’s Green Banana Muffins

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I’ve been wanting to make these for Gia this whole week, and what do you know, I got too tired/too busy to do it.  So here I am writing about them and not actually making them while she’s napping.  🙂  As soon as this post is up I’m heading back down to the kitchen to get mixing.

First off, let me tell you why I like these muffins so much.  They have clean, wholesome ingredients and there’s spinach in them!  The last few days Gia has been protesting drinking her milk and eating some of her usual favorite, nutrient-rich foods.  Toddler life, go figure!  I know it’s a phase and next week I’m sure we’ll be tackling something else that’s new.

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Photo of Gia with her muffin at breakfast – Look at that bed head:

Not only does Gia gobble these muffins up, but I really like them a lot too.  I’m one of those people who likes to work out in the morning and it’s always tricky for me to fuel myself properly.  If I’m planning on doing sprints or a distance run I tend to eat super light because I don’t want to get a cramp.  That’s where these little green babies come in handy!

What I like to do to make these muffins more well rounded is add a little smear of nut butter on top.  I get good energy from the carbs and some healthy fats to boot.  (I’m no nutritionist, chef or wellness coach, but this works for me.) These muffins are very moist, probably from the banana and apple sauce in them, and they rise nicely too.

You can always play around with the ingredients and swap things in or out depending on your dietary needs, personal preferences, or adapt to what’s sitting in your pantry.  That’s what I’ve done in the past when I’ve made them.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups spelt flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp fine-grain sea salt
• 1 bag (6 oz) baby spinach
• 3/4 cup real maple syrup
• 1/2 cup plain unsweetened almond milk
• 1 flax egg**
• 1/4 cup applesauce
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups mashed banana (about 3 small or 2 large bananas)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a food processor or blender, combine the spinach, maple syrup, almond milk, flax egg, applesauce, and vanilla and process until completely pureed. Add the wet ingredients and the banana to the dry ingredients and stir until well combined.
3. Fill each muffin cup about three-quarters full. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Let cool at least 10 minutes.

**A flax egg is one tablespon ground flaxseed plus three tablespoons water. Let set for about 15 minutes until it becomes a gooey consistency.

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Happy baking!  I’m off to make a batch now too!  Let me know if you have any recipe requests – after all, my mom is a chef, so if I don’t know how to make it, she certainly will!