A Sweet Childhood Memory: The Smell of Banana Bread

Growing up, my mom made banana bread on a regular basis. I loved the way the house smelled when banana bread was in the oven! Most of us have fond memories of eating banana bread or muffins in our childhood. I have created a recipe for banana muffins with chocolate chips made with freshly milled flour so you can create those memories with your family.

Why Ripe Bananas Are Perfect for Baking

Making banana bread or muffins is a great way to use up leftover bananas that have gotten too ripe for eating. I keep a stash in my freezer when I’m ready to whip up banana bread or muffins. The flavor ripe bananas give to banana bread or muffins is delicious! Pro tip: Never substitute firm, barely ripe bananas. The flavor just won’t be the same.

Health Benefits of Bananas You Might Not Know

Bananas are a great source of these vitamins and minerals:

Vitamin B6
Vitamin C
Vitamin A
Fiber
Magnesium
Potassium

They are best known for being high in potassium. Potassium is crucial for heart health as it combats hardening of the arteries and high blood pressure.

Banana Muffins vs. Banana Bread: Why I Prefer Muffins

To make it even easier, I like to make banana muffins instead of bread. Muffins require a much shorter cooking time. Also, you avoid the soggy top of banana bread. My kids love chocolate chips, so I add them to my batter. If your family is not a fan of chocolate, you can easily omit the chocolate chips from this recipe.

Using Freshly Milled Flour for Maximum Nutrition

To start, you are going to need to mill some soft white wheat berries. Soft white wheat berries are better for muffins, quick bread, and cookies because they have less protein than hard white wheat berries. This means your final product won’t have as much gluten and will be softer in texture.

Freshly milled wheat flour contains the following vitamins:

thiamin (B1),
riboflavin (B2)
niacin (B3)
pantothenic acid (B4)
biotin (B7)
folate (B9)
vitamin E

Also, it is chocked full of these important minerals:

copper
magnesium
zinc
phosphorus
iron

Step-by-Step: Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chips

Put 1 ½ cup of freshly milled flour in a bowl along with 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 1 teaspoon of salt.

Melt ¼ cup of butter on the stove. Put this in your mixing bowl. Add 1 cup of organic sugar and cream together. Next, add 1 egg and 3-4 ripe bananas and mix in.

Add the flour, salt, and baking soda to the wet ingredients and mix until combined.

Add 1 scoop unflavored protein powder ( I like Paleo Valley 100% Grass Fed Bone Broth Protein) and ¾ cup chocolate chips to the batter and mix in.

Line your muffin tins with unbleached muffin liners. Spoon the batter in until the muffin cups are 2/3 of the way full.

Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.

Tips for Baking and Storing Your Muffins

When done, let cool on a wire b aking rack. I like to serve these muffins along with scrambled eggs, bacon, or sausage. This breakfast will keep my kids full for several hours.

Also, you can put these muffins in a freezer bag and store them in the freezer for a long time.

More Easy & Healthy Breakfast Ideas

This post is part of my Easy Healthy Breakfast Ideas series:

I hope this series inspires you to create nourishing breakfasts your family will remember.

Did you make these banana muffins?
I’d love to hear what you thought — leave a comment below and share your favorite add-ins or tweaks!

Banana Muffins with Chocolate Chips (Using Freshly Milled Flour)

Recipe by KimberlyCourse: BreakfastDifficulty: Easy

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

I hope you enjoy these banana muffins inspired from a recipe by my mother-in-law!

Ingredients

1/4 cup melted butter
1 cup organic sugar
1 egg
3-4 ripe bananas
1 1/2 cup freshly milled flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
Optional: 1 scoop unflavored protein powder, 3/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions

Mill soft white wheat berries in an electric mill.
Add 1 1/2 cup freshly milled flour, 1 tsp. baking soda, and 1 tsp. salt to a mixing bowl. Set aside
Melt 1/4 cup butter on the stove. Add to a mixing bowl along with 1 cup of organic sugar. Cream together, then add 1 egg. Mix in 3-4 ripe bananas.
Add the flour, baking soda, and salt to the wet ingredients and mix until combined. Fold in unflavored protein powder and 3/4 cup of chocolate chips if desired.
Line a muffin tin with unbleached muffin liners. Spoon the batter in until until the muffin cups are 2/3 of the way full.
Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Notes

Organic all-purpose flour can be substituted evenly for the freshly milled flour.