Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins with Cocoa Streusel

Bananas and chocolate. What a friendship of flavors. For this recipe, I put a spin on one of my favorite vegan, gluten-free banana muffin recipes and top it with the very best thing a muffin could need: crumbly sweet streusel…and cocoa streusel to boot, mmm mmm! Be sure to read the notes below the recipe to get the perfect vegan, gluten-free muffin texture, as it can be tricky, but I’ve got you ;) Enjoy the crumbly, warm goodness my friend.

Makes 12 muffins

Muffin Ingredients

2 chia eggs (2 tbsp ground chia seed mixed with 6 tbsp water)

4 ripe bananas, medium size

2 tbsp coconut sugar

1 tsp apple cider vinegar (or another acid such as lemon juice)

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp vanilla extract

dash of salt

1 cup almond flour

1 cup gluten-free, all-purpose flour* (such as King Arthur 1:1)

1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips**, divided

Streusel Ingredients

1/4 cup almond flour

1/4 cup coconut sugar

1 tbsp cocoa powder

dash of salt

2 1/2 tbsp melted coconut oil (or avocado oil)

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and grease or line a muffin tin. In a medium bowl, mix your chia eggs and allow to sit for a few minutes to thicken. Add the bananas in chunks and then use an electric hand mixer to puree the bananas (can also make this in a stand mixer with whisk attachment). Once pureed, whisk the bananas and chia eggs on medium-high speed for about 1-2 minutes to whip air into the mixture and make it super creamy. Turn off the mixer, add coconut sugar, vinegar, baking powder and soda, salt, and vanilla and whisk to combine. Add the almond flour, gluten-free flour, and 3/4 cup chocolate chips and use a rubber spatula to gently fold those in until just combined, being careful not to over mix and deflate (over-mixing will result in a denser, flatter muffin).

Use a rounded 1/4 cup scoop to scoop muffin batter into muffin tin. Set aside while you make your streusel topping.

To make the streusel: in a bowl add all dry streusel ingredients and whisk. Pour in oil and mix to combine.

Evenly sprinkle streusel over the muffin batter, then sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of chocolate chips over the streusel.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack and cool completely. Enjoy with your favorite tea or coffee.

Chef’s Notes:

Working with gluten-free flours without eggs can make it difficult to get the right texture. I’ve found that chia eggs consistently give my vegan bakes a lighter, fluffier texture than using flax eggs, however use whatever you have on hand. The texture may change, but the flavor will remain amazing.

The use of an acid like vinegar or lemon juice helps activate the baking soda to give the muffins a better rise.

*If you are grain-free you can sub the gluten-free all-purpose flour for another cup of almond flour. The texture will be more fudgy, but will still taste amazing!

**Dairy-free chocolate is easier than many think to find. It doesn’t have to be a fancy, expensive brand, just check the ingredients of your dark chocolate chips for milk. Most dark chocolates 60% or higher will be dairy-free.

If you make this recipe and love it, be sure to share a pic of your creation on Instagram and tag me @theglowblueprint :)