Gluten Free Banana Nut Muffins

The texture of these muffins is really moist.

I had some very ripe bananas on my hands and a bag of coconut flour that I have been dying to try to bake with. Ever since reading Wheat Belly, I've tried to substitute alternative flours in for wheat wherever I can. I scoured my cookbooks and ultimately found a few muffin recipes online that used coconut flour (and a LOT of eggs), so I modified and came up with the following:

Ingredient line-up

Tip: Make sure the eggs and maple syrup aren't too cold, or they'll make the coconut oil solidify.

Ingredients:
3 eggs (local, organic, and humanely raised of course)
3 tb flax meal + 9 tb water (or an additional 3 eggs)
3 very ripe bananas
1 tsp vanilla
4 tb coconut oil (in liquid form)
1/4 c maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 c coconut flour, sifted
1/2 c walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 400* F. Crack the 3 eggs into a stand mixer and set the speed to medium-high (If you don't have a stand mixer, a hand mixer and a bowl work just fine). Beat the eggs for about a minute and add in the 3 tb flax meal and the 9 tb water. Increase the speed and mix until the flax meal is fully incorporated, scraping down the sides if necessary. Add in the rest of the ingredients one at a time in the order listed above. Spoon batter into a mini muffin pan greased with coconut oil and bake for 18-20 minutes. You may need to use a plastic utensil to get these muffins out of the pan. A few of mine crumbled a bit as I tried to remove them, so be careful because they're a bit delicate when warm. Transfer to a wire rack to cool. Enjoy!

Delicious, Healthy, and Easy!

If you're curious about the healthfulness of coconut flour, check out this article on livestrong.com, which states, "The National Institutes of Health report that exposure to gluten, especially wheat flour, can cause an inflammatory response in the body, even in healthy individuals... Coconut flour contains almost double the amount of fiber found in wheat bran." The article goes on to explain that coconut flour is a good source of plant-based protein. 


Question: Have you ever baked with coconut flour? If so, what were your results? What are your favorite Gluten Free flours to bake with?