Almond Butter Banana Blueberry Muffins.

My mother introduced me to the idea of making muffins with almond butter after she had made some yummy muffins from one of our favorite bloggers, Megan, The Detoxinista. My sister in law is currently on a special diet and she was able to have these muffins; and she loved them! Both ladies spoke so highly of them that I knew I wanted to try making them myself. So the night before our family Christmas Eve celebration, I whipped some of these up, while making a few of my own changes ;)

I really like this recipe because it's so flavorful and so easy! It takes about 5 minutes to whip up, and about 20-25 minutes to bake, so within the hour you can have warm, cooled, ready to eat muffins for your friends and family! I highly suggest you wait for these muffins to cool. When they first come out of the oven the bottoms will feel a little "soggy" but they firm up as they cool. The texture of these muffins is fabulous!


Almond Butter Banana Blueberry Muffins.
     makes one dozen muffins
     inspired by this recipe

    1 cup  almond butter (mine was raw, but you can also use roasted, store-bought, or made at home)
    1/2 cup  mashed ripe banana (mine took 1 whole banana)
    1/4 cup (or even 2 Tbsp)  maple syrup (or runny honey)
    2  happy eggs
    1/2 tsp  baking soda
    1/4 tsp  unrefined sea salt
    1 Tbsp  cinnamon
    1 cup  frozen blueberries

To make your muffins:
  1)  Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, convection; line a muffin tin with paper liners.
  2)  In a large bowl, combine almond butter, banana, maple syrup, and eggs. Mix well. Add soda, salt, cinnamon, and mix again. Lastly, fold in the frozen blueberries. Do not overmix.
  3)  Using a 1/4 cup measuring scoop, transfer batter to muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, depending on your oven, and remove muffins when tops are slightly springy to the touch. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool more. Store in the fridge to keep for longer, or outside the fridge if eaten in 2-3 days.


These will freeze well also, and are a great "make ahead" option. They are also very portable, and will no doubt please a crowd. Kids and adults alike loved these muffins when I brought them to our Christmas Eve gathering. You can feel good about giving these muffins to your loved ones, as they are low in sugar, and high in fat and protein, which makes for a great snack, or side dish to eggs for breakfast.

Enjoy! I know I will be making these way more often from now on.

Cinnamon Honey Almond Butter.

Almond butter is one of my mom's favorite foods.  We enjoy using to make protein bars, waffles, and as a topping of one of our morning breakfast bowls.  It's a great primal peanut butter alternative, and it is much more digestible than peanut butter.  We've both tried lots of almond butter over the years, raw, roasted, organic, natural, salted, unsalted, fresh ground, homemade, either fresh or in jars of all forms.

After trying all the different varieties, I can definitely say that fresh ground, either raw or roasted, is the best.  Fresh ground almond butter comes just like fresh ground peanut butter from those nut grinders you can find at Whole Foods or your local health food store, except these grinders have dry roasted almonds in them instead of peanuts!

I have also found that fresh roasted peanut and almond butters from these machines (that you grind right in front of you! :) are much more digestible than the jars you can buy at the store.  I think that's because fresh ground is, well, fresh, and the stuff in the jar has been there for who knows how long.  The oils there have likely become old and rancid.  That said, I always stick to fresh ground nut butters.

One day I had some of fresh ground almond butter on hand and I decided to make it a little bit more exciting.  First I added coconut oil for some nourishing MCFA's, then some raw honey for some raw enzymes and probiotics, then molasses for flavor and iron, and then some cinnamon and sea salt to really make the sweetness of the honey and almond butter come out.  What I got was a lovely new take on almond butter.  Why try to buy this in the store when you can make it yourself?  This stuff is very flavorful, spreadable and delicious!  It's also Primal and paleo!

Cinnamon Honey Almond Butter.
    makes about 24 ounces

    16 oz  fresh ground dry roasted almond butter
    4 oz  organic coconut oil
    2 oz  organic raw honey
    1T  blackstrap molasses
    1 tsp  cinnamon
    1/2 tsp  unrefined sea salt

To make your almond butter:
  1.  In a large bowl, combine all ingredients together.  You can use less honey and it will be less sweet.  Personally, 2 ounces tastes very sweet to me.
  2.  Transfer to a jar of choice.  Eat within 2 weeks or store in the fridge for longer periods.

Try spreading cinnamon honey AB on homemade banana or zucchini bread for a delicious snack!  This would also go great with cacao nibs and celery to make celery logs snacks.  Or even on top of grain-free pancakes or yogurt and berry breakfast bowls!

Enjoy :D