Whole Wheat Banana + Oat Muffins

Most mornings, I’m in no state to spend time making anything other than a bowl of cereal or piece of toast for breakfast. I’m typically spilling my coffee, forgetting my keys, and tripping over Rosie as I rush out of the door for work during the week, or, on the weekends, am too excited to get started on a project the minute my feet hit the ground or, more frequently, sleep in late so that I skip breakfast entirely and go straight for lunch.

Having a little something made ahead of time is a great way to mix up my breakfast routine when I can’t handle one more bowl of Cheerios – while Pop Tarts and fast-food breakfast sandwiches always sound great, I try to start my day off on a semi-healthy note. It makes me feel accomplished, you know? Until I hit that 3 PM slump and grab a candy bar, anyway.

These whole wheat banana and oat muffins (from Cookie + Kate) are a healthy option and they’re so easy to make – you can whip up a batch on a Sunday morning before starting anything else and have breakfast/snacks at-the-read for the week!

Whole Wheat Banana Oat Muffins

Makes 12 regular-sized muffins | Original recipe found here.

Ingredients

⅓ cup extra-virgin olive oil (or melted coconut oil)
½ cup honey (or maple syrup)
2 eggs (at room temperature is best)
1 cup packed mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium bananas)
¼ cup milk (I used almond)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling on top
1¾ cups white whole wheat flour or regular whole wheat flour
⅓ cup old-fashioned oats, plus more for sprinkling on top
1 teaspoon sugar (I used Stevia) for sprinkling on top

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325ºF. Lightly grease muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray, or line with muffin liners.
In a large bowl, beat the oil and honey together with a whisk. Add eggs and beat well. Mix in the mashed bananas and milk, followed by the baking soda, vanilla extract, salt and cinnamon.
Add the flour and oats to the bowl and mix with a large spoon, just until combined. If you’d like to add any additional mix-ins, like nuts, chocolate or dried fruit (I used raisins!), gently fold those in, too.
Divide the batter evenly between muffin cups, filling each cup about two-thirds full. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with a pinch of oats, cinnamon and sugar if desired.
Bake muffins for 23 to 25 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
Allow to cool for a few minutes and enjoy!

These muffins are also totally customizable. I added raisins into this batch, but you could stir in a handful of nuts, dried fruit, or chocolate chips (or cocoa nibs), too!