Slim Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Don’t you just love waking up on a Saturday morning to freshly baked muffins? I know it’s only Wednesday, but the weekend is right around the corner (wohoo!) so it’s never too early to get excited.

My original inspiration came from a lonely brown banana sitting in my otherwise succulent bowl of fruit. The rest of the guys weren’t quite ready to be mashed into bread, but I certainly didn’t want to throw this one away!

I wanted to bake something that gave the satisfaction of a morning carb, without blowing the whole day’s worth of calories first thing in the AM. Although pumpkin is often thought of as a fall ingredient (my favorite as you know!), it’s a great way to substitute oil and butter, while maintaining moisture. Although the batter itself isn’t too sweet, the additional mini chocolate chips (leftover from my holy moly cannoli dip!) balance it out nicely.

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tbsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1 mashed ripe banana

2 tbsp sugar

1 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling)

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips