While most of my recipes are clean and wholesome, I wanted to make sure I have a few solid desserts that I can count on that are both sugar-free (refined cane sugar, not the carbohydrate) and grain-free. I am preparing for a Whole 30 type cleanse and I am extremely nervous to cut out gluten, along with all grains! I love dessert. And bread. And gluten. It’s hard to believe that these Chocolate Chai Spice Banana Muffins are grain-free with their perfectly moist crumb. They are baked with a combination of almond flour and cassava flour and are sweetened with honey and creamy chocolate morsels bursting throughout each bite. My kids and friends did not believe me that it is both sugar free and grain free! I challenge you to make these and not eat more than one! It’s just not possible.

The Clean Ingredient line-up

Chocolate Chunks

I have been reliant on Hu Chocolate for some time now. It’s delicious. I do not mess around with my chocolate cravings. This genius chocolate brand has the creamiest and smoothest chocolate made without sugar or dairy. It is a done deal for me! I try to refrain from any sugar or dessert throughout the regular week, saving indulgences for special occasions or the weekend. This is my secret weapon. It has no added sugars and gives me that deep dark chocolate boost I need. Be sure to check it out. Hu Chocolate is found at Whole Foods, Pete’s Grocery, and Thrive Market in both bars and chocolate gems to bake with. If you want to save money, I find that Thrive Market has the best price. It is worthwhile to make an account and order pantry staples from Thrive, as you receive significant savings than from the standard grocery store, especially on specialty items like these. If you start an account with this referral link from me, you will even save 25% off your order. I earn rewards for each new membership, and you save a good extra chunk of money. This is not an affiliated or sponsored post. I am just trying to spread the good word to access clean ingredients at the best possible price. Good, clean chocolate is something we should all have access to :D.

Cooking fats

This recipe is naturally dairy free. I adapted and modified my original Cinnamon spice banana date muffins which are made with coconut oil. I added almond butter to add extra moisture to the cakes, and to complement the almond flour replacing wheat flour. I kept the eggs because I am not excluding eggs from my diet. However, this recipe can easily be made vegan by using apple sauce or pumpkin puree in place of the eggs! Just add 1/3 cup of apple sauce in place of the two eggs. The bananas and ground flaxseeds already do a great job acting as binders in the recipe.

Sweeteners

To sweeten these cakes, I use 1 cup of honey. That’s truly all it needs! The sweet bananas (6 of them!), coconut oil, almond butter and flour all offer a delicate balance of sweetness that is well appreciated by this moist banana muffin. I usually use even less honey if it is only for me because I became so accustomed to cutting out sugar, I find that these are plenty sweet with all of the bananas.

The Grain Free Part

I substituted 3 cups of flour with 1 cup almond flour + 1.5 cups casava flour. The combination makes for a perfectly moist and fluffy muffin. Casava flour is made from yuca root and I love the brand by Otto’s Naturals. There are no added fillers or preservatives, and it is a soft texture with a neutral flavor. You can substitute all purpose flour with casava with a 1:1 ratio in weight. The batter became nicely fluffy while stirring in the baking soda and the muffins baked up beautifully in the oven. These muffins are hard to tell apart from their gluten counterparts!