Single-Serve Almond Butter Banana Raisin Muffin

May 14, 2015 in Breakfast, Desserts, Recipes with: breakfast, dessert, gluten-free, nut butter, snack, vegan, vegetarian

A single-serve vegan and gluten-free muffin with all of the healthy baking essentials: almond butter, banana, and raisins! This makes for the perfect second breakfast, and pairs well with a little extra nut butter for a tasty evening treat.
I may or may not have a newfound obsession: single-serve desserts.

I know that single-serve desserts are by no means “new” in the blogging world. Heck, y’all have been sharing these for years now while I lovingly admired how delicious they looked and then kept cruising right on through my blog reader feed. As much as I hate to admit it, I am just not much of a baker. I much prefer recipes and cooking that involve “winging it,” and throwing in a handful here and a pinch there. To me, exact measurements take too much time and result in way too many unnecessary dirty dishes.

Even though I do not claim to be much of a baker, that does not mean that I do not wish I could whip up the most gorgeous and delicious cupcakes and dessert creations like my friend Joanna does <– seriously, she is the baking queen! So lately, I have been challenging myself to open up a bit more in my kitchen, to try new things, and to create some new and fun recipes (even if they result in more dishes to clean).

As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I am slowly but surely working my way through my grain ingredients in my pantry. One of those ingredients being gluten-free flour. I have been using it for things like pancakes and waffles, but I do not want it to all slip away without a few more sweet, dessert-like treats.

Since I fell in love with my Single-Serve Cacao Nib Banana Bread Muffin after I made it several times, I decided that I could handle experimenting with a new single-serve muffin recipe. Using ingredients that I already had in my pantry and refrigerator, this Single-Serve Almond Butter Banana Raisin Muffin was born. Is it just me, or is it nearly impossible to come up with short titles for recipes like these? I just cannot leave out any of the most important ingredients, aka: all of them!

Single-Serve Almond Butter Banana Raisin Muffin
Vegan + Gluten-Free

Ingredients

coconut oil spray
2 inches of a banana, mashed (the riper, the better)
1 heaping TB natural almond butter
3 TB gluten-free flour
1/2 TB almond meal
1 to 2 tsp coconut sugar (1 was enough for me)
1/4 tsp baking powder
2 TB unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 TB raisins (you could sub dark chocolate chips or cacao nibs if you aren’t a raisin fan)
additional almond butter, optional

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a ramekin with coconut oil spray and set aside.

2. Combine mashed banana and almond butter in a medium bowl.

3. Add flour, almond meal, sugar, and baking powder to the bowl. Stir until well-combined.

4. Mix in almond milk until just combined.

5. Gently fold in raisins.

6. Add batter to ramekin and bake for approximately 18 to 21 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

This muffin is best served right out of the oven. It is kind of like cookies. The freshly baked, warm, and ooey-gooey ones are always the best!

I found this baby to be perfect all on its own, but I happen to be fond of topping it with a little extra nut butter as well. You can never have too much AB. A sprinkle of coconut flakes and a few dark chocolate chips would be killer too!