banana oatmeal dark chocolate muffins

Quiet Saturday mornings, home alone, are totally the best thing ever. With our crazy hectic weeks, it's rare for me to have the house to myself. And when I do, I take full advantage of it, soaking up the tranquility of it all. Usually, I crank up my music and bake in the morning. But this week, I decided to really have some peace to myself. No music. No baking. No TV. I woke up to a grey sky and the smell of rain drifting in through my window. Of course with this horrible drought that Namibia is going through, it looks like it's going to rain but doesn't. It's like a trick. Like showing me a chocolate brownie and then taking it away. Not fair. The streets were so quiet and perfect, with no hustle or bustle like during the week when the town is getting to work and school. So I left the windows open, sipped my coffee, and read a good book, letting my imagination wander. Ya know, it's hard to let your imagination wander when there's loud children catching chameleons and running around your house 24/7. Again, I love quiet Saturday mornings. I savored my breakfast without feeling rushed to go for my run or get started on school. Love it!

Breakfast is my absolute FAVORITE meal of the day, in case you haven't been able to tell with all the granola and muesli recipes I've been whipping out lately. It's also really important when I exercise every morning to have a good breakfast that will strengthen the muscles I worked and keep my mind focused for school. I made a batch of super healthy muffins to have on hand that I can grab for a quick, nutritious breakfast with some fruit and yogurt on the side. Since I made these specifically for breakfasts, I made them as healthy as possible. No butter, refined sugar, or flour! The best part is that they really honestly don't taste healthy at all. They taste like a normal banana muffin without all the added junk!

banana oatmeal dark chocolate muffins

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1 3/4 c. plain yogurt 

1 egg

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. honey

1 1/4 c. wholewheat flour

1 1/4 c. oats

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 c. dark chocolate chips 

In a large bowl, combine the bananas, yogurt, honey, vanilla, and egg. Stir until smooth. Add the flour, oats, baking powder, and cinnamon. Fold in the dark chocolate chips and stir until combined. Spoon mixture into a greased or lined muffin tin, filling each 3/4 full. Bake at 400ºF for 18-20 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in pans then remove and cool on a wire rack. 

And there's dark chocolate. Hellooooooooooooo.