Now I don’t mean to pick favorites, but if I absolutely had to pick a favorite type of dessert, it would be muffins. Not cake, cookies, or ice cream, but a good old delicious muffin!
Personally, I’m not big into chocolate-y desserts: chocolate cakes, chocolate cupcakes, chocolate cookies, etc. I think they tend to have a bit of a drier side to them, and I’d much rather indulge in something vanilla or fruity-flavored. However, every once and a while, I like to give chocolate another chance, as was the case with these chocolate muffins.
Now let me just tell you… these were the odd exception to my belief that chocolate-flavored desserts are dry and flavorless. Rather, these muffins were extremely dense and full of flavor.
Being a dietitian, I’m always looking for fun new ways to spruce up recipes to make them a bit more nutritious. In this case, I used a mixture of applesauce and yogurt instead of oil, and I used some unsweetened almond milk instead of regular milk. (Honestly? I haven’t had real milk in probably over 6 years – everything I make is with almond milk! I prefer the flavor of it much more than regular milk).
But I didn’t use just any Greek yogurt to make these, I used my absolute favorite brand – Siggi’s! When you walk into a grocery store nowadays, there are often millions of different yogurt choices: plain, fat-free, Greek, fruit-on-the-bottom, low carb, and so on and so forth. With all of those options, how in the world is one supposed to choose a yogurt? Here’s a helpful tip I have for you: Always go with the Siggi’s!
Siggi’s yogurts are packed full of protein, yet they contain very little sugar. In fact, you’ll never find any crazy ingredients or artificial sweeteners in Siggi’s products, unlike other companies. Rather, Siggi’s uses only the best, most natural products to make their yogurts.
In this recipe, I used the Siggi’s Banana & Cinnamon Flavor, however it would be great with the vanilla, or even the chocolate flavor. Yes… Siggi’s has chocolate yogurt, and it is the thickest, most creamiest and delicious yogurt ever! Personally, I always buy yogurt with at least 2% or 4% fat content (like Siggi’s offers), because it provides healthy fats that satisfy you and keep you full. Plus, when most companies make no-fat yogurts, they often add sugars or other ingredients to make it taste better. My point? Always stick with low-fat yogurt (2% or 4% at least), NOT fat-free! And go ahead and give Siggi’s a try… I promise you won’t regret it!
Now back to these muffins. The yogurt makes them extremely dense and filling, and the bananas provide just the perfect amount of sweetness. These muffins are not only great for a snack or dessert, but they’re a great addition to your breakfast, since they contain many nutritious ingredients.
Do yourself a favor and give them a try!
- ⅔ cup flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 2 TBSP cocoa powder
- 2 TBSP brown sugar
- ½ cup sugar
- 1 cup mashed banana (about 2 bananas)
- ¾ cup Greek yogurt (I used the Banana & Cinnamon flavor from Siggi's)
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup applesauce
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 tsp. vanilla
- ½ cup chocolate chips
- Preheat oven to 375 F. Line a muffin tin with 14 paper liners and set aside.
- Combine all wet ingredients and the sugars. Mix well.
- Slowly add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and then pour batter into muffin tins.
- Bake for 14 - 18 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
