Banana Coconut Muffins

Right now, I'm on the lookout for yummy, filling, healthy muffins that I can use at breakfast or snack time. While on Cookie + Kate, I ran across these banana coconut muffins that looked and sounded quite yummy, so I thought I'd give them a try. One thing to note, she uses shredded unsweetened coconut. I had unsweetened coconut, but not shredded, so you can see that my coconut is shaved in larger strips. I suppose I could have put them in the food processor to shred them, but I kinda like the larger strips. Either way, the recipe calls for unsweetened coconut, which keeps the sugar content down a bit.

Kate says these muffins freeze well, so I took half of my cooked batch, popped them in a freezer bag, took out as much air as possible, and put them in the freezer. They should last for up to 3 months and can be revived by thawing completely, and then baking in a 350 degree oven until they are warm.

Banana Coconut Muffins (via Cookie + Kate)
Ingredients:
3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour (or regular whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon table salt
zest of 1/2 lemon, finely chopped
1/2 cup virgin coconut oil, melted
1 cup ripe banana, mashed
1/4 cup honey
1 large egg, preferably at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut, divided
1 tablespoon turbinado (raw) sugar

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a muffin tin or line the tin with muffin liners (note that this recipe produces about 10 to 11 muffins).

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, salt and lemon zest. Stir in 1/2 cup shredded coconut.

3. In a separate, medium bowl, whisk together the coconut oil, mashed banana, honey, egg and vanilla.*

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until just combined.
Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, then sprinkle the muffin tops with the remaining 1/4 cup coconut (about 1 to 2 teaspoons each). Top with a very light sprinkle of raw sugar.

5. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer muffins to a cooling rack and let them cool.