Gluten Free Vegan Banana Oat Muffins

The best part about banana bread is that you don't have to think "Hmm ... Should I bake some today?" because those freckled bananas about to rot on your counter make it so you have no choice. Let's not be wasteful here, grab two for these Banana Oat Muffins and toss the rest in the freezer for another day's smoothies.

The muffins are wheat free! Baking without wheat, and therefore without gluten, can be challenging but I was feeling rather adventurous today, so I did some research and came up with this flour blend. The result was a browned outside, soft inside, subty sweet, addicting muffin that does not make you feel like you are eating an unfrosted cupcake for breakfast.

I know you are tempted to bake this in a loaf tin, but for gluten free baking it is recommended to bake in small shapes that do not need to be cut. Without gluten to bind, you won't always get that nice clean slice. Use a muffin or mini-muffin tin to avoid any dilemmas.

Note: These minis are technically not 100% gluten free because oats get contaminated with gluten when grown and packaged. However, to those with mild gluten sensitives, oats are usually not a problem. So for someone with Celiac's disease, these muffins are not "gluten free enough". For those who just need a break from digesting a lot of gluten, these are perfect.

Yields 1 dozen muffins or 2 dozen minis

1 cup rolled oats (Buy Certified GF Rolled Oats if necessary)
1 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch
2 tablespoons garbanzo bean flour
1 tablespoon oat flour (grind oats in a food processor to get a coarse meal)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup almond milk
2 overripe bananas, mashed with a fork
2 tablespoons ground flax, mixed with 6 tablespoons hot water, let set until gooey
1/3 cup applesauce
3 tablespoons molasses
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup walnut pieces

Heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease muffin or mini muffin baking sheets. (Do not use paper liners, muffins will stay stuck.)

In a large bowl, whisk oats, brown rice flour, tapioca starch, garbanzo bean flour, oat flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, stir almond milk, mashed bananas, flax mix, applesauce, molasses, and vanilla until smooth. Pour into dry ingredients, stir until no flour clumps remain. If batter is too thick, add more almond milk. Fold in walnuts. Scoop generous amounts into muffin tins, bake until golden and inserted toothpick comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Mini muffins will bake quicker, about 12 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes before removing from baking sheet.

As with all gluten free muffins, do not let sit overnight. If you need to store them, let them freeze and then reheat when needed.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Oatmeal Bars

Never too early in the year for pumpkin and cranberry.

Oh how quickly "holiday desserts" are replaced by the word "detox" in our lives. Packed with flax, brown rice, oat bran, and pumpkin, these vegan, gluten-free bars allow us to add a bit of fun to our cleansing and a little cleansing to our fun.

As part of the fresh start to '11, I reorganized all of the flours in the pantry and found I had a lot of various flours from Bob's Red Mill. I tend to avoid gluten-free baking because I haven't invested in some xantham gum (yet). Thankfully, I found this recipe for Bob's Red Mill Pumpkin Oatmeal Bars. It's a very mild flavor, so next time I may add more spices. If strong pumpkin isn't your thing, these bars just might be. I replaced the raisins with cranberries, it seemed like the right thing to do.

PS. Check out my hot new recipe notebook! The bars were the first entry so I had to honor that by including the book in the photos. It was a Christmas gift from the wonderful I Laugh A Little Too Loud chick. You can see more info here. I got her a sunny, frilly apron that's not in stock anymore. Leave it to us to get each other domestic gifts from Anthropologie.

1 1/4 cups brown rice flour
3/4 cup oat bran
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon cloves

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1/2 cup ground flaxseed
1/2 cup safflower oil, or other vegetable oil
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups oats
1 cup raisins


Heat oven to 350F. Lightly grease a deep baking sheet.

In a medium bowl mix brown rice flour, oat bran, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and cloves. In a large bowl blend sugar, brown sugar, molasses, flax, oil, pumpkin, and vanilla. Add flour mix into sugar mix, stir in oats and raisins.

Drop and spread dough evenly into the baking sheet, baking until golden, about 20 minutes. Cut bars in pan before cooling, letting them cool in the pan.