Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins (vegan option)

These Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins are a fun and healthy snack!

Light and fluffy banana muffins are packed with chocolate chips and walnuts.

Not only are they grain-free, gluten-free and dairy-free, but there’s also a vegan option to make them egg-free as well.

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Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins

I think it was the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream that introduced us to the “chunky monkey” flavor, right?

Banana ice cream with chocolate chunks and walnuts was a genius combination.

Since then, there’s all sorts of chunky monkey cookies, cakes and other treats.

But I thought a chunky monkey muffin made a lot of sense.

It’s a great way to get a slightly sweet treat in the middle of the day with no sugar crash later.

Instead of regular sugar, we’re using just a bit of pure maple syrup.

And by using almond flour instead of regular flour, these flourless chunky monkey muffins are full of protein, fiber and healthy fats, all of which help make us digest the sugars in maple syrup more slowly (and therefore: no sugar crash).

These are a great kid-friendly treat and would even be great as part of their breakfast!

What you need for Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins

Ingredients:

• 2 cups superfine blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
• 1/4 cup arrowroot starch/flour
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup mashed bananas (from about 3-4 large bananas)
• 2 eggs, room temperature (or a flax egg to make it vegan, see below)
• 1/4 cup pure maple syrup, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips, plus more if desired (I use the dairy-free kind from Enjoy Life! or the fully Paleo ones from Hu)
• 1/2 cup toasted, chopped walnuts, plus more if desired

Equipment:

• 1 large mixing bowl
• 1 medium mixing bowl
• 1 heat-proof small mixing bowl
• a whisk
• a spatula (for stirring, not flipping)
• a muffin pan
• muffin cup liners
• measuring spoons
• measuring cups
• 1/4 cup ice cream/cookie scoop or measuring cup

How to make Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins

Heat the oven to 350°.

Line a muffin pan with muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk the almond flour, arrowroot, cream of tartar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda.

In a medium bowl, whisk the mashed bananas, eggs, maple syrup and vanilla extract.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until fully blended.

Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.

Use the 1/4-cup cookie scoop or measuring cup to divide the batter evenly into the muffin cups.

Add a few chocolate chips and walnuts on top of each muffin, if you want.

Bake the muffins for about 20-25 minutes.

Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Then enjoy!

Make ahead and storage

These muffins keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days.

To freeze them, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap, then store them in a freezer-safe container or baggie. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.

Substitutions and variations

• You can use tapioca flour/starch instead of arrowroot flour/starch
• You can use pecans instead of walnuts (or any other nut you like)
• I haven’t tried these muffins with honey instead of maple syrup but I think it would be fine

How to make these into Vegan Chunky Monkey Muffins

Everything about these Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins happens to be vegan except the eggs.

So I tried them using the popular flax egg substitute and was pleasantly surprised that the vegan/egg-free version was just as good!

To make flax eggs:

1. Mix 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed (or flaxseed meal) with 3 tablespoons water
2. Let it rest for 8-10 minutes so it gels into a paste

And that’s it! Use it in place of the eggs and you’re all set. The muffins might not get quite the same amount of rise as the Paleo version but I found the difference to be minimal.

Other recipes you might like:

1. Almond Flour Banana Bread
2. Chocolate Chip Zucchini Muffins
3. Pumpkin Streusel Muffins
4. Gingerbread Muffins

Print Recipe

5 from 3 votes

Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins (vegan option)

These Paleo Chunky Monkey Muffins are a fun and healthy snack or breakfast! You'd never know these slightly sweet treats are full of protein, fiber and healthy fats. Plus they're grain-free, gluten-free, dairy-free and there's an easy vegan/egg-free option!

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time25 minutes mins

Total Time40 minutes mins

Course: Snack

Cuisine: American

Keyword: almond flour recipes, chunky monkey, healthy muffin, paleo snack

Servings: 12 muffins

Author: Don Baiocchi

Ingredients

• 2 cups superfine blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
• ¼ cup arrowroot flour/starch
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup mashed bananas (from about 2-3 large bananas)
• 2 large eggs, room temperature (see below for vegan option)
• ¼ cup pure maple syrup, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ cup chocolate chips, plus more if desired (see below for dairy-free/Paleo recommendations)
• ½ cup chopped, toasted walnuts

Instructions

• Heat the oven to 350°.
• Line a muffin pan with muffin cups.
• In a large bowl, whisk the almond flour, arrowroot, cream of tartar, cinnamon, salt and baking soda.
• In a medium bowl, whisk the mashed bananas, eggs, maple syrup and vanilla extract.
• Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until fully blended. Stir in the chocolate chips and walnuts.
• Using a ¼-cup cookie scoop or measuring cup, divide the batter evenly into the muffin cups. Add a few chocolate chips and/or walnuts on top of each muffin, if you want.
• Bake the muffins for about 20-25 minutes. Let cool for at least 30 minutes. Then enjoy!

Notes

For chocolate chips, I recommend Enjoy Life! for dairy-free chips or Hu for Paleo chips.

You can halve this recipe to make 6 muffins.

Make ahead and storage:

These muffins keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days.

To freeze them, wrap each muffin individually in plastic wrap, then store them in a freezer-safe container or baggie. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge.

Substitutions and variations:
You can use tapioca flour/starch instead of arrowroot flour/starch.
You can use pecans instead of walnuts (or any other nut you like).
I haven't tried these muffins with honey instead of maple syrup but I think it would be fine.

How to make these into Vegan Chunky Monkey Muffins:

Mix 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed (or flaxseed meal) with 3 tablespoons water
Let it rest for 8-10 minutes so it gels into a paste

Use it in place of the eggs. The muffins might not get quite the same amount of rise as the Paleo version but the difference is minimal.

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