Gluten-free Banana, Carrot, and Date Muffins (also known as the lovechild of carrot cake and banana bread)

Hello again!

If you're reading this, you must be hungry for more foodz, or witty jokes, or kitchen fails...continue on, faithful reader!

Together Thyme is back in business (sort of).  For starters, here is an incredible gluten-free baking recipe from the blog Hip Hostess.  We love it because it is unusually fluffy for a gluten-free muffin (in other words, it doesn't taste brick-like, omelette-like, or petrified-peanut-butter-like).  We adjusted the recipe a bit, but you can see the original version by clicking the link at the bottom of the post.  Without further ado, Hip Hostess' spectacular Gluten-free Banana, Carrot, and Date Muffins. REJOICE!  

I just had to eat some before I took the picture

Ingredients:

• 2 cup almond meal/flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (Hip Hostess calls for 1 tsp., but we promise 1/2 tsp. is enough)
• 1 tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 cup dates, pitted 
• 3 medium ripe bananas (or more; we like to use 4 small bananas or 3.5 regular size ones)
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 ½ cups shredded carrots (shredding these yourself is way boring, but will improve the freshness and flavor of your muffins...so no pressure....but get shreddin')
• Optional: a sprinkling of chia seeds and/or ground flax seed for some additional health benefits including Omega 3 fatty acids (yay brains!)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Shred large carrots roughly. Combine almond flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Combine wet ingredients (dates, bananas, eggs, vinegar, oil, and carrots) in a food processor and blend until smooth. Transfer wet ingredients to the large bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir until well combined.  (Your batter might smell like a delicious, albeit carrot-y, smoothie. Do not panic.)
2. Spoon batter into muffin tins lined with paper liners. If you're feeling adventurous, sprinkle walnut pieces on the tops of the muffins before putting them in the oven. Bake about 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack and store in air-tight container for up to 4 days.

Makes approximately 12 superb muffins

Click here to read the recipe off of the original blog