Browsing Tag

banana

Friday Fare

Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

June 13, 2014

Ah muffins, how I adore thee, and especially these healthy blueberry coconut muffins. But certainly not the kind you buy from the supermarket or from most commercial stores.

healthy blueberry coconut muffins

Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

Most commercial muffins are made with many unnecessary ingredients and tend to be packed full of sugar and starchy carbohydrates. My delightful muffins are not only filled with ingredients that will actually do your body good, but they are also low in added sugar and have a good amount of protein and fiber in them. Of course they are a treat, but when choosing a sweet treat it is always better to make your own sweet treat using ingredients that provide your body with energy and nutrients. Plus, not all places provide the nutritional information and ingredients used to make their muffins .. so who knows what you may be eating and how many calories and added sugar you may be having! I like knowing exactly what is in my food, thanks very much.

Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

These muffins are a sweet combination of complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, protein and fiber. All of your daily macronutrients in one little muffin! In place of white or brown sugar, the sugar in these muffins come from bananas, blueberries, and honey. Of course these ingredients still have sugar in them, but they also provide you with a lot of other things such as vitamins, minerals and fiber. I replaced white flour with coconut flour because it is packed with fiber, protein and iron and gives the muffins a lovely and moist texture. The majority of the protein of course come from the eggs and the vanilla protein powder to help us with our weight loss and strength training goals. Oh, and for those with nut allergies or gluten sensitivities, these muffins are gluten free and are nut free 🙂

Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

I am pretty sure that by now you are convinced that you must try them!

Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

Alice Williams
A succulent blend of sweet blueberry and coconut wrapped in a warm muffin!

Ingredients
  

  • Dry Ingredients
  • 1/2 cup coconut flour
  • 1/4 cup vanilla protein powder
  • 2 tbsp chia seeds
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • Wet Ingredients
  • 1 banana
  • 3 eggs or 1 cup egg whites
  • 1/2 cup coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 cup blueberries

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 400 degrees farenheit
  • You can use either a food processor or a whisk to mix the ingredients together. First, combine your wet ingredients in a bowl (EXCEPT for the blueberries) and then mix in the dry ingredients. If using a food processor, put the wet ingredients in first and then pulse until smooth (minus the blueberries). Then add the dry ingredients and whizz some more until you get a smooth and thick consistency.
  • Now you may add in the blueberries. Do not blend or mash them in! Simply fold them into the muffin mixture.
  • Evenly divide the muffin mixture into 10 muffin holders and bake for 18-20 minutes. Let them cool for 5 minutes.
  • Eat and enjoy - try and put some in the fridge for the coming week (if you can resist)!
Healthy Blueberry Coconut Muffins

I hope this week’s edition of Friday Fare inspires you to try this healthier version of a muffin instead of reaching for something easy and convenient when you are next out shopping. There are so many ways that you can enjoy the foods you live whilst living a healthy lifestyle. And half of the time, the healthier versions taste better than the unhealthy versions! I have certainly noticed this and most ‘normal’ desserts I have are just far too sweet for me now. What is your fave healthy sweet treat?

Honestly yours,
Alice

Friday Fare, Health

Friday Fare – Healthified ice-cream with toffee sauce

March 7, 2014

Woooow, it’s Friday already?? Umm, the weeks pass by too fast for me. And I have a lot of work due next week for uni, so that’s not necessarily a good thing lol.

Anyway, I thought I would show you all how to make a healthier and clean version of everyone’s favorite dessert: ice-cream! And since I loooove toffee, I thought I would show you how to make a healthy version of that, to drizzle on top of the ice-cream.

Healthified ice-cream with toffee sauce

Healthified ice-cream with toffee sauce

I was inspired to do this, because a) I freaking love ice cream, and b) I am in LOVE with banoffee pie. Read bananas and toffee in a pie. Together. Heaven in a pie. And because this ice cream is made out of bananas, I thought it would be delicious to pair it with a healthy and raw toffee sauce 🙂

This recipe was also inspired by recipes featured on Blogilates and The Detoxinista 🙂

And note, before you can do ANYTHING, make sure your bananas are ripe and sweet and then slice it up and freeze the banana slices overnight. This is a crucial first step, as the frozen banana slices is what gives you a deliciously sweet and creamy texture to the ‘ice-cream.’

Also PLEASE USE NATURAL PEANUT BUTTER and not just any old peanut butter 🙂

Alright, banana slices all frozen? Excellent, let us move on.

 

Healthified Ice-Cream with Toffee Sauce

Alice Williams
Healthy 'ice-cream' that literally tastes and has the exact same texture as ice-cream!

Ingredients
  

  • For the Ice Cream
  • 2 bananas sliced and frozen
  • 1 tbsp Peanut Butter
  • For the Toffee Sauce
  • 12 pitted medjool dates
  • 3 tbsp milk
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Instructions
 

  • To make the ice cream
  • 1. Throw your banana slices (or you can gently guide them) into your blender, and whizz it until the consistency becomes smooth and creamy. This will be done very quickly if you have a Vitamix or Ninja blender and unfortunately will take longer with a less high powered one. I found that a food processor actually worked very well in getting a very ice-cream like texture, but perhaps that has more to do with the fact that my housemates food processor is perfect ..
  • 2. Then add your peanut butter to the mixture. Blend for another 30 seconds – 1 minute.
  • To make the toffee sauce
  • 1. Make sure you soften the dates by soaking them in hot water for a few minutes (3-5 is fine) first.
  • 2. Once the dates are soft, add the dates in first and blend them for a bit until adding in your milk and vanilla extract.
  • 3. Blend until your desired consistency (I wanted to leave mine a bit gritty and thick) and then either add to the ice-cream, on top or by swirling it in orrrrr just eat it. Hehe, it is really good.

Notes

Adapted from Blogilates and the Detoxinista
Healthified ice-cream with toffee sauce

Healthified ice-cream with toffee sauce

I hope you like this recipe as much as I do!! I normally like to add some unsweetened cocoa powder to my ice-cream mix, or I stir in some unsweetened coconut flakes and dark chocolate chips. Experiment, the possibilities are endless!

If you make this delicious dessert and post it on Instagram, Facebook, or any form of social media, please tag me and hashtag it with #fridayfare and #honestlyfitness so I can find you 🙂 My name on all social media outlets is just ‘Honestly Fitness’.

Love you all so much, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend. And remember to indulge once in a while! I had a ridiculously decadent little dessert last night and plan to go out for Indian food with my good friends tomorrow night. Although health and fitness is important, it is all about balance. Don’t deprive yourself, and don’t go too crazy 🙂

Honestly yours,
Alice