Healthier Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Last week I wrote about my Alexander day.  One good part of the day was the yummy muffins that I made. No one in our family likes bananas when they start to get speckled with all those brown spots on them.  So now I just toss them in the freezer when they start to get freckles.  Later, I make either these yummy muffins or fruit smoothies.  Maybe sometime later I'll share about different smoothie options, but today I thought I would share how I made the muffins.

What makes this a healthier recipe than others?  Some people would say the honey makes it healthier, but the jury is still out on that one.  Honey is sweeter than refined sugar, so you don't have to use as much. However, it has more calories, making it about even when using it as a sweetener. Using whole wheat flour instead of white flour will definitely help you.  First, the refined white flour will go through your digestive system way too quickly while the whole wheat flour has the fiber you need.  Because it takes longer to digest, it will also make you feel full longer and keep your blood sugar from skyrocketing.  Flaxseed is also great for you.  I substituted flaxseed in this recipe for oil to get the added benefits of this powerhouse.  Flaxseed is high in fiber and omega-3 fatty acids, as well as phytochemicals called lignans.  Among other benefits, flaxseed can help lower your total and bad cholesterol and help your digestive system.  The best part is that when I add it to food like muffins or smoothies, my kids still love the food! Did you know that dark chocolate is also good for you in moderation?  Among other benefits, dark chocolate can help lower blood pressure and control blood sugar.  Just make sure to use dark chocolate, not milk chocolate.

Healthier Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 to 1/2 cup honey (I used 1/3 cup)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (about 2 - 3 bananas)
3 eggs
3/4 cup flaxseed (store extra in the freezer to keep it from going rancid)
1/4 cup skim milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
bag of dark chocolate chips (the recipe calls for less, but my kids love the chocolate, so I put more)

1.  Heat oven to 350 F.  Spray bottoms only of muffin cups with cooking spray or line with paper baking cups.
2.  In large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and flaxseed.
3.  In medium bowl, beat bananas, eggs, milk, vanilla, and honey with fork until smooth.  Stir into flour mixture just until flour is moistened.  Gently stir in chocolate chips.

4.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups.  (It sometimes makes about 14 muffins, so you may need an extra muffin tin.  I just put water in the empty muffin cups to keep the pan in good shape.)

5.  Bake 20 - 24 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Immediately remove muffins from pan to cooling rack.

6.  Enjoy!

My daughter, Elliana, loves these muffins!

an "Alexander" day

Ever had one of those days?  Where nothing terribly wrong happened but all those little things added up?  Ever had what I call an "Alexander" day?

Yesterday was one of those days for me.  I intended to sleep in.  Sunday night we stayed up late celebrating Natalie's safe arrival back from Mexico and then talking to Sean's sister who lives overseas.  But I woke up just after 5 am and couldn't go back to sleep.  I tossed and turned 'til after 7.  (I should have just gotten up but wasn't sure I would function well on the few hours of sleep I'd gotten.)

Later that morning, I decided to make banana chocolate chip muffins to also celebrate Natalie's return and because all the kids absolutely love them.  I learned a few lessons while making them:

1. Focus on making the muffins - don't get distracted by trying to fix kids' problems like broken toys.
2. The money you think you are going to save by re-using that teeny-tiny bottle of super glue isn't worth it!  Just buy a new one every time you use some super glue.
3. Super glue works REALLY FAST, especially bonding skin to skin.
4. Always have fingernail polish remover handy just in case you super glue your fingers together.
5. Make sure you know where the fingernail polish remover is located in your house.

That's right: I superglued my fingers together!  How in the world did you do that, you ask?  Oh, just trying to get the top on super tight after using the super glue - apparently more glue was squeezing out onto my fingers.  In a couple of seconds, my index and middle finger were tightly bonded to one another!  And why was I using superglue in the middle of making muffins?  Because one of our children had broken a siblings' brand new, never-been-used-before special item, and I wanted to fix it ASAP.

I had to get my younger kids to wake up the older ones to read the teeny-tiny print on the super glue tube(too small for these aging eyes) to find out that I needed fingernail polish remover.  They they had to find the needed polish.  I saw some just last week - now where was it?  (Poor Natalie didn't get to sleep in on her first day home because her mom superglued her fingers together.)

Fortunately, after a little looking, a tiny amount of polish was found.  After soaking my fingers for awhile (as the muffin batter sat and waited), I was able to get off enough super glue to pry my fingers apart without ripping skin.  Here's a picture of some of the super glue still stuck to my skin (but much of it was gone by this point - I was too distressed to even think of taking a picture while they were bonded together.)

Breakfast ended up being around 10:30 (did I mention I was still in my pajamas?  I hate still being in my pajamas mid-morning!)  Before I had a chance to sit down and enjoy a muffin, one child reached over to grab a SECOND muffin and knocked his entire glass of milk over! At least it was a small glass...

On the agenda for the day was to go to the library - well, we didn't even leave for the library until after noon (but with our late breakfast we weren't hungry for lunch yet anyway.)  The librarian who was checking my books in innocently asked a question as to why I always wanted my books checked in while I was standing there.  So I had the privilege of sharing Sean's story with her (You'll have to ask Sean to tell that story.) 

Stopping at the Amish farm for fresh produce on the way home, Micah cried LOUDLY when I didn't immediately unbuckle him to he could "help" me pick out the vegetables.  (How come I never hear the Amish children crying loudly when I'm at their farm?)

The afternoon went by way too quickly with Elliana helping me sort and clean up toys in the family room. (Although if you stopped by right now, you would have no idea we did that yesterday!)

After the youngest were in bed, Natalie, Samuel, and I went outside in the backyard to watch for meteors.  We never saw any.

So you might say it was a bad day; certainly super gluing my fingers together, not getting much done on my to-do list, missing the meteors, doesn't add up to a "great" day.  It sounds like an "Alexander" day to me.  Do you remember the kids' book: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day?  Everything that happened to poor Alexander that day was bad - so he thinks maybe he should move to Australia.  Then his mom tells him some days are like that, even in Australia.  (If you haven't read the book, check it out here:)
http://www.amazon.com/Alexander-Terrible-Horrible-Good-Very/dp/0689711735

But actually, this day that had the potential to be an "Alexander" day was great in spite of all my mishaps.  Because I couldn't sleep, I had time with the Lord first thing in the morning instead of late at night.  That was such a blessing.  We now have a family story about me super-glueing my fingers together and all the kids rushing to mom's aid (because some of the best memories and stories are when we can laugh at ourselves.) The kids all loved the muffins, and they were a somewhat healthy and sweet treat.  We had an enjoyable time at the library and an enjoyable afternoon, even though it felt like not much was "accomplished."  And best of all, even without seeing any shooting stars, Natalie, Samuel and I had a great time hanging out in the backyard after dark, talking and eating snacks.  Sometimes "Alexander" days actually turn out to be the best days!  (But I need to buy more fingernail polish remover, just in case!)

I'll Never...

Today Natalie leaves for Mexico.  Without us.  She's going on a missions trip to Puebla, Mexico for the third time WITHOUT Sean and me or the rest of our family.  When I asked her who she wanted to drop her off at church for the trip, she replied, "whoever will embarrass me the least."  That means I was out of the running.  I cried after she left this morning - or at least got teary-eyed.  Those who know me well know that I cry easily at most things.  It runs in the family: my brother-in-law jokes that there will be a whole lake in heaven filled with tears from the women in our family.  A jar wouldn't hold all our tears!   So that meant Sean dropped her off.  He didn't even stay to take a group photo (she didn't want him to) - I'll just have to get someone else's group photo off of facebook.  She did let me take a few pictures before she left this morning, so here is one of my favorites:

I'm excited for Natalie today!   I didn't cry when she left because I'm sad or worried, but because I'm excited for her, to see what God will do in her life.  Each year she comes back changed, and we get a glimpse of God making her more beautiful, more like Him.

I remember years ago when our church started doing these trips and taking fifth graders: FIFTH GRADERS!!!  The children's director who plans and leads these trips to Mexico is a good friend of mine.  She was excited the first year about taking a bunch of rising 6th graders to Mexico without their parents.  (Natalie was finishing 3rd grade at the time.)  I was excited for my friend (the children's director), but I also remember thinking, " I don't want Natalie to go on a missions trip to another country without Sean or me when she's only just finished 5th grade!  Too young!!!"  And yet, 2 years later, when Natalie asked to go, that's exactly what we did.  Why?  Because God worked in our hearts, and we believed that was what He was asking us to allow her to do.

We prayed a lot.  It's funny how God takes so many of my, " I'll never..." thoughts and turns them into, "I will..."  For example, I distinctly remember saying, "I'll never date a guy who wants to join staff with cru; I don't want to raise support."  Now here I am after 17 years of being happily married and thankfully and joyfully on staff with Cru.... two of the biggest blessings of my life  (and raising support for all of our needs and wants!)   Here again with Mexico, I learned once again that I shouldn't say or think, "I'll never..."  because sometimes the "I'll never"s turn into God's biggest blessings for us.

And that brings me back to Natalie.  I love her so much (just like I love all our kids incredibly!)  I remember before she was born; we didn't know if she was going to be a boy or a girl.  I remember being a little worried that if I had a boy then he might get into trouble or get hurt and that I might not be able to protect him from everything.  (Sean had told me some wild stories of growing up years with his cousins and friends; plus I had heard some college students' testimonies.)  Anyway, in the midst of my thoughts, God spoke clearly to me (not in an audible voice, but in my heart.)  He said point blank that there would be times in this child's life that I would not be there for him/her.  That I wouldn't be able to shield him/her from all the hardships of life.   (Those were disturbing comments!)  But He also said that He, God, would be there with my child, even when I couldn't.  As Natalie has grown, I have seen that to be true.  I can't stop some of the hurt that she experiences.  I can't go with her to school, read every text, book, or message that she reads.  I can't always be with her to help her make the best decisions and to walk her through every pain or trial.  But God can, and He does.   And as much as I love her and want to protect her, God loves her even more.  His plans for her life are even better than mine.  And I have to trust Him with that.  Even if it means sending her off to a foreign country when she is only 11 years old, or 13, or 14 (this is her third trip!)  And what's really cool, is that when I let God be God, let Him be in control, He does some pretty amazing stuff.  And in the end I'm thankful.  So when I catch myself thinking (I say it out loud less, but it still creeps in my heart at times,) "I'll never..." I remember the times like Natalie's trips to Mexico and how God has gloriously used the last two trips in her life.  And God reminds me that His plans are WAY better than mine, and that He loves me and those I love WAY more than I do.  So today, even though I'm teary-eyed, I'm super excited for my beautiful blue eyed, blond haired girl and the adventure that awaits her in Mexico.

Natalie's first trip to Mexico

another friend on Natalie's first trip to Mexico

Natalie with one of her favorite children at the orphanage

painting at the school in Mexico - 2012

Natalie had fun cracking eggs while I was busy with baby Samuel

This is Natalie on her first missions trip with us when she had just turned one.  We went to Algeciras, Spain and met families traveling to North Africa.  Here she is with a family that really enjoyed meeting her. 

Natalie loving on her baby brother Samuel