It’s a debate whether I should draw attention to the fact that these muffins are primarily made of lentils. Is that going to turn you away, or intrigue you? Well, it’s out in the open now.
These would make a very special Valentines Day breakfast for your family.
The rest of the year, they are a healthier-for-you indulgence that tastes more rich than they are.
Best of all, they are simple to make and use basic ingredients! Cook some red lentils (brown lentils can work but I found my muffins significantly drier with brown lentils). Then combine lentils with an overripe banana, oats, peanut butter, flax seed, cocoa, a little maple syrup and baking powder. Blend, then stir in chocolate chips and walnuts if desired. Bake for 25 minutes, let cool completely, then enjoy! Very little hands-on time.
Like most of my recipes, they can be adapted to be maximum-nutritious or maximum-delicious. You can omit the walnuts and/or chocolate chips to reduce the fat and sugar, or keep them in to please the lentil-muffin-hesitant (although, number 1 tip is don’t tell anyone they are made of lentils until after they’re eaten! I promise no one will guess.). 
For a fudgier muffin, you can omit the oats. They will be dense and tender, and possible a little mushy in the middle until they have been cooled for several hours. I created this recipe by adapting this recipe that has coconut oil and eggs in them. Without the eggs for structure, they were a little mushy without the oats.
The top four most popular recipes on my blog are the lentil and banana ones! If you love using lentils and bananas, you’ll also love these top recipes:
Instant Pot Lentil Barley Minestrone.
Made with lentils, bananas, and oats, these are wholesome and delicious!
- 1 cup cooked red lentils (homecooked or from a can)
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 1/4 cup ground flax seed
- 1 large (or 2 small) overripe bananas
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup cacao powder
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 cup peanut butter or almond butter (runny, not dry)
- 1/3 cup non-dairy chocolate chips
- 1/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with silicone muffin liners, or grease a normal pan. I use a silicone muffin pan that doesn't need greasing.
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Blend all the ingredients together, except chocolate chips and nuts. If you don't have a good blender, a food processor might work better. Stir in chocolate chips and nuts.
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Pour into muffin cups. Add additional chocolate chips, nuts, or coconut on top, if desired. Makes 10 muffins.
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Bake for 25 minutes, until middle is not gooey or super soft when pressed down.
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Let cool completely before eating. (If you omitted the oats for a fudgier, denser muffin, they must be completely cooled for several hours to prevent a mushy middle.)
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Refrigerate leftovers.
Adapted from SarahRemmer.com.
Nutrition information for 1/10 of the recipe (1 muffin): 105 calories, 2.8 g fat, 19 g carbohydrate, 3.4 g fiber, 8.4 g sugar, 3.5 g protein.
Love these muffins!! I was so excited to make them. They were a huge hit!! Thank you for all the amazing recipes!!
So glad they were a hit! Thank you!!
These were pretty good. I knew they wouldn’t be sweet enough for my husband so I doubled the maple syrup and cooked them a couple minutes longer. We love black bean brownies and these rank right up there with them. We will make them again. Thanks for the recipe.
Good to know! Thank you for coming back to comment!
I made these for an afternoon snack today. My kids both liked them but they did want me to drizzle a touch of honey on top for extra sweetness. My husband and I both liked them.
Thanks for the feedback! I’ll add that note to the recipe that some might like to make it sweeter.
Just did a taste test. My kids and I made these and another red lentil chocolate muffin recipe side by side. These were exponentially better! Faith is a genius with her recipes. She has thought through, tested, and tried everything so you really are getting the best. I always ask myself, “can I really make a chocolate treat, salad, sandwich, snack, soup, etc. that is honestly healthy and actually delicious?” The answer is YES. Faith has figured it out, from flavors to textures. These are the fluffiest, yet moist, rich in chocolate flavor, healthy muffins I’ve ever had.
Sweetest comment on my blog ever! Thank you so much Hillary. <3
These were delicious! I must admit, I accidentally doubled the honey, so, yes, they were plenty sweet! They were full of flavor, but couldn’t detect the red lentils AT ALL. These are a keeper!
You could call me a muffin connoisseur and these are wonderful! I didn’t have red lentils so I used chickpeas instead. Because if that adjustment I added a smidge more banana and maple syrup to help moisten and sweeten a little. They were gone in a day! Thanks, Faith!!
So good to hear that chickpeas work, too. Thank you!