Banana Wheat Germ Muffins Revisited

Back in December, I made Banana Wheat Germ Muffins from Weelicious.  The were delicious, but my only complaint was that they didn't contain 100% whole grains - there was a cup of all purpose flour along with the cup of wheat germ.  Wheat germ is packed with nutrients, so the recipe probably works out to be as  wholesome as whole wheat muffins, but I'm greedy so I wanted to see if we could do better!  I just made these muffins again, but this time I replaced a half cup of the flour with whole wheat pastry flour, and I could not tell the difference!  Next time I'll try all whole wheat pastry flour and see if they still hold up.

The other change I made this time was to skip the hand mixer, as per my friend Julie's advice.  I just whisked the dry ingredients, then the wet, and added dry to wet in 3 stages.  This switch is up to you - the hand mixer's not that hard to clean, but I store mine on a shelf that I can't reach without a step stool, and the whisk is right on my countertop, so this approach is much easier for me (another example of my lazy chef approach!).

Here's the updated recipe:

Banana Wheat Germ Muffins

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup toasted wheat germ
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3 medium very ripe bananas*
1/2 cup agave
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray or line with cups.

In a small bowl, whisk together flours, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

In a large bowl, mash the 3 bananas with a fork. Add agave, oil, vanilla, and egg and whisk together until well combined and fairly smooth (small bits of banana are fine). Add dry ingredients in 3 stages and quickly whisk together until just combined. Do not over-mix.

Fill prepared muffin cups 3/4 full with batter. Bake 15 minutes for mini muffins or 20 minutes for regular muffins, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Makes 24 mini or 12 standard muffins

*Freezing bananas to use in baking works really well!  I peel mine and dump them in a zip top bag in the freezer, and defrost on the counter or in the microwave when I need them.  Note that a lot of the juices come out when they defrost, so make sure you add those juices back into the recipe.