Delicious Eczema-Friendly Chocolate Muffins For The Family

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Ingredients:

2 tablespoons of chia seeds

2 tablespoons of ground flax

5-6 tablespoons of water

2 ripe bananas, mashed

1 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 tablespoon of vanilla extract

1/4 cup of maple syrup

1/4 cup olive oil

2 cups of oat flour—homemade!—put rolled oats food processor for a minute

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 cup almond milk (or any plant milk)

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1 cup of vegan chocolate chips

Cookware:

One bowl

One fork

Two silicone muffin pans

Instructions:

1. Put the ground flax and the chia seeds in the bowl and pour the water on top. Wait 5 minutes.

2. Add the bananas and squish them in the bowl with the fork. Mix.

3. Add vanilla, cinnamon, maple syrup and stir.

4. Add the olive oil and stir. (That’s your butter)

5. Add the oat flour and the baking soda. Mix. (No wheat!)

6. Pour the plant-based milk. Mix. (No dairy!)

7. Now for the extra sugar—the one my kids can’t live without!—Add the chocolate chips. Stir. Do not overmix.

8. Once ready, pour the batter into the muffin trays. You could make 12 big muffins or 24 half-sized ones, which is what I prefer nowadays.

9. Bake in the oven for about 25-30 minutes at 350 degrees.

10. Let cool and enjoy!

About This Recipe

I am not a certified chef, nor a food scientist, but in my house, I am lovingly in charge of planning what to eat, selecting ingredients, buying the food, and preparing nourishing meals. I am a married mommy of 5 vibrant personalities, all in training to help with the process! We are indeed blessed with a big family, plus one baby on the way! And I feel lucky to share my kitchen story.

1o years ago, we were blessed with our firstborn son. When he was only 4 months old, he developed really bad eczema. As a new mom, freaking out and not knowing the first thing about what was going on, I turned to the internet for information and advice. There I found a lot of information about what can cause skin irritations with eczema. Food was the biggest culprit.

Needless to say, it took me less than 5 seconds to decide I was going to change my entire diet—as I was nursing—to try to alleviate my baby’s symptoms. It was pretty heartbreaking to watch his skin breaking, the oozing, and the pus. The good news is that about two years later, his body was strong and his skin back to normal. Then we started with asthma…but that’s a different story!

During those months with eczema, however, out of my diet went all forms of dairy, wheat, sugar, corn, mustard, eggs, and soy. Pretty much everything used in everything you buy at the store! It was hard. I was always craving a cheeseburger with mayonnaise! Thank goodness for fruits and vegetables, almond milk, spelt toast, healthy jam (I had to deal with a bit of sugar!), and peanut butter.

Unfortunately though, other than making myself salads, I still hadn’t found my “voice” in the kitchen. Growing up I never cooked at home. I knew I loved Lebanese food (which is my background), and…well, that’s about it.

I believe every child and pregnancy brings a blessing to the family. Like in the Encanto movie! When I was pregnant with my third child, something in me changed. I wanted to cook! I wanted to try new flavors, I wanted to love my kitchen and be a good cook for my family. That was a big challenge because I had no confidence and barely any knowledge about cooking. But she, my 3rd baby, is the one who inspired me to try flavors and really put my heart into the kitchen.

With my fifth pregnancy, which was during the beginning of Covid, that baby gave me the boost of confidence I needed to do it for the love I felt in my heart while tuning out the noise coming from different people around me. I also felt inspired by my good friend Isabelle, who would post delicious and easy recipes to follow. And it worked! My family is finally on my side. My husband is my biggest supporter; he also understands that he can’t say something is good if it is not or else he will be eating it for the rest of his life!

Once my fifth baby was born however, it was like a flashback to my first baby. Eczema and its heartbreaking consequences. I had to change my diet, again. This time, however, the challenge was different. I could cook, but I had 4 bigger kids to feed, and changing their diet was going to be tough. So I chose to start with baking. As long as we have chocolate, they are going to like it!

Taking out wheat is not easy in any diet, because everything has wheat! Sugar as well; there aren’t many things to eat that do not have sugar! But I had faith, and I was on a mission. I needed to change our diet so I could eat something delicious while nursing, in order for the baby’s skin not to be so irritated.

The recipe I would like to share with you is one of my favorites. It is one I would make almost every day for my family. Twelve muffins don’t last very long when there are 7 people eating them! During Covid, everyone was home, homeschooled, and hungry.

This recipe equals peace of mind to me. All my babies could eat it, I didn’t have to worry about eczema, and the extra bonus is that it didn’t make my belly heavy! (Yes, I could actually lose weight if I stuck to the “eczema diet.”) Every time I bake them, the smell in the house gets everyone in the kitchen waiting to eat them. That satisfaction is enough to fill my heart.

We are certainly not perfect, and my children are allowed to eat what they want, but our journey with food has taught us a lot as a family, to be healthy and to look for natural ingredients that will do our bodies good. I’ve experimented with and used many kinds of flours and plant milks in my baking. I also do my best to choose natural ingredients that replace sugar. (No not the fake powders. I mean dried fruits, fresh fruits, spices, and my favorite which is maple syrup. It’s expensive but so worth it!)

This story was submitted to Love What Matters by Nathalie Sinson. You can follow her journey on Instagram and Facebook.  Submit your own story here, and be sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter for our best stories, and YouTube for our best videos

Try these other recipes:

Nana’s Family Favorite Oatmeal Raisin Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Grandma’s Ultimate Banana Bread From The Heart

Single Mom’s Crispy Ham And Cheese Melts On A Budget

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