If you have ever lived in the south or been invited to a southerners dinner party or backyard barbecue, there is a good chance that you have at least heard of a hummingbird cake. We have lived in the south for years and although I have been in the presence of many a hummingbird cake, I had never tried one until recently and long story short… I’m in love…
Although hummingbird cake is thought of as a southern classic, it was actually first developed in Jamaica in the 1960’s. Now there are several different versions of the story of why this cake was named a “hummingbird” cake, but the way that it celebrates the beautiful Jamaican flavors of pineapple, coconut, banana and warm spices is truly delicious and I am so glad that this recipe made its way to the American south.
If you are a fan of healthy, moist, flavorful muffins that are super easy to make then you should definitely give these hummingbird cake inspired muffins a try.
Let’s get started…
The ingredients list on this one has a little length to it, but every element is special and none of them are tough to find.
Begin by combining 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda, 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of cloves in a small bowl.
In a large bowl, combine 2 large eggs with 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of a neutral oil, 1/3 cup of apple sauce, 1/3 cup of pineapple juice, 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and a cup of mashed bananas.
The small amount of brown sugar in this recipe may concern you, but these muffins are actually sweet enough to easily fit into the dessert category. The pineapple, coconut, bananas and apple sauce all add natural sweetness making a bunch of extra sugar totally unnecessary. These muffins are wonderfully sweet as is!
Add the dry ingredients in with the wet ingredients and mix until they are mostly combined. We are about to fold all of the add-ins into the batter, so don’t worry about combining the batter fully at this point.
Last, but not least, fold a cup of crushed pineapple, 1/2 cup of shredded coconut and 1/2 cup of chopped pecans into the batter until everything is evenly distributed.
Note: If you are using canned crushed pineapple, drain the juice, but there is no need to squeeze all of the juices out of the pineapple completely like we do with zucchini in zucchini bread. If your pineapple is nice and juicy, its ok! Just don’t add any more juice than the recipe already calls for.
Divide the batter between 14 lined muffin tins and bake the muffins in a 350 degree oven for 20-22 minutes or until a toothpick will come out of a muffin pretty clean.
These hummingbird muffins are quite special. I can’t decide whether I love their texture or their flavor more.
They are so moist, tender and fluffy with little bits of crunchy nuts. chewy coconut and juicy pineapple throughout each muffin and if you are wondering if they are dense or dry because they are made with whole wheat flour, they are not.
The flavors are just as amazing. All of the add-ins work together so wonderfully. The pairing of banana, pineapple, coconut and warm spices is just fun. It is all so delicious together and I love having these muffins in the house as a quick breakfast, mid day snack or healthy treat.
If you are looking for some really wonderful muffins full of delicious things with just a little bit of whole wheat flour and brown sugar, but loads of naturally sweet flavors then you have to give these hummingbird muffins a try.
You are going to love them! I would also love for you to give my morning glory muffins a try too!
Whole Wheat Spiced Hummingbird Muffins
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda
- 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- a pinch of cloves
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup of brown sugar
- 1/4 cup of a neutral oil
- 1/3 cup of apple sauce
- 1/3 cup of pineapple juice
- 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup of mashed bananas
- 1 cup of crushed pineapple
- 1/2 cup of shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup of pecans, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°
- Line 14 cavities in 2 muffin tins and set aside for now
- In a large bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of baking soda, 2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a pinch of cloves
- In a separate bowl, whisk 2 large eggs with 1/2 cup of brown sugar, 1/4 cup of a neutral oil, 1/3 cup of apple sauce, 1/3 cup of pineapple juice, 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract and 1 cup of mashed bananas until fully combined
- Add the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients and mix until mostly combined
- Add 1 cup of crushed pineapple, 1/2 cup of shredded coconut and 1/2 cup of chopped pecans and mix until evenly distributed
- Divide the batter between the 14 liners - they should all be just about full
- Bake 350° oven for 20-22 minutes
- The muffins are ready when a toothpick comes out of the middle of a muffin clean
- Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature or the refrigerator for up to 5 days
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