Banana Crumb Muffins

These muffins are a delicious treat in the morning with your tea or coffee :) The crumble top is the key!

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 bananas mashed (brown bananas are the best)
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/3 cup melted butter
1/3 cup backed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp cinammon

Crumble:
2 Tbs. flour
1/8 tsp cinammon
1 Tbs. butter

Preheat oven at 375' F
Grease or use muffin cups for a dozen muffins
Mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
In a seperate bowl, whisk together bananas, sugar, egg, and melted butter.  Whisk this into the flour mixture and pour into muffin cups.

For the crumble in a seperate small bowl, use two knives or pastry cutter to cut butter into flour and cinnammon.  (The more solid the butter the easier this is).  Sprinkle on top of each muffin.  Bake in oven for 18-20 min. 

Banana Oat Muffins

Overripe bananas: they're a little scary looking, and honestly quite disgusting when you open them, but they are the perfect motivation for making a baked treat. I love banana bread, and make it often, when I have three or more overripe bananas. This week I only had two, so I figured I'd have to mix it up a bit.

I found a recipe for banana oat muffins on allrecipes.com, the website I usually start with when looking for a good base recipe I can adapt for my pantry. I found a simple recipe with good reviews, and it looked super easy to make. I am sure you can substitute as you like with the recipe posted here as well. A good rule of thumb - if you're not down with sugar or oil, just use applesauce instead, and a little brown sugar. You can also incorporate yogurt or sour cream in lieu of milk or oil. Get creative, have fun, banana muffins are very forgiving. (Also check out our other banana recipes: Nana's Banana Bread, Banana, Pecan, Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip Cookies, Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, and Best Oatmeal )

Banana Oat Muffins

~Print Recipe~

What's in it

1 1/2 C flour (you can do half whole wheat, half unbleached)

1 C oats

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 C sugar (you can mix and match brown and white)

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking powder

cinnamon

1 egg, lightly beaten

3/4 C milk (I used almond breeze)

1/3 C oil (or applesauce - I grated an overripe apple into it)

1 C mashed ripe banana

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

optional: chopped walnuts, chocolate chips

How it's made

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line cupcake/muffin pan with paper liners or spray with oil. (Recipe makes a baker's dozen.)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the first 7 (dry) ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix the remaining ingredients until combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet, and mix until just combined. Using the 1/4 C measuring cup, scoop batter into muffin pan, almost full. Bake 18-20 min until done.

Banana, Pecan, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are the soft and cake-y fantasticness you would get if you combined all of the good things about banana bread with all of the good things about chocolate chip cookies. That may not immediately sound like a good idea, but it truly is.

The first time I had these, I was shocked at what a good combination these ingredients made. They are not too sweet and not too dense. The original recipe comes from--where else--Martha Stewart's Cookies. Martha has done it again!

I have slightly adapted the recipe over the last few years. This is now my go-to cookie recipe. It is easy and just unusual enough to be exciting. I've received nothing but stellar feedback on these cookies, so I was very surprised to realize that I have not yet posted the recipe for you! I am sorry for holding out this long. You'll just have to make a double batch of these right away to make up for lost time.

Banana, Pecan, Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

~Print Recipe~

• 1 cup white flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 cup (or 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 large plus one small over-ripe banana*
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips (or a mixture of semi- and bittersweet chips!)
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted pecans

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk both flours with salt and baking soda.
2. Chop pecans and toast in the  oven for a few minutes until they are fragrant and golden brown, about 5 minutes. (Check frequently to avoid burning.)
3. Meanwhile, put butter and both sugars in a large bowl. Mix with an electric or stand mixer on medium until pale and fluffy, about 2-4 minutes.  Reduce speed to low. Add egg and vanilla and mix until combined. 
4. Add 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon to banana and mash, until no large pieces remain. Add banana mixture to batter, beat on low speed to combine.
5. Add flour mixture. Mix until just combined. Stir in oats, chocolate chunks and toasted pecans.
6. Drop dough onto parchment paper-lined cookie sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Back cookies, rotating half-way through for 12-13 minutes. Cookies should be golden brown and just set. Let cookies cool on sheets on wire rack for 5 minutes then transfer to the racks to cool completely.

Makes 2 and a half to 3 dozen cookies.

*Once bananas are past their prime, I store them in a bag in my freezer until I am ready to make banana bread, muffins, or these cookies. Just thaw in the microwave before using.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

 

One of my favorite cookie recipes (yes, it's from Martha Stewart's Cookies, big surprise, I know) is for banana chocolate chip cookies. They are an amazing--I would even say inspired--combination of banana bread and a chocolate chip cookie. You literally taste both in every bite, and it is a delectable experience. (I am surprised that I haven't posted that recipe on this site yet, but I will.) 

I do like to try new recipes rather than dwell on old ones, though. So when I came across a recipe for banana chocolate chip muffins, I felt like it was a legitimate new recipe to try, even though it thoroughly satisfied my banana chocolate chip complex. (I found the original recipe in Food & Wine, to which I have a free (!) subscription. The subscription came with the purchase of my Kitchen Aid stand mixer---a "wedding" present of sorts from my mother, back when she knew I was about to be engaged, even though I didn't find out for another 3 months. People around here can really keep a secret!) Since my dear friend Brittany loves the banana chocolate chip cookies as much as I do, I thought I'd bring an adapted version of these muffins for her last day at work. 

Fresh out of the oven, these are amazing--a good cake-y texture, with big banana-y flavor and gooey melted chocolate oozing throughout. If you aren't serving them right away, consider reheating them just before serving. The warmth really highlights the flavors and the texture. Toasted pecans are, as far as I'm concerned, an essential addition either way. 

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

~Print Recipe~

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 6 tablespoons butter, melted
• 3 large, overripe bananas, mashed
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup toasted pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners. In a large bowl, combine the sugar, melted butter, bananas and eggs. Mix thoroughly.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Whisk to combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until the batter is combined.
3. Stir in chocolate chips and toasted pecans.
4. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 28 minutes, until a tester inserted into the middle comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool muffins for 10 minutes in pan on rack. Enjoy warm, or allow to cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Makes 12 muffins

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

This cake is so easy to make, and so nostalgic for many of our parents. The best part is flipping the cake upside down out of the skillet and seeing the pretty arrangement of pineapples on top. This recipe is from Moosewood, which is why it calls for mashed bananas, to reduce the amount of fat. I made this for Andy's dad's 60th birthday on request, and Mary Ann's birthday as well.

What's in it:

20 oz can unsweetened sliced pineapples, undrained

1/4 C butter

1/2 C sugar

2 eggs

3/4 C packed brown sugar

1/2 C buttermilk 

1/2 C mashed banana

3 Tbl vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/4 C flour

How it's made:

Drain the pineapple, reserving 1/3 C of juice.  In a 10" cast iron skillet, or oven proof skillet, heat and melt butter on med heat. Add sugar and cook stirring constantly until sugar starts to turn brown (3 min).  Remove from heat and keep stirring.  Add drained juice (1/3 C) and return pan to low heat and stir until sugar is melted again.  Arrange pineapple slices close together in a decorative layer on the bottom of the skillet, reserving any leftovers.

For cake batter combine wet ingredients in one bowl and sift together dry ingredients in another.  Add dry to wet and stir until mixed.  Pour batter over pineapple slices and top with any reserved slices.  Bake for 30-40 min until knife inserted comes out clean.  Cool in skillet for at least 10 minutes, then invert it onto a serving plate, so slices are facing up.

Moosewood Muffin Madness

There's nothing like the smell of fresh baked muffins - any time of day. Usually I try to have bananas on hand all the time for cereal, and when they overripe, they go into banana bread. Today I tried out the Moosewood muffin recipe, instead of my standard banana bread, and it looks great! It's nice because there is a standard base, and then you can add whatever variation you want to make your muffin flavor. It also could be made vegan fairly easily by using egg substitute.

What's in it
Wet ingredients:

2 eggs

1/2 C vegetable oil

3/4- 1 C brown sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla

Dry ingredients:

2 C flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Additional variations 

(must have one of these along with the wet and dry ingredients):

Apple: Add 2 C grated tart apples and 1 tsp fresh lemon zest to wet ingredients.  Add 1/2 tsp cinnamon to dry ingredients.  Optional: fold in chopped walnuts or pecans into batter.

Banana: Add 1 1/2 C mashed ripe bananas to wet ingredients.  Optional: Fold in chopped nuts or chocolate chips into batter. 

Blueberry-Lemon: Add 1/2 C fresh or frozen blueberries and 1 Tbls fresh lemon zest to wet ingredients.

Zucchini: Add 2 C grated zucchini to wet ingredients, and 1 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of ground cardamom to dry ingredients.  Fold 1/2 C raisins or currants, and 3/4 C chopped nuts if you like, into batter.

How it's Made

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, combine wet ingredients.  In small bowl, combine dry ingredients.  Add appropriate variation ingredients to wet or dry ingredients.  Stir dry ingredients into wet until just combined.  Fold in additional ingredients if necessary.

Spoon batter into oiled standard muffin tins (makes 12), and bake for 20-25 minutes until toothpick comes out clean.  If using mini muffin pans, bake 10-15 minutes.

Nana's Bananananana Bread

Ingredients

• 5 Tablespoons of butter (softened)
• 1/2 Cup Sugar
• 1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1 Large egg
• 2 egg whites
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 Cups mashed, very ripe bananas
• 1 3/4Cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 Cup heavy cream
• 1/3 cup choc chips

1. Preheat oven to 350'F spray bottom of two bread pans with nonstick cooking spray
2. Beat butter in large bowl with electric mixer set at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add granulated sugar and brown sugar; beat well. Add egg, egg whites, and vanilla; beat until blended. Add mashed banana, and beat on high speed for 30 seconds.
3. Combine flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder in medium bowl. Add flour mixture to butter mixture alternately with cream, ending with flour mixture. Add choc chips and mix well.
4. Pour batter evenly into prepped loaf pans (expect dough to rise 2-fold) Bake until browned and toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. About 1 hour.
5. Cool bread in pan on wire rack. Slice and serve.
6. Enjoy warm and cold, two totally different experiences. And give the second loaf away to someone who deserves it :)