I never thought I would like banana bread, or muffins, or any cooked banana thing. I always assumed it would be like eating an over ripe banana, which you are, furthermore, a warm over ripe banana! However, what else is one supposed to do with the seriously over ripe bananas that innevitably languish in the fruit bowl at some point? There is only one thing! And so, I decided to try it as a muffin. I won’t deny I thought “Oh well, if I don’t like them then I can always take them into work.”
I did, in the end, take these into work, but this was in order to share the joy not to get rid of them! So win win! I have made these both with chocolate chips and without. If you are being healthy, then they are delightful without… however, if you are a sweet stuff junkie, like myself, then you may eat the whole thing going “I wish there was chocolate in this… it’s delicious, but I wish there was chocolate!” They are delicious and moist and not at all slimy in the least.* I was shocked! Furthermore the banana flavour changes to something rather delightful, still banana but… different. All in all I’m rather glad I tried these.
Makes 6
125ml milk
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla essence
2 very ripe bananas
3 tbsp sunflower oil
50g dark muscoavdo sugar
150g self raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
(~180g bag chocolate chips
demerera sugar for sprinkling)
– Heat the oven to gas mark 6 and prepare 6 holes of a muffin tin.
– Peel, slice and then mash up the bananas in a large jug or small bowl using a fork. Reserve a few slices of banana for decoration.* You don’t need to puree them, some small lumps are fine.
– Add the milk, egg, vanilla essence and oil and beat together.
– In a separate bowl mix the sugar, flour, baking powder and salt together.
– Pour in the banana mixture and stir until the mixture is just combined. You don’t want a smooth mixture, lumps are good!
(- Add the chocolate chips and quickly stir thorough. )
– Divide the mixture evenly between the cases.
– Garnish with banana slices if using.
(- Sprinkle a bit of demerera sugar on top of the muffin for a delightful crunch on top.)
– Bake for 20-25 minutes.
– Remove from the oven and leave to cool a little in the tin then place on a wire rack to cool completely or serve warm.
* I put banana slices on the top of mine for aesthetic purposes. If you are going to eat these fairly quickly (a day or may be two, max) then keep the decorative slices, simply reserve a few slives when chopping up your bananas and pop them on top before baking. If, however, you want to keep these around for longer then don’t put the banana on it as it will go slimey and may even develop mould spots!
Anna in the kitchen 