Back to school: Old-fashioned banana muffins

Everyone loves muffins. Let the kids make these for their lunchboxes

Muffin comes from the French word moufflet, used to describe soft bread. Picture: 123RF

JUST about everyone loves muffins. They’re one of those versatile things we should all include in our cooking repertoire, if only because they can be tailored to fill an empty spot for breakfast, brunch, morning or afternoon tea. They are relatively easy to make, so they make a great starting point for kids in the kitchen.

Today’s recipe is a good old-fashioned banana muffin. They’re great to use up quite ripe bananas. A friend in the US sent me this recipe. They’re moist and delicious but not at all healthy I’m afraid. So eat just one (if you can); you can also bake them without the crumble topping as I have here to knock off a bit of the naughtiness. Substitute wholemeal flour if you prefer; they’ll taste just as good. These will stay moist for up to a week; store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. They are also suitable to freeze.

Banana muffins

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups plain flour

3/4 cup raw sugar

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

2–3 ripe bananas, peeled and mashed (about 1 1/2 cups) 1 1/2 cups light sour cream

3 medium free-range eggs

80g unsalted butter, melted.

METHOD: Preheat oven to 175°C. Grease medium-sized muffin tins or line with purchased paper muffin cups.

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, combine the bananas, sour cream, eggs and butter. Stir into dry ingredients until just moist. Spoon into prepared muffin tins until two-thirds full.

Crumble topping (optional): In a small bowl, combine 1/3 cup plain flour, 1/4 cup raw sugar, 3 tbs brown sugar and 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon. Rub 45g cubed chilled unsalted butter through with fingertips until crumbly; stir in 1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts. Sprinkle over tops.

Bake at 175°C for 20–25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the centre comes out clean. Cool for five minutes in the tin before removing to wire racks. Makes 18.

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