Banana, Peanut Butter and Choc Chip Muffins

After an unsuccessful cookie baking exercise last week I decided it was time to try another baking session with the kids. We had a glut of ripe bananas in our house, and whilst wondering what to do with them I came across two bread recipes from AllRecipes and from 12Tomatoes which looked quite interesting. We also had a party the following day so I decided to give turning the recipes into muffins a go. The first batch was quite small - giving around 10 large muffins, so for the second I  played with the recipe a bit. This recipe will create around 12 large muffins, or 20 smaller ones (good for kids). They went down a treat at the party and stayed nice for a couple of days afterwards in an air tight container.  I reduced the amount of peanut butter purely as I only had so much left - you can add more, I just liked the hint of peanut I got from this recipe so I would hold off on doing more than 1/2 cup although the original stated up to 3/4 cup.

Ingredients

Dry

• 2.5 cups self raising flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar

Wet

• 3 ripe bananas
• 3 tbl crunchy peanut butter 
• 1 tbl flax seed
• 3 tbl warm water
• 1/4 cup of margarine
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)

Additional

• 1 cup of dairy free choc chips
• splash of almond milk

Method

• Pre heat oven to 180C
• Line a muffin or cupcake tin - depending on size of muffins you want.
• Take a medium bowl and mash down the bananas
• Take the flax seed into a small bowl and mix with the warm water 
• When the flax seed mix is thick/glutenous mix with the bananas 
• Add in the rest of the wet ingredients and mix together, make sure there are no large lumps in it. You can melt the margarine first but I didn't bother.
• Take a large bowl and mix together the dry ingredients
• Make a well in the dry ingredients and then slowly add in the wet whilst continuously mixing
• Once mixed make sure the consistency is quite firm - if  too firm add a bit of milk. The mix should stick properly to a spoon. At this point add the choc chips and give a further quick stir.
• For large muffins use a large tablespoon to put the mix into the cases, I filled them approx 3/4 of the casing.  
• Cooking time: 12 mins for the small cup cake size, 16 for the larger size

Sorry about lack of photos, will have to make them again and then update this post.

Apricot and Coconut Cake in Cake Pop Maker

Last week I took the kids to see the grand parents rather than do the usual cooking thing, this was due to them being 'missing' for the last 6 weeks visiting my brother in Australia. This week our cooking experience has occurred on Thursday as I had to work on Monday and Tuesday of this week.

I have tried to be daring again this week, by not even starting with an egg free recipe, rather a lovely cake recipe off the BBC website (http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/10243/apricot-and-coconut-cake). Very brave after trying my own, adapted, egg free Blueberry (or strawberry) crumb cake in the pop cake maker (tasted ok but were a bit flat)! On starting this recipe I was hoping that the apricot would act as a structure to hold up the pop cakes (as the strawberries did when I modified the Blueberry crumb cake to be strawberry crumb cake!). This turned out to be the case, the cakes were very airy but kept their shape. However this trial was more error to start with! My little boy enjoyed the final product but the in the first batch some cakes tasted kind of fizzy (see the second point under notes for more info).

Ingredients

• 200g fresh apricots chopped small (this worked as 4 stoned apricots, which I then sliced one way & the other)
• 275g self raising flour
• 75g desiccated coconut
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 225g caster sugar
• 125g softened butter
• 100g soft margarine
• 1 & a half bananas (mashed) (substitute for 2 of the 4 eggs required for recipe)
• I used milk, but guessed-emated based on recovering mix (see second point in notes) - I would say get half a cup and slowly add until the consistency seems right (a whole cup is too much - see my notes from 19th August!)

Method

• Measure all dry ingredients into large bowl (dry)
• Mix the margarine and butter, then add the puree (wet)
• Add the dry & wet ingredients together
• Beat well for 2 min
• Add to pop cake maker (or look in notes for how to cook in oven)
• Leave to cool on wire rack

Notes 

• I have modified this recipe in two main ways, first is obvious - I removed the four eggs, the second is I added butter with the margarine as most agree that butter gives a better taste to baking than margarine does. 
• The first time I tried this I substituted 2 of the 4 eggs with a baking powder & vinegar mix that I added last. It made some of the cakes taste almost fizzy (not sure if it was because I mixed them together first & the mix was then absorbed by the apricots, or due to too much baking powder & soda in the mix). To 'repair' the mix for second cooking I picked out all the fresh apricots, added in dry, as I had run out of fresh, added more flour, coconut & some milk. They turned out MUCH nicer! 
• If using the oven preheat to 160C/ 325F (Gas mark 3), pour mix into a 2 litre loaf tin that has been well greased. Bake for 1 & 1/2 hours or until skewer comes out of cake clean. 
• Leave to cool in tin for 10min and turn out 

19/08/13

Below is our third attempt, I added too much milk so added more flour to balance it out. Ended up making a batch of pop cakes on the first day, refrigerating the mix for a couple of days & then cooking in the oven. This took about 1hour 15 mins at 165 C. This was very yummy, more moist than the cake pops, but also more banana tasty. Think if doing it this way need to wizz the banana rather than just mash it. Might try some proper fruit purée next time....

The cake straight out of the oven, it was very yummy!

Banana cake (in Pop Cake Maker)

Well I was going to make this as a proper cake that can be cut up, however it looks like the pop cake idea is popular with my other half as well as my little one, so once again the pop cake maker was put into action. Once again I enrolled my 2 year old to help with the mixing & mashing!

This recipe made 21 balls.

Ingredients

• 1 & a half medium bananas
• 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 100g butter
• 45g light muscovado sugar
• 45g dark brown soft sugar
• 1 tbs ground flaxseed
• 3 tbs water
• 125g self raising flour (I used 50/50 plain & wholemeal)
• Small bag chopped walnuts (optional)

Method

• Mix together the flaxseed & water until the mix goes gelatinous.
• Mash together the banana, flaxseed mix & vanilla extract
• Cream together the butter & sugar
• Add the banana mix & walnuts
• Slowly add the flour. (The mix should be firm - as the picture)
• Add to cake pop maker, fill over the edge by a little bit
• Cook for just under 5 mins 

Notes

The mix just before it went
into the pop cake maker

With the first batch I didn't fill the maker properly, and I didn't cook quite long enough (4 mins) so they were a bit pale & misshapen (oh and raw inside!).

The final 9 balls that I slightly over cooked

The second batch I slightly over cooked (5 mins 30), as you can see.

My little man didn't like the bigger pieces of walnut from my rough chopping of the walnut halves that I bought, so the second batch involved me breaking the pieces up some more with a fork in the mix! It turns out not enough - he still wasn't happy with "the bits" and in fact I noticed after that his arms were red...walnut allergy?? Next time I will split the mix so he can have some walnut free ones.

These were again chrispy on outside but lovely on inside. As I say think I over cooked them the second time. However they did taste lovely.