Here is
a tasty Banana Muffin that pairs the sweet flavor of mashed bananas with pure
maple syrup. This recipe comes from
Myra Goodman's "Food to Live By" cookbook.
If you do not recognize the name, Myra Goodman and her husband Drew are the
owners of Earthbound Farm which is the largest grower of organic produce in the
world. Her cookbook offers a wide range of delicious sweet and savory recipes
that encourage us to use organic foods.
Banana Muffins use ripened bananas. Ripened bananas are bananas which have
turned from bright yellow with no brown spots, to bananas which are mostly
brown with yellow spots. Brown bananas are great for baking as they are
soft enough to mash and make baked goods moist. As I said above, we are
pairing the flavors of banana and maple syrup. For baking, I recommend
using Grade A Dark Amber maple syrup. Pure maple syrup is a reddish-brown
aromatic liquid that has a distinctive rich, sweet, nutty, almost caramel
flavor that Diana Henry in her book 'Roast Figs Sugar Snow' says is
"reminiscent of burnt sugar and fudge". Maple syrup is the sap (with most
of its water evaporated) of sugar maple trees grown in Canada and the
Northeastern United States. When maple syrup is used in muffins it gives
them a dense moist crumb that keeps them fresh longer than muffins that
use just regular sugar.
When making banana muffins I do not line the muffin cups with paper liners,
which is normally done to keep the muffins moist and to make cleanup easier. The
problem with using liners it that they keep the crusts of the muffins from
becoming crisp which is exactly what we want here. Of course, the crust will
soften after you cover and store the muffins but immediately after baking the
crust will be crisp while the interior is moist and sweet.
Preheat oven to
375 degrees F (190 degrees C) and place the oven rack in the middle of the
oven. Butter or spray a 12 cup muffin pan.
In a large
bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and ground cinnamon
In another large bowl combine the mashed bananas, lightly beaten eggs,
maple syrup, brown sugar, milk, oil, and vanilla extract. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, lightly
fold the
wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until combined
and the batter is thick and chunky. Fold in the chopped walnuts. (The important thing is not to over mix the
batter. You do not want it smooth. Over mixing the batter will yield tough,
rubbery muffins.) Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins and, if
desired, place
a slice of banana or dried banana chip on top of each muffin for garnish. Bake
about 18 - 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out
clean. Place on
a wire rack to cool for five minutes and then remove muffins from pan. Serve warm or at room
temperature.
Makes 12
regular sized muffins.
Source:
Daley, Regan. 'in
the sweet kitchen'. Random House Canada. Canada: 2000.
Goodman, Myra.
'Food to Live By'. Workman Publishing Company, Inc. New York: 2006.
Recipe:
2 cups (280
grams) whole wheat pastry
flour
(can use unbleached all purpose flour)
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