Peanut Butter, Banana and Cinnamon Muffins

What this blog really really needs (other than a different author/cook) is yet another muffin recipe. I know, I know, I've made promises to myself to stop making muffins until I use up the dozens that are languishing at the bottom of my freezer, but I have a problem, OK? I should probably seek therapy. MUST. MAKE. MUFFINS. I can't stop.

But these are REALLY REALLY good. The only thing that might make these even better is a cup of semi sweet chocolate chips, a stroke of brilliance that didn't occur to me until the muffins were already in the oven. But, unfortunately I won't ever be able to try that, because I am hereby making a solemn promise to myself to stop making muffins! I mean it this time. Really! (Gosh, it's hard to type with your fingers crossed).


Peanut Butter Banana Muffins with Crumb Topping
Makes 15 large muffins (or if you prefer, 12 large and 6 mini muffins)

1 1/2 cups bran flakes cereal
1 1/2 cups milk
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup banana, mashed
1 egg, beaten
1 cup chopped dates (or nuts, or chocolate chips)

Crumb Topping
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp cinnamon

1. Stir together the milk and bran flakes and let stand for a few minutes.

2. In another bowl whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon).

3. Heat peanut butter and butter in microwave for 60 seconds. Pour into flour along with bran flake mixture and the banana, brown sugar and egg. Stir until just combined.

4. Mix in dates and spoon into prepared muffin tin.

5. Mix together all Crumb Topping ingredients until crumbly and divide amongst the muffins.

6. Bake at 400F for about 20 minutes or until the muffins pass the toothpick test.

Pumpkin and Raisin Spice Muffins

If you are anything at all like me, at some point in mid to late September when you walk into the grocery store and notice the huge display of halloween pumpkins, your heart skips a beat. Starting then, and for the next six weeks or so, you start buying pumpkins like they are going out of style (and frankly they ARE going out of style - on November 1, to be precise).

Then, sometime around now in mid November, you open the freezer to find room for some of your early Christmas baking, and you realize that you have a "type-M" personality. That is "M" for "Messed Up". You really aren't capable of doing ANYTHING in moderation. There is enough frozen pumpkin puree in your freezer to last a lifetime.

If I just described you (yes, I know that is highly unlikely but just humour me, OK?)... it's alright! I'm here to help! Because there are TONS of things you can do with frozen pumpkin puree. Just the other night, I made Pumpkin Risotto for dinner (it was too dark to get good pictures). And I always make at least one batch of my Pumpkin Soup. Of course you can never get enough Roasted Pumpkin Seeds. Another thing I love to do, is stir about a half cup of pumpkin puree into my morning oatmeal with a little bit of pumpkin pie spice and molasses.

These muffins are another favorite way to use up the puree. I got the original recipe from Farmgirl Fare's Blog. They are fabulous with Pecans or Walnuts instead of the dates, but I have stopped putting nuts in any of my muffin recipes, because the school Claire and Marco go to has a "no nut" policy (there is a good joke there, but I try not to make fun of my kids on the blog!)

OK, I have to run... I need to go find room in the freezer for these muffins....YIKES!


Pumpkin and Raisin Spice Muffins

1 cup raisins
3/4 cup orange juice
3 cups white flour
1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup honey
3 eggs
450g pumpkin puree (or one 15oz can)
1 cup chopped dates (or more raisins, dried cranberries, or nuts)

1. Microwave raisins with orange juice for 2 minutes on high, and set aside.

2. Whisk together dry ingredients: flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.

3. In another bowl mix butter, brown sugar, honey, eggs and pumpkin puree.

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry along with the raisins and orange juice. Mix just until incorporated. Stir in dates.

5. Fill muffin tins almost to the top (makes about 18 large muffins) and bake at 350F for about 25 minutes.

Fruit Loop Muffins

I went to plug in my camera this morning to download the lovely pictures of the delicious savoury chicken tart that I made for dinner the other night, and my batteries were "depleted". So instead, I was forced to go searching through the archives on my laptop looking for a recipe I had made but never posted about. I stumbled across this one.

I never posted this because, personally, I wasn't a huge fan. Although if you warm them up and slather them with butter, they aren't half bad! Claire and Marco, on the other hand LOVED these muffins and have been asking me to make them again ever since.

If I do make them again, I think I will try to find way to redeem them somewhat by making them a bit more nutritionally sound.... maybe I'll grate up some carrot and zucchini and throw it in (they'd never notice with all that colour going on). And I could use whole wheat flour and cut down the fat and sugar.

Fruit Loop Muffins

1 3/4 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
3 tbsp butter, melted
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups Fruit Loops cereal, left whole
1/2 cup Fruit Loops cereal, crushed
1 tbsp melted butter

1. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add melted butter, egg, milk and 1 1/2 cups fruit loops. Stir to combine.

2. Mix 1/4 cup crushed fruit loops with 1 tbsp melted butter.

3. Spoon muffin batter into greased or paper-lined muffin tins. Sprinkle tops with fruit loop crumb mixture.

4. Bake at 400F for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.

Banana Coconut Muffins

Well this wasn't the smartest thing I ever did. I had some over ripe bananas that I needed to use, and I found a recipe for banana coconut muffins that really appealed to me, but that noboby else in my family will eat. Honestly though, I could have sworn that last week Claire and Marco liked coconut, but children are fickle about these sort of things and I think they are just copying their Dad.

At first, when I was making these I was thinking, what sort of stupid muffin recipe only makes EIGHT muffins! But now that it turns out I am the only one who will eat them, I'm kinda glad there's not so many. I ate one when they were fresh out of the oven, and they were scrumptious. But I really don't eat a lot of muffins, they are high in calories and if I'm going to have a treat (and trust me I have lots of treats) I prefer to choose something else... like poutine!

So, I froze the rest of the muffins, and in 6 months or so, when they are all freezer burnt, I'll throw them out. Phew, I'm really glad those ripe bananas aren't going to go to waste!

Banana Coconut Muffins
from Epicurious

1 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 very ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup butter, melted
2/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the banana, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla and 1/2 cup of the coconut.

3. Fold flour mixture into the wet ingredients, and mix just until combined.

4. Divide batter amoong 8 paper lined (or greased) muffin tins. Sprinkle tops with remaining coconut.

5. Bake at 375F for 25 minutes until golden. Cool on wire rack.

Banana and Raspberry Muffins

Yes, I know... these are just plain old banana muffins, and I'm sure everyone already has a favorite banana muffin recipe, and you really don't need to see mine. But I think these ones are worth a try. Hey, I might even convert a few people to MY banana muffin recipe. What makes these ones so good is the raspberries. The tartness of the raspberries with the sweet banana is truly heavenly. Served warm with butter.... oh gosh, I'll be right back....

Claire will only eat these muffins if they also have chocolate chips in them. That doesn't really make sense to me, if you like Banana Raspberry muffins WITH chocolate chips, shouldn't you also like them without? Who knows. We're having a bit of a stand-off, I'm not putting anymore chocolate chips in these muffins. Stay tuned to see who cracks first.

Banana Raspberry Muffing (without Chocolate Chips)
makes 12 good size muffins

2 1/4 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup oil
1 medium ripe banana, mashed
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup raspberries fresh or frozen (I don't waste fresh on muffins!)

1. Mix flour baking powder, sugar, and salt.

2. Mix milk, oil, banana, egg and vanilla.

3. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Don't overstir.

4. Stir in raspberries. Spoon into greased muffin tin.

5. Bake 20-25 minutes at 375°F.

Water Chestnut and Coconut Muffins

I decided to enter my first blog event and I thought Muffin Monday would suit me well. How could I screw up a muffin recipe? WELL, ever had a Fruit Loop Muffin? That was my first attempt in my quest for a new and original muffin recipe. At least now I know why it was so original. It was because putting Fruit Loops into muffins is an utterly ridiculous thing to do. The bits of fruit loop in the muffin were chewy and tough (my kids loved them, but I really can't explain their tastes).

On to my next experiment. It seems that every kind of muffin in the world has already been invented. If an ingredient exists, somebody somewhere has baked it into a muffin. Except...wait for it...water chestnuts. TA DUM! Now I really can't be 100% sure that no one else has done this, but I couldn't find a muffin recipe that called for water chestnuts (and I did look).

Best part of all? It was delicious! I decided to combine coconut and water chestnuts because they both have an Asian feel, and at the last minute I decided to throw a broiled coconut icing on top. The little pieces of water chestnut in the muffin were crunchy and sweet. It was actually pretty good!! (I sound suprised because I am). I will make these again.

Water Chestnut and Coconut Muffins

2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp baking powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
1/3 cup oil
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 cup water chestnuts, diced
1 cup sweetened coconut

Broiled Coconut Icing:
3/4 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
3 tbsp heavy cream

1. Mix flour, baking powder and salt.

2. In another bowl, whisk: egg, oil, brown sugar and milk.

3. Add wet ingredient to dry. Stir in coconut and water chestnuts.

4. Fill prepared muffin tins 3/4 full and bake at 350F for 25 minutes.

5. While muffins are baking mix together all ingredients for icing. When muffins are done, spread icing on top and place muffin tin under broiler for 2-3 minutes until muffins are golden brown.

Pogo Stick Muffins

At some point during my eternal search for an easy lunch that I can send to school with my daughter, Claire (preferably one that she will actually eat), I had an epiphany..... corn dog muffins. I have re-named them pogo stick muffins, but this is purely a marketing strategy to ensure Claire's buy-in. I couldn't find an exact recipe that suited my needs, so I adapted one. I wanted the muffins to use actual corn, not have too much fat and sugar, and have some cheese for flavour. These muffins are a big hit. I can freeze them individually wrapped then just pull one out in the morning and throw it in the lunch box with some carrot sticks and a piece of fruit. Voila! - call me "SUPER MOM"... OK that's a stretch, but here's the recipe anyway.

Pogo Stick Muffins

1/4 cup fat free sour cream
1/4 cup olive oil
1 egg
1/4 cup sugar
8 1/2 oz can of creamed corn
1/2 cup flour
1 cup cornmeal
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
10 hotdogs cut into chunks

1. Preheat oven to 325F.

2. Mix sour cream and oil in mixing bowl. Stir in egg and sugar. Mix well.

3. Add corn, flour, cornmeal banking powder, salt and cheese. Stir until ingredients are all wet.

4. Fill each muffin cup 2/3 full and poke hotdog pieces down into batter. Sprinkle a little additional cheese on the tops, if desired.

5. Bake 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.