My daughter likes it when I slice half a banana into her cereal on weekday mornings. Sometimes, I just eat the other half with my yogurt and granola. Other times, I'll toss the other half into a freezer bag and when I get about three bananas worth of fruit in there, I make muffins. Then when my late-morning coffee break rolls around, I get to enjoy something like this:
These simple muffins are quick to put together and are amazing fresh out of the oven. They also freeze particularly well and I've been known to grab one out of the freezer, plop it on a plate, and microwave it for 30-45 seconds for a warm treat alongside a cup of coffee. They also make great snacks for the school-age set and my daughter has been known to special request them whenever I've made a batch.
They are also a beautiful addition to a brunch buffet or even as an early morning nosh while a more elaborate meal is prepared for breakfast or brunch. I like how versatile they are and how much intense banana flavor they have. If you don't happen to have chocolate chips on hand or (gasp) don't want to include chocolate in the muffins, they do bake up just fine without them, too. If you are a fan of chopped walnuts or pecans, they could easily be substituted for the chips, too.
Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins
- 3 ripe bananas
- 1 c. granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/3 c. canola oil
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 375°F. In a mixing bowl, mash the bananas. Add the granulated sugar; mix well. Add the egg to the bowl of mashed bananas. Add the vegetable oil and vanilla extract. Beat well to combine.
Add the dry ingredients (flour through salt); stir into the wet ingredients. Add the chocolate chips and mix gently until the chips get distributed throughout the muffin batter.
Line a muffin tin with paper liners. Scoop out the batter and drop it into the liners, filling them about halfway.
Bake the muffins in the preheated oven for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center of a muffin comes out clean. Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for about 5 minutes before you remove them from the muffin pan. Store any unused muffins covered in the refrigerator or wrap them and freeze them.
- Yields: 24 muffins
- Preparation Time: 40 minutes