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Banana Muffins/Banana Loaf - Core recipe

Buttery, light and fluffy muffins or loaf full of banana flavour. They are delicious served simply with butter and perhaps some honey but also wonderful when made with additional ingredients, such as chocolate, nuts and fruit as well as flavourings such as lemon, almond, vanilla and also spices.

Course Breakfast, brunch, Cake, Snack
Keyword banana, breakfast, brunch, light and fluffy, morning coffee, muffins
Prep Time 15 minutes
Servings 6 muffins or 1 loaf

Ingredients

Wet ingredients and sugar:

  • 50g unsalted butter 
  • 125g browning bananas, peeled and mashed, or apple butter or pumpkin puree (See Recipe Notes below)
  • 40g natural yoghurt
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 50g sugar, either caster, brown, coconut or muscovado or a mix
  •  ⅛ teaspoon salt

Dry Ingredients:

  • 125g plain/all-purpose flour
  • 1 – 2 teaspoons spice, if using
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder  
  • ¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda

Additions:

  • 150g – 200g e.g. fruit, chocolate, nuts, dried fruit (optional)

Suggested Accompaniments:

Instructions

  1. Collect together your equipment, (see Recipe Notes below) and ingredients.

  2. Preheat oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7 (fan 200°C)

  3. Place a microwave-save mixing bowl on some electric scales and zero the scales. Weigh the cubed butter directly into your bowl and melt the butter in 15 second increments in the microwave. Alternatively, the butter can be melted in a small saucepan and transferred to a mixing bowl.

  4. Add the banana, broken into pieces and mash roughly with a fork.

  5. Now, with the mixing bowl sitting back on the scales, zero them and weigh in the wet ingredients – the yoghurt, egg, vanilla and sugar directly on top of the butter and banana. Beat well with an electric whisk.

  6. Put a sieve over the top of the mixing bowl and put back on the scales. Zero the scales and weigh the dry ingredients into the sieve – the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt.

  7. Shake onto the mixture and then fold in gently with a spatula until very nearly mixed.

  8. Fold in any additional ingredients, if using.

  9. Use an ice cream scoop or a spoon to divide between 6 muffin cases (you may need 7 if you have added additional ingredients) in a muffin tin. They should be ⅔ full. Or transfer to a lined 1lb loaf tin.

  10. Bake in the centre of the oven for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, turn the oven down to 180°C/350°F/Gas 4 (fan 160°C) and cook for a further:

    - 15 – 18 minutes for the muffins

    - 30 – 35 minutes for the loaf.

    They are/It is cooked when a toothpick inserted into the centre of the muffins/loaf comes out clean

  11. Remove from the oven when cooked, leave to sit for 5 – 10 minutes and transfer the muffins/loaf to a wire cooling rack.

  12. Eat warm or at room temperature, on their own or with your choice of accompaniments. 

  13. Suggested accompaniments:

    - Salted Maple Whipped Butter

    - Salted Cinnamon and Honey Butter

    - Nut butters

    - Butter

    - Honey/maple syrup

    - Yogurt

    - Fresh berries

    - Fresh banana

    - Ricotta/mascarpone/cream cheese

    - Jam/conserve

    - Nuts

    - Seeds

Recipe Notes

Equipment:

  • kitchen scales and measuring spoons
  • microwave safe mixing bowl
  • whisk - electric or balloon
  • ice cream scoop
  • 6-hole muffin tin and lined with paper cases or a 1lb loaf tin lined with a loaf tin liner

Why cook at two different temperatures?

Cooking the muffins at a higher temperature for 5 minutes, quickly activates the baking powder and bicarbonate of soda, ensuring your muffins are always light and fluffy.

Freezing and Cooking from frozen:

NB I have only tried freezing muffins prior to cooking and not a whole loaf.

  • Before you start making the muffins, line a muffin tin with liners and place in the freezer to get as cold as possible
  • Make your muffins as normal, fill the muffin cases in the cold muffin tin and scatter over additional ingredients
  • Loosely cover with cling film and put back in the freezer immediately - it is important that you get them in the freezer as soon as possible before the raising agents start to activate. 
  • As soon as they are solid, take out of the tin and place in a freezer bag or container. Keeps up to 3 months.  
  • If your muffin cases are stuck to the bottom of your muffin tin when you take it out of the freezer, run some hot water from the tap in your kitchen sink - just 1 - 2 cms. Sit the tin in the hot water for 30 seconds to a minute. This should be enough to release the muffins. You can now bag them and return them to the freezer. 
  • To cook from frozen: preheat oven to Fan Oven 200°C /220°C/425°F/Gas 7
  • Put the frozen muffins back into a muffin tin and cook on the middle shelf  for 10 minutes.
  • After 10 minutes, turn the oven down to Fan Oven 160°C /180°C/350°F/Gas 4 and cook for a further 15 - 18 minutes.

N.B.

  1. Best eaten on the day they are made. However, they will store well in an airtight container for 2 -3 days, or 4 – 5 days in the fridge. If you are storing in the fridge, allow to come to room temperature before eating.
  2. These muffins freeze well after cooking as well. Cover, when cool,  and freeze for up to 3 months.
  3. 125g mashed banana is equivalent to roughly 1-2 bananas which will weigh 150 - 175g with their skins on.