Chunky Chocolate and Banana Cupcakes

I've got a confession to make: I've never watched the entire movie of The Notebook. It's suppose to be really romantic, and I like romantic movies, but I've just never got around to watching it. My friend V wanted to put an end to this, and came to my place earlier this week for an evening of baking cupcakes and watching The Notebook. We didn't get around to watching the movie but we made a ton of cupcakes. We made two kinds from V's new book 75 Best-Ever Cupcakes by Carol Pastor. The first set we made were Chunky Chocolate and Banana Cupcakes. They were more like Chocolate Chip and Banana Cupcakes, but I thought they came out pretty good. My friend preferred the second set of cupcakes we did, Simple Cupcakes. I'll post that recipe on the next entry. Happy Baking!

~Ann

Chunky Chocolate and Banana Cupcakes

6 tbsp semi-skimmed (low-fat) milk

2 eggs

2/3 cup butter, melted

2 cups plain (all-purpose) flour

1 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup golden caster (superfine) sugar (we used regular granulated sugar)

5oz plain (semisweet) chocolate, cut into chunks (semisweet chocolate chips are fine too)

2 small bananas, mashed

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F. Arrange 12 paper cases in a muffin tin.

2. In a small bowl, whisk the milk, eggs and melted butter together until combined.

3. Sift together the flour and baking powder into a separate bowl. Add the sugar, chocolate and bananas to the flour mixture.

4. Stir gently to combine, gradually stirring in the milk and egg mixture, but do not beat it. Spoon the mixture into the paper cases. Bake for about 20 minutes until the cakes are risen and golden. Allow to stand for 5 minutes, then turn out and leave to cool on a wire rack.

-Makes 12 cupcakes

Banana Hazelnut Dessert Wontons

Flipping through the newspaper 24H, I came across a deliciously looking recipe called Banana Hazelnut Dessert Wontons. It is an easy and quick recipe to follow with a baking time of only 5 minutes. After making a batch of these, I have to admit that they were not my favourite. I thought the banana and Nutella would have made these wontons amazing, but my taste buds were not feeling it. I will post the recipe anyway, and if you have the ingredients, you can try it out for yourself and see what you think.

~Ann

Banana Hazelnut Dessert Wontons

1 medium banana peeled and diced

1/4 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup brown sugar

16-20 wonton wrappers

1 egg lightly beaten

1/3 cup hazelnut spread

Powdered sugar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 400F (200C). Stir together banana, pecans, and brown sugar in a small bowl.

2. Lightly brush the edges of each wonton wrapper with beaten egg. Spoon about 1 teaspoon of hazelnut spread and 1-1/2 teaspoons banana mixture in centre of each wonton.

3. Fold over each wrapper, forming a triangle and seal edges well. (Instead of folding each wonton, I covered the banana and hazelnut wonton with an extra wrapper and sealed the edges, making a square shape)

4. Place wontons on baking sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Brush the tops of the wontons lightly with lightly beaten egg.

5. Bake 5-6 minutes or until lightly brown. Cool slightly and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Whole Wheat Banana Bread

Hey hey hey, let's bake a cake! Again. But cake's always good. ;)

Besides, this banana bread is super good for you. It's made with whole wheat flour (fiber), nuts (antioxidant) bananas (potassium) and coconut (er..hm..fiber?). See? All good stuff. =)

This is the best banana bread I've had so far. Seriously. It is at the top of my banana bread list. Go make some for you! ;)

3 cups whole wheat flour - I used 2 c. whole wheat and 1 c. all-purpose and worked out fine

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 large eggs

2 cups brown sugar - I used 3/4 c brown sugar and 3/4 caster sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon vanilla extract - I used 1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1 tablespoon banana extract - I ommited

1 1/2 cups very ripped bananas, mashed (about 3 bananas)

1 cup shredded coconut

1 cup pecans, toasted and chopped - I used Brazil nuts

1/2 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF/180ºC. Grease the pan with butter.

2. In a small bowl, sift the flour, baking soda, and salt. In another large bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, and sugar. Add the flour mixture to the eggs mixture, mixing with a spoon/spatula.

3. Add vanilla and banana extracts, mashed bananas, coconut, nuts and the buttermilk, mixing until incorporated.

4. Pour into the pan and bake for 60-65 minutes. Let it cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

PS.: I poured half the batter into the pan, arranged some banana slices over it and topped with the rest of the batter.

Recipe taken from here (in Portuguese).

Oatmeal

Oatmeal was the ingredient of the week for Ana and I. At first I was feeling for oatmeal cookies, but then I found an oatmeal bar recipe on Canadianfamily.ca. This recipe has a different twist than the typical oatmeal bar/granola by using maple syrup, orange zest and cinnamon. The good thing about these bars is that they taste amazing. They are way better and "healthier" (as in less fattening) than store bought granola bars, but the bad thing is that they are quite addictive, I simply can't eat just one.

This recipe is made for a 9-inch square pan, which I currently do not have, so in order to accommodate my pan, which is 13 X 9 inches I increased the recipe by half, so if instead of 1/2 cup of sugar I used 3/4 cup. Knowing how much of a klutz I am, I wrote down the revised ingredients before I started and made sure I had enough ingredients, and it turned out well.

-Ann

Awesome Oatmeal Bars

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 1/2 cups rolled oats (not quick, instant, or 1 minute oatmeal)

1/2 cup wheat germ or bran (I used bran)

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 teaspoon finely grated orange peel

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup dried fruit (I used raisins)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 325F (160C). Line a 9-inch (2.5L) square baking pan with parchment paper, leaving a 1-inch overhang on 2 sides so you can easily lift the baked bars out.

2. In a large pan heat butter, maple syrup and sugar over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Boil for 1 minute; remove saucepan from heat. Stir in oats, wheat germ/bran, vanilla, orange, cinnamon, and salt until well combined. Stir in dried fruit.

3. Spread mixture evenly in pan, pressing down firmly using base of measuring cup. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until a deep golden colour. Cool completely in pan or wire rack. Once cooled, use parchment to lift to a cutting board; cut into bars with a large serrated knife. 

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My plan was to make Apple Oatmeal Cake for this week and I did. But it was a disaster. =( I don't know what happened, maybe the flour listed wasn't enough, maybe I did something wrong, I don't know. All I know is that I had to come up with a plan B, which fortunately I already had. And what a delicious plan B it was. Oh, and healthy, too - oatmeal, bananas and nuts, that's healthy, isn't it?

I tried this recipe a long time ago, when I was still living in Toronto so Ann had the chance to try this cookies., too. She liked them as much aas I did. I think she even asked for the recipe, which I forgot to give her. So hey Ann, here's the recipe for you! Sorry for the (long) delay!

Just a note: these aren't crunchy nor chewy cookies. They are cake-y cookies. Delicious cake-y, soft, taste-like-this-muffins cookies. So good! To make it even better, this cookies don't require a mixer, just one bowl and a wooden spoon. =)

-Ana

Banana Oatmeal Cookies

From here
3/4 cup oatmeal

3/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup hazelnuts, chopped

3/4 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon nutmeg (omitted)

2 ripe bananas

1 1/2 cups flour

Chocolate chips - optional

1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Combine ingredients in order listed. It will be runny but that`s okay.

3. Drop tablespoonfuls  onto a greased baking sheet - I didn't greased mine and it was fine. Make sure to leave some space between the cookies because they will spread.

4. Bake for 10-15 minutes, depending on size of cookies, or until the edges are browned. Mine took 15 min. Be careful to not overbake.

Banana

I rarely make banana recipes. It's not that I have a thing against bananas, it's actually the totally opposite, I love bananas, and also my whole family. Whenever I buy a bunch they're finished in a couple of days. So when I planned to bake Banana Spice Bread, I actually hid a couple bananas from my family - no joke. By the end of the week, they were speckled with black spots, just the way I wanted 'em.
I've made banana bread before, but I wanted to try something a little different, when I found this recipe on BigOven.com, I thought it was perfect because a) I love that spiced flavour in baked goods and b) I have a ton of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and it really gives me another opportunity to use these spices up before they lose their flavour.
The bread tasted pretty good. My only concern is that it was lacking that spicy kick that I like. I'll probably do this recipe again, but increase the spices, add cloves (about 1/2 teaspoon) and see how it turns out.
-Ann

Banana Spice Bread

by catgurrl on Big Oven
1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

3 tablespoons low fat milk

1 cup bananas (2 large ripe bananas)

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/3 cup walnuts or pecans (optional)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
2. If using a silicon 9 X 5 inch loaf pan, lightly brush the inside with melted butter, place on a sturdy baking sheet. If using a metal or glass pan, lightly spray with cooking spray, and line the bottom of the pan with a piece of parchment paper cut to fit. Spray again with cooking spray and set aside.
3. With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat together oil, granulated sugar, brown sugar, milk, vanilla, and bananas until blended and creamy, about 3 minutes. Sift together the flour, nutmeg, cinnamon, ginger, salt, soda, and baking powder. With the mixer running, slowly add the dry ingredients to the sugar mixture, beating just until thoroughly combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl during the mixing. Stir in the nuts.
4. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan. Bake about 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre of the loaf comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the pan 5 minutes on a cooling rack before removing from the pan. For silicone pans, loosen the sides simply by pulling away the bread, then press from the bottom of the pan. For other pans, loosen sides by running a knife around the edge. Remove the parchment paper and let cool completely before slicing.
~Makes one 9 X 5 inch loaf (12 pieces)

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Are you into simple, fast, delicious desserts that looks fancy and complicated? Yes? Of course you are. Who isn't, right? Lets make crepes, then. Yay! With Dulce de Leche and Banana. Yum! And Banana and Nutella. Yum²!!
-Ana

Crepes

1 cup milk

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons (40g) unsalted butter, melted

2 eggs

1 tablespoon sugar

Pinch of salt
1. Using a blender, put all the ingredients and beat until combined. Let it rest for 45 minutes.
2. Heat a medium non-stick frying pan over medium heat, greased with butter. It's important to use a non-stick frying pan, otherwise it'll be very hard to flip the crepes.
3. Put a small amount in the center of the pan and start doing circular motions to cover all the bottom of the pan. Don't put too much batter or it will be very thick and you won't be able to fold the crepe.
4. Loose the sides and flip the crepe. Let it brown a little bit and transfer to a plate. Repeat with the remaining batter.
5. For the filling: Spread some dulce de leche or nutella at the top half and add some sliced bananas or fruit of your choice. Grab the bottom half (the one that doesn't have any flilling) and fold the crepe in two. Fold it in half again, forming a triangular shape. Note from the picture above that I put the filling only in 1/4 of the crepe. But don't do it like me! Go all the way. Be happy. =)
6. Tah-dah! It's ready to serve. Enjoy.
~Makes 8 medium crepes.

There is an interesting blog entry on allrecipes.com (the Canadian version) on the difference between cupcakes and muffins. On DifferenceBetween.net you can read more about the differences between the two. Below you will find the main ones:

• Cupcakes are lighter in texture while muffins are more dense.
• Cupcakes are pretty much mini cakes where there is more of an emphasis with decor - such as icing, sprinkles, and other edible decor, whereas muffins are like mini breads that are sweet. 
• Cupcakes tend to stay within the rims of each cupcake pan, while the muffin tops overflow the rims giving them that crunchy texture (which makes it the best part of the muffin!)
• Cupcakes are generally eaten as a desert, whereas muffins are eaten for breakfast.

This week we're doing Butterscotch Chip Banana Muffins. The banana muffin recipe was taken from Patricia Scarpin beautiful blog, Technicolor Kitchen. Any changes to the recipe are written in italics.

Butterscotch Chip Banana Muffins

4 ripe bananas (We used 3 large ones)

3/4 cup (150g) sugar

1/3 cup (75g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt (Omitted)

1 1/2 cups (210g) all-purpose flour

Small handful of hazelnuts, toasted and peeled (Omitted)

And/or 1 cup butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 375ºF (190ºC) and line muffin pan with muffin paper cups.

Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt and mix well. Set aside.

Chop the hazelnuts and reserve 1 tablespoon for sprinkling on top

Place the bananas in a large bowl and mash well. Add the sugar and the melted butter. Mix well. Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and then add the butterscotch chips. Mix just enough to bring everything together. Don't overmix. 

Fill muffin cups about 3/4 to the top and sprinkle with the reserved chopped nuts.

Baked for 20 minutes or untill the muffins are golden brown.

Makes 12 muffins.

Ann's Thoughts

This had to be the fastest recipe that we've done so far. It took us like five minutes to mix it all together and scoop the batter into the muffin trays - okay so I'm exaggerating but it felt that fast. We didn't know exactly what to do with ourselves for the next few hours or so after we took the muffins out of the oven. Anyway, these muffins turned out great when we decided to change the recipe up a bit by using butterscotch chips.

In Patrica Scarpin's Banana Muffin recipe, it calls for hazelnuts but because I can't eat nuts we decided to subsitute it with something else. Now, I've seen and tried banana and chocolate chip cakes, but we wanted to do something different so we thought about doing either white chocolate or butterscotch chips. Personally I liked the combination of banana and butterscotch. It tastes.....different - but a good different. Ana was concerned over the oilness of the muffins - probably due to the 1 cup of butterscotch chips, which was a bit much. If we do this recipe again we'll cut the amount of chips to 3/4 cup.

Ana's Thoughts

Super easy, super simple and super yumy muffins. Go make them. Now. Oh, wait....read my thoughts first. ;)

I've made this muffins a thousand times before. And they never failed. They're always fluffy and moist - even the next day! This was the first time that I used the butterscotch chips, though. The verdict? They gave an extra flavour and sweetness to the muffins but I have to say I still prefer them plain. Nothing to compete with the banana.

You can make half plain and half with the chips and then compare. And then tell me which one  is your favorite, okay? See ya next week!

Receita em Português:

Você pode achar essa receita em português clicando aqui.