One of the really fabulous things about working for a college in Boston is that I get Snow Days! Obviously I had to take complete advantage of this luxurious and unexpected long weekend so I decided to make some muffins. I was also in desperate need of some cooking redemption as both recipes that I made this weekend turned out terribly, including a cheesecake that didn’t completely set-up and Ina Garten’s Parmesan Chicken that I totally burned. Oops! Apparently I had some bad kitchen karma going on. Thankfully my mixer mojo was back in force today.
So, about this muffin batter. It makes an obscene amount. The thought of 18 muffins seemed a little redundant so I made 12 muffins and then poured the rest of the batter into a loaf pan. Now we have tasty muffins and walnut studded banana bread. All of which will probably end up at CK’s office tomorrow, but for the time being it smells pretty awesome in here. Plus the muffins had crunchy tops and moist centers. You can’t really ask for anything more. Now back to my pajama wearing, Jane Austen watching day.
 Combine the Dry Ingredients |
 Mix the Wet Ingredients |
 Mash the Bananas |
 Stir Together |
 Scoop & Bake |
 Cool |
Banana Muffins (Based on Giada De Laurentiis’s recipe originally published on the Food Network)
Makes 18 Muffins (or do what I did and bake 12 muffins and spoon the rest of the batter into a loaf pan and bake for 40-45 minutes)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed
1 cup walnuts (Note: Totally optional, but I can’t imagine banana anything without some crunchy walnuts).
Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl to blend. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the banana. Add the dry ingredients and walnuts, and stir just until blended.
Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a rack and cool slightly.