Mocha Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

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My recipe binder is continually expanding, filling up with all the yummy new recipes I try. Every once in a  while I attempt to clean it out, but I liked almost everything in it and I want to want to keep all the recipes. They all bring back memories, almost all of them good. It's rare that I make something that I don't like. These muffins have been in my recipe binder for a couple of years now. I remember the first time I made them I really liked them, but I don't remember much else. So when I finally had some ripe bananas I decided it was time to try these again, and I'm glad I did!

These mocha muffins are full of chocolate chips and bananas and are very tender and buttery with a nice crispy top. Both the coffee flavor and the banana flavor are nice but quite mild. I might increase the amount of espresso powder I add next time if I'm feeling like a little more mocha flavor. I love their darker, golden brown color due to the espresso powder. The moment they came out of the oven I wanted to devour them all. If you have a few extra ripe bananas lying around and want to try something new, I would definitely recommend this recipe. A wonderful muffin to accompany a morning cup of coffee.

Start with the butter

Then the sugar

Egg next

Finally the banana and espresso powder

And don't forget the vanilla

Mix it all up

(I didn't quite follow the recipe, next time I'll 

remember to cream the butter and sugar first)

Add the flour mixture

Nicely mixed together

Time for the chocolate

Into the muffin pans

Top with a few extra chocolate chips

Bake them up until golden brown

Breakfast anyone?

Mocha Banana Muffins
From allrecipes.com
Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 ripe bananas
  • 1 tablespoon instant espresso (or 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules dissolved in 1 tablespoon water)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda, set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg, banana, instant espresso and vanilla and beat until combined. 

Add the flour mixture, mixing until almost combined. Add the chocolate chips and mix a few times by hand, just until incorporated. Spoon the mixture into lined muffin cups. Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees. Cool on wire racks.

Banana Chocolate Chip Breakfast Cake

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Banana bread is an amazing invention. Whoever discovered that over ripe bananas could be mashed up and added to a quick bread batter is my hero. I am a huge banana fan, and go through at least half a dozen bananas a week. They are cheap, healthy and delicious. However, it can be a guessing game at the grocery store when confronted with a mountain of bananas at varying stages of ripeness; how quickly will the green bananas ripen, will I want a banana tomorrow, or in two days or tonight? I've become quite good at picking out the right number of bananas at the correct ripeness in order to have a good supply for at least a couple days. But there are still the times when I don't quite calculate correctly. The wonderful thing about bananas is that this is okay. In fact, sometimes it is preferable.

Banana bread is one of the most wonderful things to bake. It's quick, easy and delicious, and it can also be healthy at times. My personal favorite banana bread recipe is for Banana Oat Bread. However, a few months ago I was looking for something a little different. I wanted to bake something that reminded me of going out for breakfast at a coffee shop (one of my favorite things to do). They always seem to have some type of breakfast cake or bread that is easy to pick up and eat out of hand, something not too heavy and not overly sweet. I wanted to make something like that. So when I found this recipe online I knew I had to try it. I'm glad I did because it fit the bill perfectly.

This cake is super moist and light. It has that kind of spongy texture that always seems to accompany bread that is made with yogurt. The bananas add their characteristic subtle flavor and moisture which is enhanced by the addition of mini chocolate chips. The whole thing just works together so well. Now I can just brew up some coffee, close my eyes and take a bite, fooling myself into thinking that I'm at the coffee shop when I haven't even left my own kitchen.

My banana puree, an immersion blender does

a wonderful job

You need an egg and an egg white, save the

beautiful yolk for some scrambled eggs 

All the wet ingredients ready 

to be mixed

The wet, the dry and the chocolate

Mmmm, the best part

Stir it all together until just combined, 

be sure to not over mix

Pour into your greased pan

Baked

Chocolate and banana goodness!

Cut it up and enjoy for breakfast with a cup 

of coffee or hot chocolate

Banana Breakfast Cake
From David Lebovitz
Ingredients

  • 1½ cups (210 g) flour 
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder 
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda 
  • ½ teaspoon salt 
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
  • 1 teaspoon espresso powder (optional)
  • ¾ cup (150 g) sugar 
  • 2 tablespoons (55 g) melted butter 
  • 1 large egg white 
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 cup banana puree, made from about 2 very ripe medium-sized bananas 
  • ½ cup sour cream (I used Greek yogurt, 130 g)
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 
  • 1/3 cup (60 g) mini chocolate chips 

Directions
Sift together in a medium bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and espresso powder, if using. Mix in the sugar.

In a large bowl, mix together the butter, egg white, egg, banana puree, sour cream, and vanilla.

Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and stir in the wet ingredients with a spatula until almost mixed. Add in the chocolate chips or cocoa nibs and stir until just combined, but don’t overstir: stop when any traces of flour disappear.

Scrape the mixture into a prepared 9-inch square pan and bake for 35-38 minutes at 350 degrees, or until the center feels lightly-springy and just done. Cool on a baking rack.