One of my staples forever has been bananas.

I tend to always have them in the house, along with lemons.

Inevitably, because I have a preference for under-ripe bananas there are a couple that are not so good for straight eating so what to do with them?

I generally come down to two alternatives: muffins and pancakes.

Getting Started:

What I make, and how I make it, so often depends on what ingredients I have in the pantry.

I decided, in the light of that to prepare banana, coconut, chocolate chip muffins.

INGREDIENTS:

2 Cups Self-Raising Wholemeal Flour

1/2 Cup Brown Sugar

1/2 Cup Raw Sugar

3/4 Cup Shredded Coconut

1 Cup Milk

110 grams Butter

2 – 3 ripe bananas

1/2 Cup choc chips – dark, milk, white or a combination

2 Teaspoons vanilla essence

Pinch of salt

1 Egg

Coconut essence, if desired

Icing sugar to dust

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 210 C

Top Tip:

The muffins pop best with a muffin top if the oven is hot❤️! when the muffins are put in to be baked!

2. Prepare muffin trays

3. Melt butter

4. Mix dry ingredients together

5. Lightly mix the egg with a fork

6. Add milk and vanilla to the egg mix

7. Mash up the bananas

8. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients and add the wet ingredients, including the melted butter and bananas and gently fold together

Top Tip:

Keep mixing to a minimum – you just want to dampen the ingredients but do not overmix because you will end up with a tough batter!

9. 3/4 fill muffin slots

10. Place in the hot oven without delay

11. Bake for 12 – 15 minutes, according to taste. I always prefer my cakes a little undercooked and moist, but this is an individual choice.

I love to enjoy these delicious little treats with a nice cup of tea and a big dusting of icing sugar on top, but lemon icing works well once the muffins have cooled.

Making muffins is not rocket science, but there are times when simple things are what we want and this recipe definitely delivers.

I have had visitors turn up unexpectedly and had these babies out and being enjoyed within half an hour…

I felt happy with the muffins and also that all of the flowers featured here have been planted and grown by me in my own farmhouse garden, including the beautiful daffodils!!

The muffins store well refrigerated in an airtight container:

The Final Word:

Making these sweet treats always takes me back to the happy time when my children were littlies and we would prepare them together, with Boo cracking the egg and Lachie stirring the batter and both watching the oven carefully and conscientiously with the most excited and happy little faces!

These were the happiest of times!

Being able to cook and to cook with joy and purpose is such an important skill for practical purposes and also because it is a mindful activity, helping to cope with stress.

I am glad that both of my precious souls are competent young adults who know how to look after themselves and to eat well for good health and wellness.

It is so important for young mothers, and even older ones, with older grown-up children to cook together, because this is often the time when confidences are exchanged, advice given and relationships cemented.

Thank you for joining me in my little corner of the web and I’d love to hear from you in a like, follow or comment,

Donna 🧚🏻‍♀️🦋❤️🙏