The Muffin Method
Banana Chocolate Chip Muffin Recipe
Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspooons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup oil
1 cup plain greek yogurt
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups mashed banana
2 cups chocolate chips
Topping ingredients
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar (brown works well)
1/4 cup softened butter
Directions:
In two mixing bowls, place all dry ingredients, in bold above, in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another.
Mix each bowl well and pour the wet ingredients on top of the dry and mix until barely combined. (The more you mix the tougher your muffins will be.)
Add chocolate chips and mix just until incorporated.
Put the flour and sugar for the topping in a smaller bowl and mix them together. Add in the softened butter and using your fingers, 2 forks, or a pastry blender, work the butter into the mixture until it looks crumbly.
Put muffin liners in your pan and fill with batter 2/3-3/4 full
Sprinkle the topping on the muffins and bake for the following temperatures and approximate times. Oven temperatures vary, so set the timer 5 minutes under and check.
Jumbo 325°F for 25-30 minutes.
Regular 350°F for 15-20 minutes
Mini- 350°F for 10-15 minutes
Muffins are done when you press the top and it springs back.
I know that many people come to blogs for recipes, so I am working on providing them. I usually start with a base recipe and add improvements. One things that I really like to do with my YouTube videos, however, is not really provide a recipe in the video. I don’t want to teach people to make a recipe, I want to teach a method that can be applied to any recipe you would like to use it for. Many people say they can’t cook, but if you can follow a method, you can cook. Some recipes aren’t very clear so it’s easy to get bogged down in the process. This is why it is super important that you read your entire recipe before you start measuring and throwing stuff in a bowl.
The muffin method is super easy as compared to other baking methods. You mix all the dry ingredients, mix all the wet ingredients, and then mix them together. It is almost impossible to screw up. I’ve seen it done a few times though. The good thing about the muffin method is that if you dump it all in one bowl, you may have to mix more than the ideal amount, so your final product may be tougher, but it won’t be a huge deal.
A few hints for this recipe:
mash your bananas with a sturdy whisk, potato masher, or just some forks.
If you have some shady looking bananas on your counter but don’t have time to make muffins, mash them up, put them in a sealed container and freeze for up to a few weeks. They will go brown in the freezer eventually, but it gives you some wiggle room. I used to do this when I was baking for a local store. I would buy a whole bunch of bananas, let them go almost black, then mash and froze them to use for a couple weeks. This is also how I found out there is a time limit, but bananas are cheap so try it out and see how long you can make them last. I use the rubbermaid containers that are linked below.
You can substitute other mashed fruit for the banana.
You can substitute raisins, craisins, or other types of chips for the chocolate chips.
You can use oatmeal in or as the crumble topping.
You can substitute whole wheat flour in most muffin recipes since you don’t necessarily need the gluten structure. This also means you can mix more.
Gluten free flour options can also be substituted pretty easily.
You can add protein powder to the muffins to make them a bit more substantial for breakfast. The protein I use is linked below.
Using a dough whisk for mixing batters and doughs is super helpful. If your whisk becomes a club while mixing try out the dough whisk linked below. I started using it recently and will never look. back.
Measure carefully. If you do not, baking recipes can have proportions be wayyyy off. In baking, I prefer weights, but if I can’t do weights, I will always measure carefully. Check out this video for proper measuring technique.
Do not use the toothpick test. On anything….for real. This is why so many people have dry baked goods. For things like muffins, use the poke test. Gently and quickly poke the top of the muffin. (You won’t burn yourself as long as you do this quickly. Also, don’t pull your hand back too quickly because you may hit the oven rack or element with your hand… not that I know this from experience or anything.) If your muffin or cake springs back, you are good to go. If it leaves a dent, bake a little bit longer. If there is no browning, add 2-3 minutes. If it is brown, check each minute until done.
Below, I am going to provide some links to helpful products. I get a small commmision if you chose to purchase from here. This helps me maintain my blog
Let us know below if you try these muffins and what you think and especially if you make any fun changes.