STRAWBERRY BANANA MUFFINS WITH A TWIST !

STRAWBERRY BANANA MUFFINS WITH A TWIST !

One of my favorite ingredients in the summer is strawberries.  You’ll notice that Faye and I use a lot of  local, seasonal fruit and vegetables.   Aside from supporting our communities, they are the best tasting products you can get.  Living in California we’re lucky that our strawberry season extends to most of the summer. I like to use them in sweet dishes like these muffins, cake filling and homemade jams.  But if you want to try something a bit more adventurous, cut up a few ripe strawberries and add them on top of a green salad dressed with a delicious balsamic dressing.   I promise, you will not be disappointed!  

I had seen this recipe for STRAWBERRY BANANA MUFFINS  on the Joy of Cooking website a while ago and wanted to give it a try.  I put a little twist on the original recipe, which I believe made a better muffin. They are moist and tasty - full of delicious ripe strawberry and banana flavor.  The key to this recipe is to make sure you dry the excess moisture from the strawberries after you crop them. This will keep them from sinking to the bottom of your muffin cups.  Guaranteed, your family and friends will love this breakfast treat.

Happy Cooking Everyone!

Strawberry Banana muffins

½ cup sweet butter  (melted and cooled)

2 eggs 

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup of mashed banana

1 cup of chopped strawberries (make sure you dry them off so they are not wet) 

2 ¼ cup flour

¾ cup brown sugar

1 ½ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon allspice

3-4 large strawberries sliced for decoration

12 aluminum muffin cups

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1. Place your muffin cups in the muffin pan.  Lightly spray the cup with oil. (this makes it easier to

     remove the muffins from the cups)

2. Mix the eggs, vanilla and mashed banana till well blended.

3. Add the melted butter.

4. In a medium size bowl, mix together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and  allspice together, until well combined.

5. Add the strawberries to the flour mixture and gently stir until they are well combined.

6. Now add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture. Gently stir. All you want to do is combine all the ingredients together. Do not over stir.

7. Fill muffin cups equally with batter.

8. Top each muffin with a sliced strawberry.

9. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes.

10. Remove from oven and cool for about 15 minutes.

11. Serve with warm butter.