Cocoa Banana Muffins

A good muffin with the heartiness of oatmeal and the yumminess of chocolate and bananas.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Grease 12 muffin cups.


Ingredients:

1-1/4 cups flour
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 Tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup mashed banana(2 or 3)
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl, mix the flour, oatmeal, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and baking powder. Set aside.
In another bowl, mix the bananas, milk, butter, egg, and vanilla extract.
Add the flour mixture and stir until moistened.
Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups.
The cups will be pretty full.
Bake for 20-25 minutes until the muffins test done when checked with a toothpick.
Cool in pan for 5 minutes.
Turn out to finish cooling.

12 muffins.

Chocolate Banana Bread

Take one bite and you taste chocolate. Take another bite and you taste banana. Two great tastes, all in one quick bread.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Grease and flour(or use cocoa powder for coating) a 9" x 5" loaf pan.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup old fashioned oats, ground into a fine powder
1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed, ripe bananas(3-4 medium)
2 Tablespoons milk or cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium bowl,whisk together the ground oats, flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder. Set aside.
In another bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy.
Add the eggs, banana, milk, and vanilla extract. Beat for 2-3 minutes with a mixer until the mixture has thickened and is somewhat smooth.
Gradually add the flour mixture, beating til smooth after each addition.
Make sure to beat just until smooth. Over-beating will cause the bread to peak in the oven.
Scrape batter into the prepared loaf pan.
Bake for 45-50 minutes or til the bread passes the toothpick test.
Leave the bread in the pan for 10 minutes. Turn out onto rack to cool completely.

Makes 1 loaf.

Going Bananas!

Bananas are great for baking.

They make everything really moist.

Most times when you buy bananas, they are either under-ripe or overripe.

When, they are just right, they are good for eating fresh and for making banana cream pie.

When they are overripe is when they are perfect for baking things like banana cookies, banana bread, and banana cake.

I love buying them when they sell big bags of overripe bananas really cheap. I can also get them free from my town grocery when they are pretty brown.

If there are too many to use at one time, stick some in the freezer.

Put the unpeeled bananas in a bag and freeze them for later baking.

When you need some, just take out what you want, thaw and mash for your favorite recipes.

Just snip off the end of the banana and squish out the banana.

The thawed bananas mash easier than fresh bananas.

Some tips on mashing bananas.

If you have an old potato masher, that is great. It works so much better than trying to use a fork.

Another option is to stick them in a blender or food processor.

If bananas are not mashed really well, hunks of banana can settle to the bottom of whatever you are baking and it doesn't really bake right.

It will test done, but when you slice it you will have a rim of banana along the bottom crust.

Black Bottom Banana Bars

These are so good. They are very moist. If you love bananas and chocolate, you will love these bars.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
You will need a greased 13x9 baking pan.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup softened butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups mashed bananas- you will need 3 or 4 bananas
1-1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup baking cocoa

Cream the butter and sugar.
Add egg and vanilla and mix well.
Add the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix until smooth. Pour half of the batter into another bowl.
To the mixing bowl add the cocoa powder and mix well.
Spread the cocoa mixture into greased pan.
Carefully spread the reserved batter over the top and use a knife to swirl the batter.
Bake for 25-30 minutes til bars test done when a toothpick is inserted in the middle.
Cool before cutting.

Makes 12-16 bars.
They are very moist so don't stack together for storage, without putting a paper towel in between layers.

Blueberry - Banana Bread

If you love banana bread and you love blueberries, here is a delicious combo for you.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
Grease the bottom only of 8"x4" or 9"x"5 loaf pan
Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
1/3 cup margarine or butter, softened
2 eggs
1-1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas( 3-4 medium)
1/3 cup water
1-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

Mix sugar and margarine in a large mixing bowl. Add eggs and blend. Add the bananas and water and beat well. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Add the blueberries.
Pour into pan and bake until toothpick comes out clean. An 8" loaf will take about 75 minutes and a 9" loaf will take about 55-60 minutes.
Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Loosen sides of loaf from pan an turn out to cool.