banana cream pie cupcakes

so yesterday i made some yummy banana blueberry muffins for my main man jack, but i also made some plain ol' banana muffins that i decided to jazz up... so then by altering the muffin with toppings and such, do they then become cupcakes?? so would you call those cuffins?? nahhh... or how about muffcakes?? ehhh... the more i ponder over that word, the more and more it makes me giggle...

well whatever they were, they were delicious... topped with vanilla cream pudding, some finger lickin caramel, and some crunchy sprinklings of nilla wafers...

check out yesterdays post for the banana muffin recipe...

here's one all dissected for your viewing pleasure... mmmm...

hehe... muffcakes...

happy baking everyone :)

banana blueberry muffins just for Jack :)

every so often i i let my oldest son decide what i should bake... and yesterday was one of those days... usually he gets very creative... pairing things that make you raise your eyebrows and go "whaaa??", and sometimes i shake my head thinking, "hmmm... that's not bad"...

so when i sat down and asked him yesterday, he twisted his mouth in thought, and casually said "how 'bout some blueberry muffins??"...

huh? that's it??? no sprinkles? no chocolate chips? no gobs and gobs of frosting?? wow... how simple... but... i was more than happy to satisfy his request... i just changed it a bit... i went with a banana muffin with blueberries, and nixed the sugar topping... there was no need for the sugar topping anyways, the bananas were so ripe and sweet...
so here is the recipe... i'm happy jack wanted these... they made my moring cup(s) of coffee so much more enjoyable :)

banana blueberry muffins
recipe yields 12 standard sized muffins

recipe:

dry ingredients
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cups sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup blueberries
3/4 cup (1 1/2 stick) melted and browned unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups smashed bananas
2 lrg. eggs
2 tsp vanilla

directions:
1. preheat oven to 350 and line 12 cupcake tins
2.in a medium bowl sift together all dry ingredients
3. make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add all the wet ingredients
4. using a wooden spoon, incorporate together, but do not over mix, then add the blueberries
5. divide batter evenly among the tins and bake until done, about 17-20 minutes, and cool on wire rack

simple... yet very very satisfying...

happy baking everyone :)

hummingbird cupcakes

so... how many people out there have tried hummingbird cake... i bet there aren't too many of you out there...

and until a few days ago hadn't even thought of making this delectable cake... and now i can't imagine my cupcake recipe book without it... here's a quick description... you take yummy moist banana cake, and add the bonus of sweet pineapple, and when baked, the pineapple becomes like tiny bits of candy in the cake... it's just plain good... you can even add pecans to the recipe, but me i'm a no-nut fan when it comes to my cakes and cookies...

i came across this recipe on the blog, "bake or break"... and since everything i've made from that blog has been amazing, i just had to try it... plus i had a bunch of ripe bananas that needed to be used pronto... this cake is just delish-ious... i even left some plain, without the smothering of vanilla cream cheese frosting, and my boys loved them... and so did i... and i didn't feel as guilty eating them for breakfast :)

anyways... this is a must try... so next time you're in the mood for a tender and sweet cake... try this one out... it defiantly gets the becky seal of approval!

and something that sounds so pretty... say it with me... hummingbird cake... desreves some pretty frosting... so i went with an almost flowery look...

hummingbird cupcakes, adapted from "bake or break"
recipe:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 large eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable or canola oil
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 8-ounce can crushed pineapple
1 cup chopped pecans (i opted out of these)
2 cups chopped bananas
chopped pecans or sanding sugar, for garnish (opted out of these too)

directions:
1. preheat oven to 350, and prep cupcake pans, set aside.
2. combine flour, baking soda, salt, sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl
3. add eggs and oil, stirring until dry ingredients are moistened
4. stir in vanilla, pineapple, pecans, and bananas.
5. pour batter into prepared pans
6. bake for 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean
7. cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes, then, remove from pans and cool completely on wire racks

and below, here they are without the covering of that delightful frosting... take a look inside, can you see all those chunks of bananas and pineapple... mmmm.... mmmm.... drool...

happy baking everyone!

a bit on the so-called healthier side...

so, you may have heard me mention once or twice that my hubs is always asking for baked goods that are more on the lighter, healthier side... so, like a good wifey i try and please... you know, like how he wanted a peach cobbler for his birthday and he got a cake, and a blueberry- strawberry galette instead... you can see how accommodating i am to his needs... ha ha... :)

so... as i was saying... he was craving something tasty yet healthy... so since i had some perfectly ripe bananas and a surplus of brown sugar hanging about i decided to make banana-oat crunch muffins... with a crumb topping... the result was a tasty blend of moist banana bread with a cinnamon-nutmeg oat crunch, with hidden pockets of brown sugar... it was awesome...

i used a banana cupcake/muffin recipe i always use, except i got a bit fancy... i made a blend of quick rolled oats, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar, melted butter, and flour (i don't have an exact measurement for you, because i just eyeballed it to my own liking) to make the crumb topping, but i also folded some of it into the muffin itself... every bite was just yummy...

i don't know if you'd call it "healthy" but i guess if it's not smothered in frosting and gooey caramel, it's as healthy as it gets around here... :)

happy and healthy baking everyone!