Banana Muffins

It seems like my kids go in phases with their banana eating. I've got 1 that never likes them, 1 that always loves them and 2 that are wishy washy. We're kind of in the lull part of their swinging banana preferences, I guess, because the last few times I've brought bananas home from the grocery store they've turned up with brown spots before anyone got around to finishing them off. That's OK, though - it means Mama gets banana bread! This time I decided to go with muffins, instead of just straight bread. And this recipe is a smidge different than my standard one because it's got the addition of some cinnamon & nutmeg in the batter for a little extra YUM!

Your ingredients for this one:
(sorry, no photo today)

1.) Flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg.
2.) Bananas, sugar, vanilla, egg, canola (or veg) oil.

First you mix your dry (except for the sugar) in one bowl...


Mix your wet (plus the sugar) in another bowl...


Then combine the two.


Pout the batter into baking cups & cook at 375 for 18-20 minutes.


Tada!! That's it! If you'd like to dress them a little more than that you can mix up the crumb topping on this banana bread recipe & add it to the tops of each muffin before baking. YUM!!!

The addition of the cinnamon & nutmeg add another layer of warmth & cozy to these muffins. Give it a try!!

Enjoy!

Banana Muffins:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cups white sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup canola or veg oil

Preheat oven to 375.

In one bowl, mix flour, soda, powder, salt, cinnamon & nutmeg. In another bowl combine sugar, bananas, vanilla, egg & oil. Add dry ingredients into wet mixture; stir until combined.

Pour batter into muffin tins lined with baking cups. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Cinnamon Sugar Roasted Almonds

Nuts. They're full of all sorts of good nutrition. Protein, fiber, good fats, the alphabet vitamins... you know, all that healthy stuff. Are they still healthy if you smother them in sugar? I sure hope so because I love, love, love these almonds. The last weekend of every September there's a festival here called Candy Dance. It's full of crafters & other assorted vendors & a tiny little town of 225 people explodes to 30,000+ for the weekend!!! It's crazy. Well, one of the vendors I bought from several years ago was selling nuts. GOOD, sweet, crunchy pecans, almonds, cashews... they were wonderful. They were super expensive so I couldn't let myself buy too many so I came home & figured some out on my own! And they're *almost* as good as the ones I bought. And I only say almost because something about buying fresh roasted nuts in an open-air fair just makes things taste better, don't you think!!? Really, though, these are delish!

Here's your grocery list:


RAW almonds. You'll find these in the baking aisle, not in the snack aisle. You don't want ones that have already been roasted or salted or anything like that. Raw almonds. And then some brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, salt, egg white and vanilla.

First beat your egg white & then add in the vanilla. Whisk it until it gets nice & frothy, but stop before it starts to stiffen up.


Add in the almonds & toss them around until they're all wet with the mixture.


In another bowl mix together the sugars, salt & cinnamon.


Now pour it over the nuts & give it a thorough stir. You'll feel like it's too much topping but I promise you, it's not!


Now prep a baking sheet by covering it with foil & giving it a spray of PAM. I suppose you could be Earth friendly & skip the foil. But it saves me from having to wash the pan so foil wins! Laziness prevails.

Then pour the almonds onto the prepped pan & spread them out evenly. Pop them into an oven preheated to 250. They'll roast for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes.


Once they're done, carefully lift the foil out of the pan & just set it on the counter top to cool. Once they're cool you can store them in an air-tight container on the counter! You might want to make a secret little stash because these will disappear fast & you will be so sad when you are ready to sink into the couch with your sweet treat as you watch The Biggest Loser, and all of these are gone! (Does anyone else ALWAYS seem to be snacking on junk as you watch that show!!?? LOL At least these are semi-healthy, right!?)

MMmmmmm.... SMELLS FANTASTIC!

Cinnamon Sugar Roasted Almonds:

1 egg white
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups raw almonds
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 250. Line a 10x15 pan with foil & spray it with cooking spray.

Lightly beat the egg white; add vanilla & beat until frothy but not stiff. Add nuts & stir until well coated. Mix the sugars, salt & cinnamon in a separate bowl; sprinkle over the nuts. Toss to coat & spread evenly on the prepared pan.

Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 20 minutes. Allow to cool & store in an airtight container.