Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

This is another recipe I got from the 'Bun in the Oven' Shower. Camille made these and they are some of the best banana muffins I've ever had! They use apple sauce instead of oil and are so light and fluffy. My FIL was helping me in the kitchen today, and for those of you who don't know, he is a baker!! He gave me lots of tips on mixing, creaming sugar and eggs, baking and some really fun ways to fill the muffin tin. I made a mess but had a ton of fun. Camille and her fiance popped in and got to witness Barry flinging the batter into the paper cups in the muffin pan and then my attempt at doing the same. I did end up getting the hang of it after a while!! His biggest tip was to not be afraid to work with my hands and get dirty!

I'm going to be taking a cake decorating course, so he also showed me how to pipe the batter into the cups, just to practice! I'll be sure to post my homework for everyone to see. The course starts this week!

I made a double batch, one batch for my girlfriends shower on the weekend and one batch for me! My freezer is full and I love it.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 1/2 cups white sugar

3 eggs

1 cup applesauce

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 cups mashed bananas

1/2 cup chocolate chips or however much you want! (optional)

Grease 2 muffin tins (skip this step if you're using paper liners). Beat together sugar and eggs until creamy. Mix in apple sauce. In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Add slowly to creamed mixture. Mix in mashed bananas and chocolate chips if you want. Pour (or fling if you're so inclined) into muffin tins or paper liners and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Makes 2 dozen.

To tell if they are done, gently press down on the muffin top and if it springs back up, they're ready! If they don't spring, they need more time.

I've never actually creamed the sugar and eggs for as long as I was supposed to EVER, but my FIL showed me how to tell when it's ready - you taste the mixture and if you can taste the grainy sugar, it's not ready yet. This will take less than 10 minutes. Don't over beat or else you'll break down the sugar.

Egg Free Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Hello friends!
So my youngest has an egg and peanut allergy, thus leading me to find new adventures in baking.  I am cautiously optimistic that he will outgrow these allergies, but in the meantime I've been experimenting with substitutions in some of my favorite recipes.  My (and my kids') favorite muffin recipe is from my dear friend Camille - her delicious Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins, which I previously blogged about here. I only did one small teeny weeny change to it, and that was to substitute the egg for ground flax seed mixed with water!  That's it!  So here is the updated recipe:

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 1/2 cups white sugar (I only added 1 cup actually)

3 TBSP milled flax seed 

9 TBSP water

1 cup applesauce

2 cups flour (I used 1 1/2 cup white flour and 1/2 cup whole wheat flour)

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 cups mashed bananas

1/2 cup chocolate chips or however much you want! (optional)

Flax Seed and Water

Mix flax seed and water together in a medium bowl and let sit for 5 minutes.  Grease 2 muffin tins (skip this step if you're using paper liners). Beat together sugar and flax seed mixture, then mix in apple sauce. In a separate larger bowl, mix flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.  Make a well in the center and add your wet mixture to your dry mixture, and stir only to mix (don't over stir or your muffins will be heavy!).  Mix in mashed bananas and chocolate chips. Pour (or fling if you're so inclined) into muffin tins or paper liners until cup is about 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.  This recipe only made 18 muffins, while the original recipe made 2 dozen!  

I phoned Hershey's, and was happy to find out that it will definitely say if there is a possibility of cross contamination between the chocolate chips and any nuts on the back of the chocolate chip package.  So I can use this brand with confidence, but will still be double and triple checking the label every time before use it, I'm sure!