Chocolate, Banana, Peanuts: They all come together brilliantly in this delicious Chocolate Banana Muffin! The author of this recipe featured in the cookbook Baked From The Heart says that this muffin “has all the great flavors of an ice-cream sundae” and I agree! These moist chocolaty muffins with sweet banana and a touch of salty peanuts are easy to make and a terrific treat. They are not overly sweet and have a rich velvety chocolate flavor. This is how you make them:
Chocolate Banana Muffins (adapted from the Baked From The Heart Cookbook)
makes 12 muffins
2 cups flour
1/2 cup Dutch-Process Cocoa (i used Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Cocoa Powder)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons real vanilla extract
2 cups mashed very ripe bananas (around 5)
3/4 cup chopped, salted peanuts
Line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake papers or you can use parchment squares like I did.
If you would like to try parchment squares, cut out twelve 6″ squares from a roll of parchment paper (you can find parchment paper in the grocery aisle with the aluminum foil and plastic wrap). Lightly spray your muffin tin with Pam then push the parchment squares into each cup, pushing the paper down to fill. The Pam will help the papers stay in the pan. After all the papers are in place, set the pan aside. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, dutch-process cocoa, baking powder, and salt (it is important to use dutch-process cocoa for this recipe or the muffins won’t rise). Set aside. Cream the butter and sugar together in an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the two eggs and vanilla extract until well combined. Mix in the mashed bananas. Add the dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Don’t over mix!
Spoon the batter into the cups. You can see in my picture that I filled the cups pretty full. If any batter gets on the papers or the pan try to wipe it off before baking so they don’t burn. Bake the muffins for 12 minutes then remove from oven and top with the chopped salted peanuts.
Return to oven and bake for another 8 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean. Transfer the muffins to a wire rack to cool. Don’t let them cool in the pan or the papers will “steam” off of the muffins. Enjoy your muffins right away or pack them into zip-lock baggies to freeze and enjoy later.
