Banana Chocolate Muffins for Bobby C.

It is strange how much can change in the turn of a year. I am one of those sappy sentimental types who loves to look back over the course of time and see the progression of my life, and the lives of those around me, at any given opportunity.
You should have seen me on New Year's Eve. I was a moist-eyed, messy haired maelstrom of emotion.
Anyway, the strangest things can transport me into reflecting over the year, and today it just happened to be the price of bananas.
Please, stay with me, I promise there is a point, a recipe, and some photos, very soon!
This time last year Brisbane was in the early stages of cleaning up after our horrendous floods. Every day there were new reports of the extent of the devastation and the millions of dollars of work that needed to be done to put people's lives back together. I won't deny that there are so many people still suffering the after effects, but there is still help available and still work goes on.

Shortly after the floods northern Queensland was severely affected by cyclone Yasi. Again, communities were leveled, whole lifetimes swept away along with houses and possessions and all the banana crops.
Here in Brisbane, in the areas not affected by the flood, such as where I live, one of the major symptoms of the natural disasters plaguing our state was the price of bananas. Such a silly thing, but here it is a type of barometer for our society. In Brisbane, that means that when bananas hit $15 a kilogram, something is wrong.
Sometimes in life it is those common daily objects and foods that we rely on to indicate normality and maintain consistency when all else goes awry. Over the past couple of months when there have been some major shifts in my life the rhythm of the everyday, the dulling, soothing regularity of household tasks has been a blessing. You just surrender to the familiarity, and you know that those everyday things, those simple parts of life, mean that when you look at the bigger picture, when you are able to, everything really will be all right.
Now, a year after the floods, and what a year it has been, I saw bananas at the market today for 29 cents a kilogram. 2012 might be a restful year after all. The banana always knows.

These muffins were made for my Dada, Bobby C.

Banana Chocolate Muffins for Bobby C.


I used a scale to measure all large quantities of ingredients, wet into one bowl and dry into another. It made for easier cleaning up! To convert grams to ounces simply use this handy little calculator.
Makes 20 medium sized muffins.


Ingredients
225 grams plain flour
115 grams brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder

170 grams milk
3 small bananas, or two medium
Juice of one lemon
2 large eggs
50 grams rice bran oil (or other mild flavoured oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

2/3 cup chopped dark chocolate

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Line two muffin tins with 20 paper liners, or spray with cooking spray.
2. In a large mixing bowl mash bananas with the lemon juice, you want them to be mostly liquid but a few banana chunks are okay and will caramelise slightly when baked.
3. Into the banana bowl weigh the other wet ingredients; milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla bean paste.
4. In a separate bowl whisk together the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder.
5. Add dry ingredients to the banana mixture and stir until mostly combined, then gently fold in the nuggets of dark chocolate.
6. Spoon mixture into prepared pans and bake for approximately 15-18 minutes, swapping trays between top and bottom halfway through the cooking time. 
7. Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

The Pleasure of Provision

The uncharacteristically cold and wet January weather in Brisbane has had me confined to indoor pursuits this week, and as per usual when the clouds descend and the showers are frequent, my mind has folded in on itself and is content to find pleasure in the most domestic of pursuits, and meaning in those places that are often overlooked on sunny days.
When I wake to the day and hear rain already falling on my roof I long to linger between the sheets, but something deeper inside me wants to patter out to the kitchen and create some warmth and welcome the morning. Today has been one such day, a Sunday morning sky filled with grey clouds, a chill on my nose when woke to my alarm clock, and an idea in my brain to make breakfast for Mum and Dad.

The gentle scent of cinnamon, nutmeg and roasted apple wafted out of the oven as I paused a moment to reflect over the last few days, and the meals that I have made; some nights just for Mum and Dad and I and on Friday evening a feast for friends. The other thought that popped into my mind was a comment from the librarian as I picked up a stack of cookbooks to read over the weekend; "you're going to be busy with all that cooking, better you than me".
I think she missed my point when I merely smiled and replied "It brings me joy."
To me, cooking is more than the mere preparation of fuel for the body.
Imagining something my family and friends will love, selecting the highest quality ingredients I can find, chopping, stirring, simmering and plating in the creation of a meal are all exercises in joy for my soul. They are a moving meditation.
I call it the pleasure of provision. When I am engaged in providing something for my family, whether it is food, or making the house tidy before they come home, or just making Mum a cup of tea while she works on something; I feel warmer inside, I feel that these ordinary days have some deeper meaning, some connection to who I want to be as a person, the life I want to lead, and the things that are most important to me.

One of those things that is most important to me is to be giving to others, to provide for my family, to have something to offer when we all sit at the table. Making a meal, or a treat, to share amongst companions is a physical manifestation of the love and care we share at a deeper level. These plates I fill are only symbols of the hearts that I hope to touch everyday, and the places I hope my love nests itself, ready to nourish when it is needed most.

Roasted Apple and Oat Muffins
You will need to prepare the oat and milk mixture the day before. If you forget to do so never fear, you can just add them as separate ingredients, the oats will just be crunchier than if they were soaked.


Ingredients
1 cup of oats
1 cup of wholemeal plain flour
1/2 cup of brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup low fat milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 large egg
1 apple, quartered and sliced thinly

Method:

1. The night before you wish to cook the muffins measure the milk into a jug and add one half cup of the oats. Allow the mixture to soak overnight in the fridge.
2. The next morning, preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius. 
3. While you prepare the rest of the mixture and the oven heats spread the sliced apple across a lined baking sheet and roast in the oven for about 15 minutes or until softened. 
4. Spray a 12 hole muffin pan with oil.
5. In a large bowl mix together the remaining half cup of oats, wholemeal flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.
6. In the jug with the overnight oat and milk mixture add the olive oil, vanilla and egg. Beat together.
7. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir gently, before it is fully combined add the sugar and mix until just combined.
8. Spoon batter into prepared pan and top with a few slices of the baked apple.
9. Bake muffins for 12 - 15 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched.
10. Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove while still slightly warm. Serve the muffins with butter and jam or enjoy on their own.

These muffins go beautifully with a steaming cup of English breakfast tea and some chunky raspberry jam. Especially on a rainy Sunday morning with those you love.

Pumpkin Spelt Flour Muffins

So you might have noticed that I do a little bit of baking...okay, okay, a lot of baking. I have to tell you that actually don't eat most of what I post on here as my stomach doesn't make friends with wheat very well.
Luckily nowadays there are so many options and I have founds spelt flour works incredibly well in most recipes that use wheat flour (please note: spelt is not gluten free, just wheat free).
After seeing so many delicious pumpkin recipes circling around the internet lately I knew that I had to have some of that gorgeous gourd in my baked goods.
Therefore I took a recent recipe that had peaked my interest and baked it with spelt, and made a few other little chickpea twists as well.
Please enjoy.

Spelt Flour Pumpkin Spice Muffins


Adapted from Skinny Taste.
Makes 13 medium size muffins and 1 little muffin for a friendly canine.


Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups butternut pumpkin puree
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 golden caster sugar
1 1/2 cups wholemeal spelt flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 large egg whites
2 teaspoons vanilla

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius and grease 13 cups of a medium size muffin tin
2. In a large mixing bowl place the pumpkin purée, olive oil, egg whites and vanilla, and mix until well combined.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together the rest of the ingredients.
4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix gently, try not to over mix. 
5. Spoon into greased muffin tin and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds. Place in the oven and bake for approximately 12 - 15 minutes or until the tops bounce back when lightly pressed.
6. Allow to cool in the tin for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

These muffins are delicious when they are warm out of the oven spread with a little bit of jam, or plain. 

I need jam in my life though.

I also froze these tightly wrapped in plastic wrap and they defrost very well in the microwave.

I had a little extra batter left over - just the right size for a Molly treat (sans pumpkin seeds of course).

Oh yes, life is tough round here for a dog.

Nothing Goes To Waste

I believe in life, as in the kitchen, that nothing should go to waste.
Time, opportunity, inspiration, talent, hope, love; these are all gifts of the universe that should never be easily discarded.
There are an infinite number of minutes that my human heart will beat in this life; we all pass through time much faster than we would like.
Opportunities are often only presented to us once, take adventure in your hands when it comes flowing into your life; just give into the ride sometimes.
Inspiration, that thread of our muse's laughter that we catch the barest whisper of at times. Follow it's song, you never know what parts of your soul you may uncover.
Don't hide your light under a bushel, or a life not lived. When you feed your talent, when you let it shine and make use of it in your life; you are not only filling your life with light, you are shining it on others.
Hope. Four letters whose power can never be underestimated. The binding agent for all of human kind. The protector of our hearts and souls in the darkest of times.
Love.
There is no greater crime in this life than to waste an opportunity to love. Show your love for those who are closest to your heart. Let others love you in return.
Fall shamelessly every day.
Never waste these gifts, for you never know when there will be none left to open.

When it comes to food, I don't believe in waste either. So when I remembered the fresh blueberries I had purchased on the weekend were still sitting in the fridge I knew that I needed to get baking.
Fresh blueberries (especially when they are on sale) are a real gift in Brisbane. They have a short lifespan here in this hot climate and so whenever I see them in the supermarket I treat myself to a punnet.
Unfortunately I forgot about them, and so now they have new life in these muffins that will be enjoyed by my co-workers for morning tea tomorrow.
Friendship, and an opportunity to foster it, is another gift that should not be left to waste.

Blueberry Muffins
Adapted from '100 Favourite Muffins and Slices' by Simon and Alison Holst



Ingredients:
1 - 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries
1 cup plain wholemeal flour
3/4 cup self raising flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup apple purée
3/4 cup golden caster sugar
1/4 cup olive oil
1 large egg
1/4 cup plain yoghurt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla essence

Method:

1. Heat oven to 200 degrees Celsius and line 18 holes of two regular muffin pans with paper.
2. Mix together flours, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.
3. In a separate bowl mix together apple purée, sugar, oil, egg, yoghurt and vanilla.
4. Add flour to wet ingredient mix and stir until just combined (there should be some streaks of flour still visible).
5. Add blueberries and gently (very gently) fold through mixture so that you avoid breaking up the berries.
6. Spoon mixture between the cases and gently slide pans into the oven.
7. Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes, then remove from oven and allow to cool in tins for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on wire racks.

Enjoy.