Treacle Banana Cake

Banana cake is comfort food for me. I just love the aroma of it baking in the oven perfuming the house. I tweaked a recipe to include the treacle, and it’s come up really nice. It has a caramelised characteristic to it compared to the common garden variety.

Ingredients: (makes one 20cm round cake or 12 large muffins)

125g unsalted butter, softened

¾ brown sugar

1 large tbsp treacle

A pinch of salt

1 ½ cups plain flour

1 tsp bicarb soda

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3 large bananas, mashed

1/3 cup buttermilk

Method:

1.          Preheat oven to 160C.

2.          Cream butter and sugar, add salt, vanilla, bananas and eggs. Mix well.

3.          Sift in the flour and bicarb soda.

4.          Gently fold it in pouring the buttermilk in two lots.

5.          Mix evenly.

6.          Pour into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes for a cake, and 15 minutes for muffins.

Chocolate Buttermilk Cupcakes

I’m in the process of baking and freezing some snacks and meals for the imminent post baby era. These cupcakes are just so divine and rich and I think will freeze well as they are very moist. The original recipe was for a cake from Australian Women Weekly, but I tweaked it a little.

Ingredients (makes 15 large cupcakes)

200g dark chocolate, broken into small pieces

125g unsalted butter

1 cup castor sugar

3 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup plain flour

1 cup self raising flour

1 tsp baking powder

2 tbsp cocoa powder

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 170C.

2.          Melt chocolate and butter in a bowl on top of a water bath, making sure the water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl.

3.          Gently stir till all the chocolate is melted. Add the sugar, then let it cool.

4.          Mix the eggs with buttermilk and add into the chocolate mixture alternating with the sifted flour  cocoa and baking powder.

5.          Spoon into muffin pans and bake for 18 minutes in 170C fan forced oven. If you bake it in a cake tin, you might need a longer baking time.

Bacon and Corn Muffins

This is a variation on my T&T savoury muffin recipe.

Ingredients (makes 12 large muffins)
1/3 cup vegetable oil

¾ cup milk

2 eggs, lightly beaten

1 cup self raising flour

½ cup polenta

½ cup wholemeal self raising flour

½ cup chopped capsicum

½ cup corn kernel

½ cup grated tasty cheese

½ cup bacon pieces

½ cup chopped onion/spring onion

Grated cheese and pumpkin seeds as garnish

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 180C.

2.          Put all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

3.          Stir in beaten egg, oil and milk.

4.          Add bacon and vegetables, and lastly the grated cheese.

5.          Spoon into muffin pans.

6.          Sprinkle top with more grated cheese and pumpkin seeds.

7.          Reduce heat to 160C if using fan forced oven and bake for 15-17 minutes.

Mango Coconut Muffins

This is a light summery version of my T&T muffin recipe.  I used fresh mango in this recipe.

Ingredients (makes 12 medium size)
1 cup diced mango flesh

½ cup desiccated coconut

1 ½  cup self raising flour

1 egg

¾ cup castor sugar

¼ cup vegetable oil

½ cup yoghurt

¼ cup milk

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 170C fan force.

2.          Sift flour into a large bowl.

3.          Add sugar and coconut.

4.          Stir in lightly beaten egg, yoghurt and oil.

5.          Add in the diced mango, set aside 12 pieces to decorate the top.

6.          Add milk as required. The mix should reach a drop consistency.

7.          Spoon into muffin tin, top with the reserved piece of mango, and bake for 15 mins in a 170C oven.

Savoury Muffins

This is my trustworthy savoury muffin recipe. Actually the recipe came from an ex-colleague called Alex. Whenever I bake these, I often wonder where he is and what he’s doing these days.

Ingredients (makes 10 medium size muffins)

¼ cup vegetable oil

¾ milk

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups self raising flour

½ onion, sliced

½ cup diced capsicum

½ cup diced ham/bacon

½ cup grated cheese

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 180°C.

2.          Simply mix all the ingredients together.

3.          Spoon into muffin tin.

4.          Bake in oven for 20 minutes.

Banana Hazelnut Chocolate Chip Muffins

Despite the banana price inflation at the moment, we managed to have over-ripe bananas leftover this week. I came up with this recipe that the boys would like in their lunchboxes.

Ingredients

1 cup self raising flour

¾ cup Hazelnut meal

¾ cup wholemeal self raising flour

1 cup brown sugar

¾ cup buttermilk

120g butter, melted

½ cup choc chips

2 mashed overripe bananas

2 eggs

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 170°C fan force.

2.          Mix all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl.

3.          Add in the wet ingredients and stir.

4.          Do not overmix.

5.          Bake for 18 minutes in 170°C oven.

Orange Chocolate Chips Muffins

I spotted these muffins at a café at lunch today but couldn’t fit one in my tummy at the time. I came up with this version at home this afternoon.

Ingredients

1 cup self-raising flour

1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup caster sugar

Grated zest of 2 oranges

Juice of 1 orange

1 egg

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup plain low fat yoghurt

1 cup dark chocolate chips

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 170°C in a fan forced oven.

2.          Mix the flour, sugar and almond meal together in a large bowl.

3.          Grate the orange zest into it.

4.          Add to it a lightly beaten egg, oil, yoghurt and choc chips.

5.          Mix, add orange juice bit by bit to a dropping consistency.

6.          Bake muffins for 20minutes in a 170°C fan forced oven.

Apple Spice Cake

Using my new bundt tin from Aldi, so pretty!

I was reading this recipe book that I borrowed from the library about desserts all over the world, and was inspired by the “Crunchy American Apple Cake”. This is an adaptation using my trusty buttermilk muffin mix recipe. It has a heart warming hint of spice through it, and you still get chunks of soft apples, which is especially nice eaten warm. The cranberries add tartness and colour to my muffin version.

Chunky apples dotted with cranberries.

Ingredients

3 large apples, cut two into 1cm dice, and grate one

½ cup vegetable oil

¾ cup buttermilk

2 eggs, beaten

2 ½ cup self-raising flour (I used 2 cups SRF, ½ cup wholemeal flour and 1 tsp baking powder)

1 tsp ground cloves

1 tsp ground nutmeg

1 cup brown sugar

Add ½ cup dried cranberries if making the muffins

Method

1.          Preheat oven to 160°C fan force.

2.          Mix all the dry ingredients in a large bowl.

3.          Add in all the wet ingredients.

4.          Stir until even.

5.          Pour into well greased baking pan.

6.          Bake in 160°C fan force oven for 35 minutes.

Showcasing pink hibiscus from my garden.

Raspberry White Chocolate Muffins

I made these using my trusted buttermilk muffin recipe. See Blueberry Buttermilk Muffin. I added white chocolate bits, which adds a sweet twist to the recipe. They received a warm welcome when I took them to visit a friend who just had a baby. Check out these gorgeous burp cloths that I sewed for baby Adam.

Ingredients (Makes 12 large muffins)

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla essence

½ cup oil (mild flavoured vegetable oil, I use olive oil I have no problems with it)

¾ cup caster sugar

2 cups self raising flour

¾ cup buttermilk

1 cup frozen raspberries

½ cup white chocolate bits

Method

1. Preheat oven to 170°C fan forced oven.
2. Beat egg, vanilla, oil and buttermilk together.
3. Pour into the flour, sugar and frozen raspberries, white chocolate bits and stir them together.
4. Do not over mix.
5.  Scoop into muffin pans.
6. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Blueberry Buttermilk Muffins

This is my all time favourite muffin recipe. It is fast and simple. I can get a batch of these out of the oven within 30 minutes of starting. I use this recipe as a base with all kinds of fruits, fresh, canned or frozen, all with good results.

Again, this recipe is taken from Exclusively Food

Ingredients (Makes 12 large muffins)

1 large egg

1 tsp vanilla essence

½ cup oil (mild flavoured vegetable oil, I use olive oil I have no problems with it)

¾ cup caster sugar

2 cups self raising flour

¾ cup buttermilk (I’ve substituted yoghurt and a bit of milk when I don’t have buttermilk on hand without any problems)

1 ½ cup of frozen blueberries

Method

1.           

2.          Preheat oven to 170°C fan forced oven.

3.          Beat egg, vanilla, oil and buttermilk together.

4.          Pour into the flour, sugar and frozen blueberries and stir them together.

5.          Do not over mix.

6.          Scoop into muffin pans.

7.          Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Apple Streusel Muffins

These muffins received rave reviews from my in-house taste testers. On second thoughts, they've decided that the jam donut muffins still get the first rank, the apple streusels get a close second. The recipe is from Women's Weekly Little Pies & Cakes cookbook.

Women's Weekly Little Pies and Cakes Cookbook

Ingredients

40g butter

3 apples, peeled, cut into 1cm pieces

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 cups self-raising flour

1 tsp mixed spice (I used ground cinnamon)

2/3 cup caster sugar

80g butter, melted (I used vegetable oil)

¾ cup buttermilk (I used plain yoghurt and a bit of milk)

1 egg

Streusel topping

1/3 cup self-raising flour

1/3 cup plain flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

½ tsp ground cinnamon

80g cold butter, cubed

Method

1.          Make streusel topping by scrunching everything together with fingertips or process them all in a food processor.  Freeze for about 15 mins.

2.          Cook apples in a pan with 40g of butter for about 5 mins then add the brown sugar, cook for another 5 mins, then allow to cool.

3.          Preheat oven to 180°C.

4.          Combine all the dry ingredients, then the wet ingredients.

5.          Stir in 3/4 of the apples, do no overmix.

6.          Scoop into muffin pan and top each with a spoonful of apples and grate/crumble the streusel over them.

7.          Bake 20 mins in 180°C oven.

Nigella's Double Chocolate Muffins

Another luscious chocolate number from Nigella, these will send chocolate lovers to heaven. A batch will make about 15 large muffins. They do freeze well for lunchbox supply.

Ingredients:

1 ¾ cups plain flour (I used ½ wholemeal flour, and ½ plain)

¾ cup castor sugar

3 tbsp cocoa powder

2 tsp baking powder

1 cup milk (I used buttermilk)

1 egg

1/3 cup oil

¾ cup chocolate chips

Method:

1.          Preheat oven to 180C.

2.          Mix all dry ingredients together.

3.          Mix in wet ingredients followed by the chocolate chips.

4.          Bake for 25 minutes in 180C oven.

Jam Donut Muffins

An all time kids favourite, and for those young at heart as well. These are a little healthier than deep fried donuts I suppose. It's full of sugar, so not an everyday food. This recipe was taken from taste.com.au.

Ingredients:
2 cups self raising flour
2/3 cup caster sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
175ml buttermilk
1tsp vanilla extract

For the filling:
1/2 cup of strawberry or raspberry jam (mine were some leftover Rosella jam from the markets)

For the topping:
100g melted butter
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 cup caster sugar

Method:

1. Preheat the oven to 180C.
2. Mix all the dry ingredients together.
3. Lightly beat all the wet ingredients together and pour it into the dry ingredients.
4. Mix until combined.
5. Spoon some muffin mix into the muffin pan, put a large dollop of jam in the middle and cover with more muffin mix.
6. Bake for about 20 minutes.
7. When the muffins are slightly cooled, brush melted butter on top and dust with the premixed cinnamon sugar.