Banana Walnut Muffin

Source: Good Housekeeping Collector's Edition Volume 4

• 1-1/2 cups unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup fresh milk
• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 8pcs mashed lakatan bananas
• 1 cup walnuts

1 Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add the eggs and milk.
2 Combine flour and baking powder then stir into the mixture. Mix well.
3 Add the mashed lakatan bananas and blend well.
4 Pour into greased and floured muffin pan. Top with walnuts then bake for 30 minutes or until brown.


My second take at baking. They look lovely, don't they? And they look yummy too. But it's hiding a flaw inside. Ok, while preparing the ingredients for this I realized that it needs 8 pcs of lakatan bananas and I only have 4. So I had to adjust everything into half of what's stated on the recipe. I started baking it and God it smells sooo good! I'm crazy with banana cakes that's why I was so excited to try this. I baked it in 2 batches just in case I poured a little or too much batter on the first batch, I can adjust it on the next. After 30 minutes of baking and waiting (I took a chair from the dining and was in front of the oven the whole time, reading a book while waiting for it to bake!), I took it out and let it cool.. Ok I'm naturally impatient so I sliced some to taste. It tastes so good but the flaw's that the middle part is a little softer than it's supposed to be of muffins. I thought of putting it back in the oven but I think that'd be useless as I have realized what I did wrong.

You see, my recipe guide was a Filipino cookbook. Our lakatan bananas in Manila are just a little bigger than the ordinary bananas, so basically they made the proportion of this recipe basing from our local lakatan bananas in Manila, but here in Singapore lakatan bananas are much bigger! I was hesitant aleady if I should use all four as I have already realized the size difference even before I even mashed it. But then I didn't follow my instict. =(

Last night when Faye tried it, she said it's yummy. "Wag mo na lang sabihing muffin sya kase masarap naman e!" Then Darwin asked for it the following morning, and I said, "wag na baka di mo magustuhan!" Although I really want him to try it because he loves nuts so much, I thought he'll love it with bananas.

Darwin's Verdict: "Masarap sya lalo yung ibabaw (the part with walnuts). Actually kahit yung gitna masarap pa din kahit malambot."

My Verdict: That comment from Darwin was a surprise I didn't thought he'd like the middle part of the muffin at all, but he did! hahahah!!! Actually, if you've tried this 'flawed muffins' I baked, you wouldn't really care if they are muffins or whatever it's called because it tastes good. But I'll be trying this again, and definitely will adjust the proportion of the bananas. I hope I'll make it perfect the next time! =)