Banana Honey Muffins #MuffinMonday

We are coming up on six months in the desert and it occurred to me that I haven’t really shared that much about life here.   At least not like I feel I did when we were in Cairo.  I guess it is that Dubai is such a modern city that it doesn’t feel that different in many ways, from other places we have lived.   My neighborhood is surrounded by vast desert wasteland with little in the way of plants besides natural scrub.

But, inside the walls of this gated community, we enjoy green lawns and flowering plants in abundance.

The view from my kitchen window.

A different angle of the backyard.

Supermarkets have everything we need, including bacon and cheese, and even some things we just want like fresh flowers, Wilton baking supplies and Jif peanut butter.   I know, I know, some of you are saying that bacon and cheese are “wants” not “needs” but then you must not know me very well yet.  :)  After Cairo with its limited supply of green leafy vegetables, I am working on not getting spoiled by choice and trying to choose fresh foods that haven’t been flown in from the other side of the world with a long carbon footprint to match.

Overwhelmed for choice.

Every item is labeled with the country of its provenance, which is very helpful.

One thing I did get in Egypt and for which I am very grateful, were two bottles of wonderful honey, which were a gift from the Orthodox priests we visited on a charity trip.  I haven’t found anything to match it here yet.   It’s lovely runny stuff, produced by religious bees.  (Just kidding.)  But it does make delicious muffins.   I reminisce with gratitude every time I use it.

Ingredients
Muffins:
2 cups or 250g flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup or 115g sugar
2 large bananas (ripe)
2 eggs
1/4 cup or 60ml canola or other light oil
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup or 120ml milk

Topping:
2 tablespoons or 30g butter (softened)
1/4 cup or 25g oats
1 pinch salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons honey

Method
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin tin by greasing it or lining it with paper muffin cups.

Combine your flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and sugar in a large mixing bowl.

In another small bowl, mashed your ripe bananas with a fork.

Then whisk together your bananas, eggs, canola oil, honey and milk.

In a separate small bowl, mix together your first four topping ingredients until smooth.  Add in the honey and stir well.

Pour your egg/milk mixture into your dry ingredients and stir until just mixed.

Divide the muffin batter between the muffin cups.

Top each cup of batter with a scoop of the topping and spread it out just a little with your spoon.

Bake in your preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.  The topping will form a natural slightly crunchy glaze on each muffin.

Allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan and then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Enjoy!

Banana Honey Bran Muffins #MuffinMonday

These lovely banana honey bran muffins, made with mashed bananas and sweetened banana chips, are further sweetened with honey and dark brown sugar.

In honor of the Academy Awards last night, I’d like to nominate this muffin for Best Muffin in a Supporting Role.  It’s got your fiber in the form of bran flake cereal as well as honey and egg and banana for your essential nutrients and protein.  (Did you know that honey can stop the growth of cancer?!  Read it in my local paper just this morning!)  And for a little crunch and extra banana flavor:  sweetened banana chips.  Truth be told, these are probably the healthiest muffins I’ve ever made.  (Yeah, yeah.  I know that isn’t saying much, coming from the woman who puts candy bars and cookies in muffins.)  But they are also tasty.

Ingredients
1 1/2 oz or 1 cup or 43g bran flake cereal
1/4 cup or 60ml cream
1/4 cup or 60ml milk
1 1/2 cups or 190g flour
1/4 cup firmly packed or 50g dark brown sugar
2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup  or 60ml canola oil
1 large ripe banana
4 tablespoons honey
1 egg
1 cup or 100g sweetened banana chips

Method
Preheat your oven to 375°F or 190°C and prepare your 12-cup muffin pan by inserting paper liners or spraying with a non-stick spray.

Soak your bran flakes in the cream and milk and set aside.  (If you are serious about the health thing, by all means use all milk, even low fat.)

Into a large mixing bowl, measure your flour, brown sugar, baking powder and salt.   Give it a good stir.

In a small mixing bowl, mash your banana with a fork and then add in the oil, honey and the egg.  Whisk well.

Use a sharp knife to chop the banana chips into smaller pieces and set aside about one quarter (eyeball it, no need to measure) for topping.

Add your soaked bran flakes (and any milk/cream from that bowl) into the egg mixture and stir well.

Fold the wet ingredients into the dry, stopping before they are completely mixed.  There will still be some flour visible.

Add in the bigger pile of chopped banana chips and fold some more.

Divide your batter between the prepared muffin cups.  Sprinkle the tops with the remaining banana chips.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden.  Meanwhile practice your Best Supporting Muffin acceptance/thank you speech.  Don’t forget to thank your parents for raising you right.

Remove from the oven and cool for a few minutes in the pan.  Remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

Enjoy!

Banana Cream Napoleons

Napoleons are cream “sandwiches” made with crispy puff pastry and filled with custard and whipped cream. Banana Cream Napoleans include, of course, sweet bananas.

This week’s Sunday Supper theme is, of course, Valentines’ Day, so when I was contemplating what might be a good treat for my sweetie, it had to be something banana cream related.  Everyone knows how much he loves banana cream pie, but I thought I would pretty it up and create a banana cream Napoleon.

Napoleons are cream “sandwiches” made with crispy puff pastry and filled with custard and whipped cream. You find them in all the windows of fancy pastry shops, where, sadly, you do not find banana cream pie. More's the pity. This rendition would rectify that.

The banana cream Napoleons came out lovely, and my husband enjoyed them but, in the spirit of full disclosure, I have to tell you that he did ask why I was trying to improve on perfection and said, in future, he’d still rather have his ideal, the banana cream pie. All right. All right. Duly noted!

They were fun to make and I was pleased.  (I am thinking my next Napoleon might be completely untraditional.  Savory with whipped cream cheese and vegetable fillings, perhaps.  Wouldn't that be nice for a ladies' lunch?)

Ingredients for two large Napoleons
Vanilla custard – made from this recipe here, or your own, and chilled till set
About 17.5 oz or 500g puff pastry (A little more or less won’t matter.)
Flour for rolling out pastry
3 1/2 oz or 100g powdered or icing sugar (A little more than 3/4 cup)
3 1/2 teaspoons milk (You may not use it all.  Add gradually!)
1 large banana
1 cup whipping cream

Method
Preheat your oven to 400°F or 200°C and line your baking sheet with parchment paper.

Sprinkle on a little flour and roll out your puff pastry dough till it’s about this thin as in my photo and pretty much covers your baking sheet.  I stick a piece of cling film to the countertop first because it makes lifting the puff pastry easier once it's rolled out.

Roll the pastry over your rolling pin and transfer it to the lined baking sheet.

Use a fork to dock the pastry (poke holes in it) so it doesn’t puff up too much while baking.

Cover it with another piece of parchment paper and top it with another baking sheet.

Bake for about 15 minutes, in your preheated oven.  Remove the top baking sheet and piece of parchment and bake for a further 15-20 or until the pastry is a nice golden color.

Just after the top baking sheet and parchment were removed. 

While your pastry is baking, whip your cream into firm peaks.  Pop it in the refrigerator until you need it.

Remove the pastry from the oven and transfer it to a large cutting board.  Trim off the sides so you have a nice straight rectangle.

Use a measuring tape to figure out how to cut your pastry into eight even rectangles.  The size of each doesn’t really matter, as long as they are equal.  Pick the two flattest and possibly least attractive of your rectangles and set aside to be the tops.  You are going to cover these with glaze any way.

I think traditional Napoleons have only three layers of puff pastry.  But then I've always been an over-achiever. 

In a small bowl, mix your powdered or icing sugar and the first teaspoon of milk.  Stir well.

Add another teaspoon of milk and stir well again.

You are looking for a consistency that will pour but then stay put without running completely off of the puff pastry.  Add just a little more milk until you reach that.  I ended up adding 3 1/2 teaspoons altogether, the last 1/2 teaspoon a 1/4 teaspoon at a time.

Place the two puff pastry rectangles you chose as your tops on a low wire rack with a piece of parchment paper underneath it to catch the glaze run off.  (I reused the one that baked on top of the pastry.)  Spoon the glaze over the two pieces of pastry, using the spoon to gently push the glaze over the sides.

Using a small decorating tip, pipe small lines of custard across the glaze.  Run a toothpick back and forth to create the traditional Napoleon zebra design.

Since I used custard instead of chocolate, the zebra stripe wasn’t exactly traditional or as pretty, but chocolate just wouldn’t fly in banana cream pie. One can only take so many liberties with a beloved recipe. Set the tops aside.

Start your “sandwich” building with one puff pastry rectangle as the base and pipe or spread on vanilla custard first.   I decided piping was much easier since spreading seemed to lift bits of the puff pastry.

Peel one side of your banana and slice it into thin slices with a sharp knife.

Line up about eight (or however many comfortably fit on your rectangle) slices on top of the custard.

Pipe or spread on the whipped cream.  Once again, I opted for piping, using one of the flattish tips meant for leaf-making.

Top with another crispy piece of puff pastry and continue the process – custard, banana, cream, puff pastry - until you are ready to add the top.  Hold the top piece by the edges, so you don’t mess up the zebra pattern and press gently onto the layer of whipped cream.

Repeat with the second Napoleon so you will have two, one for you and one for your sweetie. Eat the balance of the vanilla custard, if any, with a spoon. Same for the whipped cream. Pretend it all came out even. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Enjoy!

If you are looking for Valentines’ Day inspiration, you have come to the right place!  Have a look at all the fabulous dishes and sweet treats the #SundaySupper bloggers are featuring this week!

#SundaySupper Valentine’s Day Breakfasts, Apps & Main Dishes:

• Asparagus, Clam & Bay Shrimp Pasta from Galactopdx
• Bacon Double Cheese Burger Bites from In the Kitchen with KP
• Cheese Stuffed Cannelloni from Curious Cuisiniere
• Fried Heart Pizza from Mooshu Jenne
• Garlic Shrimp Bruschetta from MarocMama
• Green Olive, Goat Cheese & Basil Crostini from Hip Foodie Mom
• Indian Shrimp Pulao from Soni’s Food
• Individual Beef “Phyll-ingtons” from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
• Ranch, Bacon and Cheese Crisps from Daily Dish Recipes
• Red Velvet Pancakes with Cream Cheese Frosting from Peanut Butter and Peppers
• Rissóis de Camarão | Portuguese Shrimp Dumplings from Family Foodie
• Spicy Red Cabbage Quiche | Veggie Quiche Recipe from Masala Herb

#SundaySupper Valentine’s Day Sweet Eats:

• Banana Bourbon Blondies from The Messy Baker
• Banana Cream Napoleon from Food Lust People Love
• Brown Butter M&M Cookies from Dinners, Dishes, and Desserts
• Brown Butter Rolo Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies from Damn Delicious
• Cherry Pie Hearts from Home Cooking Memories
• Chocolate Baumkuchen from Webicurean
• Chocolate Bread Pudding from La Cocina de Leslie
• Chocolate Chip Banana Cake with Banana Cream from The Lovely Pantry
• Chocolate Covered Bacon from I Run For Wine
• Chocolate Covered Stuffed Strawberries from Country Girl in the Village
• Chocolate Mousse from Mom, What’s For Dinner?
• Chocolate Roll filled with Nutella Cream from Basic N Delicious
• Chocolate Truffles from The Wimpy Vetegarian
• Chocolate Velvet Ice Cream with Cherry Sauce from Vintage Kitchen Notes
• Cinnamon Sugar Tortillas with Chocolate Sauce from The Roxx Box
• Coconut Sweetheart Cookies from Cindy’s Recipes and Writings
• Coeur a la Creme from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Cream Cheese Mints from Simply Gourmet
• Dark Chocolate Pomegranate Mousse with Coconut Cream from Sue’s Nutrition Buzz
• Dark Chocolate Raspberry Torte from Kelly Bakes
• Deliciously Baked & Festively Glazed Mini-Donuts from Mangoes and Chutney
• #GlutenFree Chocolate Almond Cloudless Cake from Cooking Underwriter
• Heart Shaped White Chocolate Cakes with Raspberry Cream from Noshing with the Nolands
• Homemade Cherry Mash Candies from Juanita’s Cocina
• Maple-Date Bars from Diabetic Foodie
• Meyer Lemon Marmalade from Shockingly Delicious
• Mini Samoa Bundt Cakes from Ruffles & Truffles
• Molten Chocolate Lava Cake from Gotta Get Baked
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Cupcakes from The Meltaways
• Pistachio and Chocolate Souffle from Small Wallet Big Appetite
• Raspberry Custard Tart from Kudos Kitchen
• Raw Fudge Love from Mama’s Blissful Bites
• Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies from Hezzi-D’s Books and Cooks
• Red Velvet French Macarons with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Filling from The Girl in the Little Red Kitchen
• Red Velvet Fudge from What Smells So Good?
• Red Velvet Ice Cream Sandwiches from Cravings of a Lunatic
• Red Velvet Sandwich Cookies from Magnolia Days
• Red Velvet Sugar Cookie Bars from Chocolate Moosey
• Red Wine Cupcakes with Mascarpone Frosting from The Urban Mrs.
• Strawberry Shortcake! from The Foodie Army Wife
• Strawberry Valentine Cake Hearts from Ninja Baking
• Tres Leches Tea Cakes with Honey Riesling Soaked Fruit from Neighborfood
• Valentine’s Bakewell Tarts from Happy Baking Days
• Valentines Chocolate Apples from Big Bear’s Wife

#SundaySupper Valentine’s Day Drinks:

• Blood Orange Vodka Martinis from The Catholic Foodie
• Bloody Raspberry Cocktail from My Cute Bride
• Strawberry Gin Fizz from girlichef

Pin these Banana Cream Napoleans!