Single Digits (Caribbean Banana Muffins)

It's 10 am and it's officially the end of my third week for this last quarter of school.  That means that in 8 more weeks, I'll be a nurse.  Well, I'll at least be done with nursing school and getting ready to pass the boards.  But I'll be done with school, which is really what I'm looking forward to as I stare at the mound of work and textbooks on my desk.

Eight weeks!  When we all went to school on the very first day, I started a weekly countdown.  We went from 52 weeks to 8 weeks in the blink of an eye.  It's an ever widening ray of hope in this cold and dreary winter.

I took a break from practicing central dressing changes and researching ventilator assisted pneumonia to make these muffins.  We had such a good trip to Florida last month, where we ate all kinds of summery and tropical food.  I wanted something tropical, something to remind me of warm breezes and palm trees.

I wish you could smell these muffins baking - bananay and nutty and sweet, all at the same time.  They're not densely heavy, but they do fill you up.  The coconut on top adds a little extra sweetness and the banana flavor is infused through the whole muffin.  My trick to really moist and flavorful banana quick breads is to puree the bananas instead of just mashing them.  This adds moisture and spreads the flavors through each bite.

This recipe is from my big blue binder o' recipes.  I know that it was in the mix of original recipes that my mom put in the binder when she gave it to me.  It's photocopied out of a book, but I don't know which one.  If anyone recognizes it, please let me know so that I can credit the right people.

Caribbean Banana Muffins

3 bananas, peeled

2 tablespoons honey

1-1/2 cups self-rising flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon nutmeg

1-1/3 sticks (3/4 cup) butter, room temperature

Heaping 1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 eggs

1/3 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup coconut

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon flour

1 tablespoon oil

Preheat the oven to 350.  Spray with cooking spray or line with paper 12 regular muffin tins or 6 large muffin tins.  In a small bowl, mix together the coconut, 2 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon flour and the oil; set aside.  Puree the bananas in a food processor/blender/Magic Bullet with the honey.  In a small bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and nutmeg.  (Tip:  If you don't have self-rising flour, you can substitute 1-1/2 cups regular flour, 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon salt.)  In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat until incorporated.  Gently mix  in half the flour, then half the bananas, then the remaining flour then the remaining bananas.  Mix in the pecans.  Spoon the batter into each muffin tin, filling 3/4 of the way.  Bake for 20-25 minutes.  Cool on a wire rack for 10-20 minutes in the pan.