About Me

Hi! My name is Marika and two of my favourite things are beauty and cooking-hence the name mascara and macarons. I also read quite a bit and am studying English and writing. I will be posting about beauty, my kitchen adventures and recipes, and occasional book reviews. I hope you enjoy and thanks for reading :)

Thursday 5 July 2012

Adventures in Bakeland...


Hey guys, today I baked something without a recipe. Aren't you proud? I've always been one to improv when cooking and I've even played with spices and flavouring with baking recipes before but until today I was one to stick to the letter of the law when baking. I had some old bananas and an avocado sitting on my counter and I thought...why don't I make avocado banana muffins? I googled away and came up with nada, so I decided to make my own and they turned out fantastically :). I find myself running out the door each morning and love having muffins that are decently nutritious to take on the go. I used white whole wheat flour, a little brown sugar, and canola oil to make these and they definitely can hold up to some substitutions. I added dark chocolate chips and cut back on the sugar, and I would be interested to try substituting honey and adding some nuts. I also used just one bowl and the prep time was only about 5 minutes. The avocados have monounsaturated fat and allow you to cut down on the oil, which is great and they make the muffins really moist.







Banana Avocado Chocolate Chip Muffins
Recipe by yours truly :)
Ingredients:
2 cups of mashed bananas (I used 3 medium)
1 avocado, mashed
1/3 cup of canola oil
2 eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup of brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
2 c. white whole wheat flour
1/2 c. dark chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:
  • Preheat oven to 350, line muffin pan with liners (I made a dozen with large liners)
  • Add mashed bananas and avocado to a medium bowl, ensuring that there aren't any large lumps
  • Mix in oil and eggs with a wooden spoon until combined
  • Stir in vanilla extract, cinnamon, and brown sugar, ensuring that the brown sugar mixes in well
  • Mix in flour and baking powder and stir gently just until combined and add chocolate chips
  • Use an ice cream scoop or big spoon to fill muffin liners until 3/4 full (try to make them all even)
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes. Muffins are done when tops are golden and a skewer comes out clean (mine were still moist looking but when I tested them they were cooked perfectly)
  • Cool on a rack completely (after sneaking one!) and store in an tin or container for up to 4 days (mine never last that long!)
  • I've had success freezing cooked muffins individually in saran wrap and defrosting them but haven't tested that with this recipe.
Hope you enjoy and thanks for stopping by!
Marika

4 comments:

  1. I love baking as well. Seems like a healthier recipe. I'm having this HUGE craving for something sweet. I'll make these tomorrow, I'm vegan so I'll replace the egg for just an egg replacer and brown sugar for stevia (I want to share with my mom and sister since they're diabetic and can't have much sugar)

    I love your blog and youtube channel. Will be looking forward to your next blog post.

    - Sarah

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much :). Let me know how the substitutions work out!

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