Tasty Tuesdays: Banana Crunch Muffins

My banana crunch muffins for Easter Brunch

Sorry I was out of pocket last week...things got a little too busy at the gallery for blogging, but I'm back!

We were invited to a beautiful Easter Brunch this past Sunday and I helped out by bringing a few items, one of which was a huge hit: Banana Crunch Muffins. You can't really go wrong with a foundation of a great banana bread recipe that has additions of fresh coconut, walnuts and granola. They were absolutely fabulous. See for yourself when you try this easy yet tasty treat courtesy of the Barefoot Contessa, my favorite!

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 extra-large eggs

3/4 cup whole milk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)

1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)

1 cup small-diced walnuts

1 cup granola

1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Dried banana chips, granola, or shredded coconut, optional

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Line 18 large muffin cups with paper liners. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas, and add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well. Don't overmix.

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each 1 to the top. Top each muffin with dried banana chips, granola, or coconut, if desired. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly, remove from the pan, and serve.