Banana Bread Muffins

This is kind of a twist on your traditional banana bread. My kids love having banana bread as a snack, but having it in a loaf means every time they want some I have to stop what I'm doing and go cut them off a slice. Which is no big deal once, but when it's every 5 minutes it's hard to get anything done. So I just took the recipe and tweaked it a little, and how easy are muffins. Not to mention a loaf takes about 55 minutes to bake, and these take 20. I guess the only problem with muffins is they go alot faster, but if they are getting enjoyed, and it makes my life easier, thats alright with me :) And just to quickly comment on how good these are... well, you can make your banana bread with coconut, and chocolate, and whatever else you want to throw in there, but I feel like there is something to be said for a really awesome traditional banana bread recipe and this is my absolute favorite that I've ever tried.


Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 very ripe bananas, peeled, and mashed with a fork (about 1 cup)
• 1/2 cup toasted walnut pieces, optional

Directions
Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl, set aside. Whisk the eggs and vanilla together in a small bowl, set aside. Line muffin pans with paper liners and preheat oven to 350 degrees. If you would like to use this recipe to bake a loaf, then instead of using the muffin pan, just grease a loaf pan.

In a standing mixer fitted with paddle attachment or with an electric hand-held mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually pour the egg mixture into the butter while mixing until incorporated.

Add the bananas. The mixture will appear to be curdled, like this, so don't worry. With a rubber spatula, mix in the flour mixture until just incorporated. Fold in the nuts and transfer the batter to the prepared pan.

Fill the liners 3/4 the way full and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffins comes out clean. Loafs bake for 50 to 55 minutes.

Cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Turn the bread out of the pan and let cool completely. Store in air tight container.

Recipe from foodnetwork.com