Banana Nut Muffins

It's been one of those days again...a day when there's bananas going bad and you have to think desperately what to do with them so they don't have to be thrown away. Well, lucky for those of us out there who face this problem often (I know I do), there's tons of great recipes out there for bananas. I have a few that I want to try out. But today, I decided to try this muffin since it makes for a nice breakfast and something you can have with tea or coffee. All I have to say is, these are super moist and delicious...you cannot go wrong with making these! The recipe is from the Food Network website...here's the link: Banana Nut Muffins: Tyler Florence. For an extra pop and more yummy flavor, I added chocolate chips in a few muffins...chocolate and banana = the perfect combo. Also, I didn't have pecans, so I substituted them with walnuts. Pecans or Walnuts, with or without chocolate chips, it doesn't matter...these are amazing. Enjoyyy =)

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 overripe bananas
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F and prepare a muffin pan with cupcake liners.

2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside. 

3. Mash 2 of the bananas with a fork in a small bowl so they still have a bit of texture. Put aside. 

4. With an electric mixer fitted with a wire whisk, whip the remaining 2 bananas and brown sugar together for a good 3 minutes. 

5. Add the melted butter, eggs, and vanilla and beat well, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. 

6. Mix in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.

7. Fold in the nuts and the mashed bananas with a rubber spatula. 

8. Spoon the batter into the muffin tins to fill them about halfway. Give them a rap on the counter to get any air bubbles out.

9. Bake until a toothpick stuck in the muffins comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes. 

10. Let cool for a few minutes before turning the muffins out. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tip: Add chocolate chips to make it even more yummy:

Banana Nut Cheesecake

I probably wouldn't have tried making this cheesecake if it wasn't for one of my cousins who said he really loved it and was wondering if I ever made it before. So one day, we invited them over for dinner and I made it for dessert. I'm actually glad I did because it's one of my favorite cheesecakes now and it turned out REALLY good. I didn't have a recipe for this cheesecake at hand or in my baking books, so I searched for one on the Internet and I came across a winner on the website for "Taste of Home." You can get the recipe by clicking on this link: Banana Cheesecake Recipe.
When I made this cheesecake, I didn't actually follow all of the recipe. I did the crust differently, and I also put different toppings. The recipe for the crust is actually from Dorie Greenspan's book, Baking: From My Home to Yours. As for the topping, I crushed some walnuts, toasted them, and sprinkled them on top in addition to drizzling the slices with caramel sauce. Yummm!

 Ingredients:
Crust-

• 1 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
• 1/2 cup walnuts (toasted and finely chopped)
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 4 tbsp (or 1/2 stick) butter, melted

Filling-

• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 packages (8 oz each) cream cheese, softened
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 1/4 tsp vanilla

1. Butter a 9-inch springform pan. Stir the graham cracker crumbs, chopped walnuts, sugar, and salt together in a bowl and mix with melted butter. All of the dry ingredients should be moist, and it's best to mix with your fingers. Turn the ingredients into the springform pan and pat down an even layer of crumbs over the bottom and halfway up the sides of the pan. Put the pan in the freezer while preheating the oven for 10 minutes. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Then place the springform pan on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack while making the cheesecake.

2. For the filling, combine the bananas and lemon juice; set aside.

3. Using a mixer, beat the cream cheese, sugar, cornstarch, and salt until smooth.

4. Add the eggs; beat on low speed just until combined.

5. Stir in the sour cream, vanilla, and banana mixture. Pour into the crust. Place the pan in a baking pan filled halfway with water and bake at the 350 degrees for about 1 hour, or until the center is almost set. When the cheesecake is done, turn off the oven, prop open the oven door, and let the cheesecake sit for another hour in its water bath.

6. Take the cheesecake out of the oven and let cool before refrigerating the cheesecake for 4 hours or overnight. When ready to serve, top with toasted (chopped) walnuts, a drizzle of caramel or chocolate sauce, and a dollop of whipped cream!

(I'm sorry about the horrible quality of the pictures, but at the time I made this, my digital camera wasn't working so I had to use my phone camera.)