Just Baking

Say THAT three times fast!  My five-year-old son and I now have a standing date to bake something at least once a week.  He loves to help out in the kitchen, and with the recent holidays and other general craziness, we haven’t been doing it as much lately.  Today I spied a recipe for Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins on the Cooking Light Bulletin Board, and since Nicholas was asking for Banana Muffins just yesterday, I knew this would be perfect.

When I told him the plan, he raced me to the kitchen and grabbed the stepstool, pulling it to the counter.  I grabbed a big bowl and started adding all the ingredients into it and handed him his very own spatula (it’s a kids’ size one I picked up at Williams-Sonoma awhile back, and he loves the fact that it is his, and his alone).  He set to work on mixing up all the ingredients and then after I sprayed the muffin tins, he loaded them all up.

Coming back to the kitchen to check if the muffins were ready nearly every five minutes, he could hardly wait to try them.  Once they were done and cooled, though barely, we both grabbed one and sunk our teeth into it.  Still warm from the oven, the chocolate was nice and melty and the subtle peanut butter flavor was definitely there.  Two thumbs up from the Sweetnicks kitchen.  Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chunk Muffins

2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 to 3 ripe large bananas, mashed (about 1 1/4 cups or so)
1 cup milk
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
3 tablespoons canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 large egg
1 cup milk chocolate chips

In a large bowl stir together flour, sugars, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.  In another bowl combine mashed bananas, milk, peanut butter, oil, vanilla and egg. Add to flour mixture, stirring until just combined. (We just combine everything in one big bowl - we live on the edge like that).  Stir in chocolate chips or chunks.

Pour batter into muffin tins OR mini muffin tins OR 2 loaf pans. Bake at 350 °F for approx. 25-35 minutes (for regular size muffins), or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Makes 2 loaves or 18-24 muffins or 4 doz. mini muffins