Tuesday, January 26, 2010

TWD—Cocoa-Nana Bread (Muffins)

It’s Tuesday’s With Dorie time again. Steph of Obsessed With Baking (yummy blog!!!) chose our recipe this week.  She chose Cocoa-Nana Bread.

I decided to make muffins.  I like quick breads, but I like muffins better—they’re quicker!  That and you don’t have to slice muffins.  I always seem to have a hard time getting nice slices of bread.  My momma always teased me that I can’t cut worth a darn because I’m left handed.  I don’t know if that’s really it, but I still don’t cut/slice things very nicely.  This recipe worked out just fine as muffins, although it made a ton and I probably should have halved it.

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I took some of the muffins (mini ones) to a baby shower brunch I went to on Saturday, but we actually still have some of the regular size muffins I made left here.  The muffins are best the day they’re made, even warm from the oven.  They are a bit dry now.  And I really can’t believe there’s banana in these.  It’s hardly noticeable.  I would actually make these again (possibly) and double the amount of banana.  I like-a a banana in just about anything, you know.  Oh, of course, I added a few things to these.  (I don’t know why I simply cannot just follow a recipe to save my life!  I even did that with a recipe I was making for dinner tonight and before I knew it, I was adding this and that and it was totally different from the original.)  I wouldn’t call these muffins “changed” from what the cocoa-nana bread is supposed to be, just added upon.

This full recipe made 24 mini muffins and 10 good sized regular muffins.

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I know you’re wondering what that is inside the muffins.  Well, let me tell you.  It’s chopped milk chocolate , toffee bits, and chopped, toasted almonds.  The best part of these is getting a bite of that toffee!

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Oh, one thing I forgot to mention was that as I set out to make these, I realized I didn’t have a whole cup of cocoa that they called for.  So I used 1/2 cup cocoa and 2 1/2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate.  Then I used 2 1/2 tablespoons less butter than called for in the recipe.  I also ended up having to make homemade buttermilk.  I sure thought I had some in the fridge, but didn’t realize until I’d already started this that I didn’t have any.  You know the old trick, add a little lemon juice or vinegar to some milk and let it sit 5-10 minutes—buttermilk.  It’s never as good as the real thing, but this is what I had to do.  So there you have it—Cocoa-Nana Muffins with toffee and almonds!

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Gotta go check out what the other TWD bloggers did with this bread!  And come back soon for another yummy, yummy treat I’ve got for you!  Let me just say….sometimes you feel like a nut…..

38 comments:

Hindy said...

Those are toffee bits - brilliant! They make the cupcakes look so appealing. I could see making this again as muffins. Well done!

Lisa Ernst said...

I can completely relate to the inability to follow a recipe. I am incapable of that, occasionally to the detriment of the recipe (but it works out ok often enough that I probably won't change. LOL). Those muffins look good with the add ins!

chocolatechic said...

Brilliant idea to add the toffee.

Brilliant!

Steph said...

You were definitely adventurous with the add-ins! These muffins look really good and I bet taste even better with subbing some of the cocoa for melted chocolate.

♥peachkins♥ said...

I am a sucker for anything chocolate...*drool*

Kayte said...

OMW what have you done???? I will show these to the boys and get their opinion, but I do see this exact recipe (or close to it) coming out of my kitchen in the very near future. Muffins = portable food for teen boys, keep that in mind! Teen boys love portable food.

Flourchild said...

Good idea to add some candy ..we were thinking alike! I added reese's pb cups and then drizzled a pb glaze over the top!

Jessica of My Baking Heart said...

YUM! Love all your add-ins - I'll have to try this as a muffin next time! :)

Pamela said...

Well, the muffins are certainly easier for portion control. The toffee inside of these sounds like a delicious idea. You've always got something extra special going on over here!

Bella Baker said...

wow, those muffins look delicious!! I love that you added toffee in! YUM! They really look great! I am left handed too, and I can cut just fine, but I have terrible penmanship. I write on a slant. People always tell me its because I'm a lefty!

Fallon said...

Sounds so good!

I was making brownies one time and I didn't have enough cocoa but I did have some of that bakers unsweetened chocolate. Thank goodness!

erin said...

What fun would be following a recipe completely? I love the toffee idea! Your muffins look great!

Unknown said...

But then Katrina, your add-ons are why we love you!! Your muffins look soo much more chocolatey than the others :)

Anonymous said...

Toffee sounds good. These were neither here nor there for me this week. I think I would try them again with some changes (maybe more banana or something else entirely).

Clumbsy Cookie said...

You're like my mom, she can't slice... I bet if my mom baked baked as much as you do, she would do muffins just for the sake of not slicing and of course because they bake faster ;) I like you additions better than the plain version (just don't tell Dorie) ahahah!

Susan said...

Now, yours sound much better than what I got by following the recipe! Oh, I'm a leftie too! Beautiful muffins.

Mimi said...

Glad to know I was not alone with my dry muffins. Toffee and banana would be a great combination, maybe next time I'll just omit the chocolate!
Mimi

Teanna said...

Great save on the buttermilk and GREAT addition of the toffee! I made these into brownies... I miss playing around with recipes and you always inspire me to do so! They look so delicious!

Paula said...

Love your last picture Katrina. These look good. Never would have thought of toffee.

Amber Marie said...

I love the toffee bits! Great idea.

Heather Ash said...

Do you use a bread knife for slicing quick breads? The teeth make slicing quick and clean.

Max and Deborah said...

These look awesome!!! Love you Katrina.

Anonymous said...

Toffee bits with chocolate are so good! I'm with you on slicing - I end up with a lot of angled, uneven slices!

Unknown said...

I made muffins too! I simply do not have the patience to let a quick bread bake for over an hour in my oven. Plus, the outsides always seem to cook much faster than the middle and it frustrates me :) I liked these too and I agree that they were definitely best the day they were made.

TeaLady said...

Those look beautifully moist. Love the toffee bits addition. I added butterscotch to one batch and nuts to another.

Glad these worked out for you.

mike said...

Your boys must be in heaven - all these wonderful treats all the time! These look fantastic - nice and chocolatey - and LOVE the addition of toffee - you're so creative!

Amanda said...

Love the muffins! And toffee bits? Be still my heart! :) So yummy! Mine was dry too, but so tasty!

Amanda said...

Forgot to say that I read somewhere recently that cocoa is known for drying out recipes, so I think I'll start experimenting with lower temps or shorter bake times.

Anonymous said...

Toffee? Nice touch! That is possibly one of my most favorite things in the world. I had to do the homemade buttermilk too.

vibi said...

They're always something gooey going on at your house isn't there!? LOL

Those have to be the moistest I've seen! ...and I've seen them all! LOL

Bravo, Katrina!

Leslie said...

good call on the muffins! Delish

Eliana said...

These look stellar Katrina - and so incredibly moist too.

Melissa said...

Ooooh, toffee and chocolate - my favorites. I love that you turned these into muffins. They look so moist and delicious!

Megan said...

Someday you and I will have a challenge to follow a recipe exactly as is - just to see if we could actually do it, you know?

I don't think either of us would make it.

Leslie said...

Toffee chips would be great in these. I dumped them on my coworkers so they never had a chance to get stale.

Emily (The Experimentarian) said...

Ha! That's funny--I teasy MY mom that she can't cut anything straight because she's left handed, too. Only she really cant, and she almost cut her thumb totally off one time. Silly. But truly ridiculous are those muffins! usually when I'm baking, I will sub pumpkin for fat in my recipes, but I think I will try subbing extra banana in those chocolate muffins and see how it turns out. Looks amazing! xoxo

Anonymous said...

I love your muffins - they look soo cute all lined up! And they look absolutely delicious with the chocolate, toffee bits, and toasted almonds in the middle! I love banana too so picked 2 of the largest bananas I could find to bake this bread. Next time I'll try it as muffins.
I think you're really creative with recipes. Isn't that what differentiates between cooks and chefs? =) I wish I had that creativity!

Lisa said...

everything tastes better with toffee! yum!