Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Marbled Choco-Banana Muffins & Crumb Blog’s Granola—Secret Recipe Club

DSCF7050

Come on in, sit down—have some breakfast—or a snack!

Amanda contacted me this morning about doing a fill-in post for a blogger who was left out of The Secret Recipe Club posts this month.  I agreed immediately to whip something up from Isabelle's blog, Crumb.  Check out the cute picture of her holding a parsnip in wonder over what in the world to do with it on the link with her name to her bio!  She has a wonderful blog that showcases her love of food!  Browsing through her blog, I came upon a couple recipes and had a really hard time deciding between the two.  Then it hit me—they are both breakfast foods, I’ll do them both!

So it is with great pleasure I present to you Isabelle’s Crumb Granola and her fantastic Chocolate Banana Marble Muffins (I’ve adapted the titles and the recipes every so slightly).

First up—I had just run out of granola, which to me is like having nothing to eat for breakfast.  I eat it everyday with some Greek yogurt and fruit (usually banana unless berries are in season)!  I liked everything about Isabelle’s granola recipe, which she titles Chewy Blueberry-Apricot Granola.  I just needed to make a few changes to the things I put in my granola as to what I had on hand, but this turned out GREAT.  I didn’t get this done in time for breakfast today, so I can’t wait for tomorrow morning to come!

Crumbs Blog Granola 9-13-11 

Crumb Blog’s Granola, by Isabelle, adapted by Katrina, Baking and Boys!

2 cups old fashioned oats

1/2 cup quick oats (or just another 1/2 cup old fashioned if you don’t have both)

1/4 cups sesame seeds

1/4 cup shelled pistachios

1/2 cup almonds, chopped

1/4 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)

1/3 cup dried tart cherries, chopped

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup white whole wheat flour

1/2 cup dry skim milk powder

2 tablespoons flax seed meal

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 cup canola oil

2/3 cup honey

pinch of sea salt

Preheat oven to 275 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat (foil works, too).  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts, seeds, coconut, flour, milk, spices and salt.  In a medium sized bowl, combine the oil and honey and whisk together to combine.  Pour the oil/honey mixture into the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined.  Turn the mixture out onto the prepared baking sheet and use your hands to gently press the granola mixture into a large mound in the center of the pan.

Transfer the baking sheet to second from the top rack of the preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes.  Using a wooden spoon, gently break up the granola into large clumps (it will still be quite wet at this point).  Spread it evenly over the surface of the pan.

Return to the oven for another 20-30 minutes or until lightly toasted and brown, stirring the granola halfway through to ensure it browns evenly.  Allow the granola to cool completely before storing it in an airtight container (or bag or jar some up to give away!)

Variation—you really can add any nuts and fruit you’d like, just follow the amounts in total in the recipe. 

_______________________________________________

I’ve never “met” a granola I didn’t really like, but this one is up there with one of the best I’ve made and tasted!

I’m also a sucker for all things banana (you might have known that already), so while I was looking through Isabelle’s blog at what to make, I also ran across these Marbled Choco-Banana Muffins and couldn’t resist making them as well.  I am so glad I did!  These are fantastic and perfectly moist and chocolaty!  They might as well be a cupcake with frosting, they are that good—but I even made a few healthy substitutions and am perfectly happy with how they turned out and they just don’t need that frosting!

Chocolate Banana Marble Muffins from Crumbs Blog 9-13-11   

Marbled Choco-Banana Muffins, adapted by Katrina, Baking and Boys! from Isabelle at Crumb

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup Bestlife butter substitute, softened (you can use regular butter also)

2 large eggs, room temperature

1 cup mashed banana (2 medium-large bananas)

1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1  1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour (or all purpose) (180 grams)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

3 tablespoons cocoa powder (I used Hershey’s dark cocoa)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly spray a 12-cup muffin tin with cooking spray or line it with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until creamy.  Beat in the eggs one at a time.  Add the mashed bananas, yogurt and vanilla.  The mixture will look curdled, but it’s okay.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture and stir just until combined.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Measure out 1  1/2 cups of the batter into a small bowl and add the cocoa powder.  Fold together gently until combined.

Spoon the batter into the pan, alternating between the two batters.  Swirl each with a sharp knife or a toothpick to create a marbled effect.  You don’t want to swirl too much or it will just mix together.

Bake for 20 minutes or until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.  Allow the muffins to cool in the tin for 5 minutes or so before gently removing them to cool completely on a wire rack.

Crumbs Blog 9-13-11

My four year old just ate one of these moist, delicious muffins for lunch and said, “When I grow up and get big, I’m going to make these all the time!”  Shh, don’t tell him there’s Greek yogurt and whole wheat flour in there! ;)  So glad I was able to bake from Isabelle’s blog, Crumb today as a fill-in for The Secret Recipe Club!





19 comments:

Isabelle @ Crumb said...

Thanks for stepping in to fill the gap and for saying such nice things about my blog, Katrina. You are so sweet! It totally made my day.
I'm really glad that you enjoyed both recipes so much... your muffins look so dark and chocolatey.

Peggy said...

Way to step up for Isabelle! I love Crumb and you chose two perfect recipes to tackle =)

Leslie said...

mmmm.those muffins look like they totally rocked! STUMBLED!!

Shelby said...

That muffin looks AMAZING. Plus, with your endorsement on the granola I am going to have to try it. I love granola with my yogurt in the morning!

Amanda said...

Muffin Recipes to the rescue! I'll have to give this one a try as well :-)

Unknown said...

So that's how you marble.. I loved the picture of the muffin army!

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness those muffins look so good!
Mary

Chelle B said...

I am a FOLLOWER of Isabelle's blog and absolutely love it. I drool over all of the yummies she makes. The muffins look so delicious and full of chocolate. Great SRC picks. I would also love to try the granola.

Cookin' Canuck said...

Those muffins look so darn good. Perfect for an after-school treat.

Amy said...

Yum...that granola looks super good. I can munch on that all day long.

Jeanette said...

So nice of you to step in to make sure no one got left out, and two recipes, how nice! Those muffins look so nice and moist!

Anonymous said...

Those muffins look incredible! Yummy! :)

Emily said...

Those brownies look amazing! I'm tempted to go bake some right now!
I love granola with berries, too.

Holly said...

We love granola at our house too! You're such a super sweetie for stepping in with two recipes at the last second. Those muffins are calling my name too!

BTW, I was just looking at the pictures of your boys in the sidebar and their ages and thought "holy cow, there's NO WAY you're oldest is 12 now!!" Oh my, Katrina - where have the years gone?? Aidan just turned 8 and I'm telling you, it just doesn't seem possible. As always, your boys are serious cuties and lucky to have a mama like you! One of these days, we need to meet up and cross this valley! :)

Lisa said...

You're amazing, Katrina, whipping up two recipes in no time to fill in for the orphaned bloggers :) Both the granola and muffins look and sound phenomenal!

Vivian Thiele said...

The granola sounds amazing! My grand sweetie loves things all "crunchy crunchy" so this would be a big hit with her. Thanks for helping out the orphaned blogger.

Anonymous said...

I haven't made granola forever. This one sounds great - I love that it has cardamom in it!

Anne @ Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy said...

That granola looks chock full of yumminess! Thanks for linking up to our 5 Flu Fighting Foods, and come back tomorrow with a recipe for green tea:)

Jackie @This Sweet Wife said...

I've never found a banana muffin recipe that I really love but this looks like it's got the ability to win me over. They look absolutely decadent! I'm always looking for ways to save the spotted bananas so this is a great recipe for me! Thank you for sharing.