Banana Muffins with Chocolate

Ingredients

• 3 bananas
• 100 g butter
• 150 g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1.5 tsp baking powder
• 260 g wheat flour
• 50 g dark chocolate
• 50 g milk chocolate
• vanilla sugar

Method

Cream the softened butter and sugar together until the mixture is pale and fluffy — this incorporates air and creates the crumb structure that makes muffins tender rather than dense. This takes about three minutes with an electric mixer. The creaming process breaks down the sugar crystals and traps air bubbles; skipping it or rushing produces a heavy, compact cake.

Mash the bananas thoroughly — aim for a near-purée with only the smallest lumps visible. Overripe fruit works best here because the breakdown of cell walls releases more sugars and moisture, which keeps the crumb moist over several days. Whisk the eggs separately until just combined, then alternate adding them into the creamed butter-sugar in three additions, beating well after each. This prevents curdling and ensures even distribution of the emulsifier. Fold in the mashed banana and vanilla sugar (about half a teaspoon if you have it; omit rather than substitute) gently — you want to preserve the aerated structure you've built.

Chop both the dark and milk chocolate into chips no larger than a pea — uneven pieces bake unevenly and larger ones can burn at the edges whilst the centres stay soft. Sift the flour and baking-powder together, then fold them into the batter in two additions, folding only until the streaks of dry flour disappear. Overworking develops gluten, which tightens the crumb and makes the muffins tough. Add the chocolate pieces last, folding them through in the final few turns.

Divide the batter evenly into a lined muffin tin, filling each cup about three-quarters full. The batter should mound slightly above the rim — this creates the characteristic domed top. Set the oven to 180°C and bake for 18–22 minutes. The muffins are done when a skewer pushed into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging to it, not wet batter. The tops should be golden-brown and spring back when pressed gently. A slight wobble in the centre is fine; they firm up as they cool. Leave them in the tin for five minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. These keep well for three days in an airtight container.