Outside it is an evil 35degC and we are struggling to keep the house cool enough for Kazuo. Shame really, as this is the kind of weather I would enjoy if it was just me… trips to the pool, getting hot and then loving the feeling when you could cool down. But our wee guy just gets limp or cranky… and in either case I worry about him since his homeostatic mechanisms are really not up to this kind of brutality from the weather. I keep saying we need to move to a milder climate… Aotearoa for instance…
Foolishly, since it is so hot, I decided that the mushy bananas that had been festering on the shelf all week really could not go another day, and since I made enough chilli last night to last a week, I had time to do something about this while Kaz was sleepng and they really needed to be converted into something. Not really the day for baking… but at least muffins only take 15mins to cook, so hope we cool down again soon!
I made Banana Choc Chip muffins, using the basic Muffin recipe in Alison Holst’s Meals Without Meat and just gestimating the quantities of banana and choc chips.
While the butter was melting, I measured the flour, sugar and baking powder into a large bowl. Then I added an egg and the milk to the melted butter, mashed up the banana and mixed them all together with a liberal handful or two of choc chips.
It doesn’t pay to over mix, as Alison warns, and these muffins came out really light and fluffy as a result of a light hand I think.
I have been nursing my muffin tray along, and although I don’t feel good about the overuse of paper, I do find that if I make muffins in patty pans, then the clean up is easier, and they do well in lunches… So I spooned the mixture into a dozen patty pans in the muffin tray.
This morning we went out for coffee and I managed to go to the local farmer’s market and get the veges without Kazuo having to sit around in the blistering heat in his stroller. Whew! I picked up half a watermelon and we have just enjoyed a slice of it with the muffins… Akira came in from biking out to return our cable box on his new bike just dripping, the heat is really no good for anyone! So melon and lemonade were essential for re-establishing temperature equilibrium!
Afternoon tea at ours:
Banana Choc Chip Muffins a la Alison Holst
2C Flour
1/2C Sugar
4tsp Baking Powder
100g Melted Butter
1 Egg
1C Milk
2 Mashed Old Bananas
3/4C Choc Chips (or thereabouts)
Bake for 15mins at 440degF
Makes about 12
50 things for 50 