the quest for the perfect banana muffin: attempt #1, healthy banana muffins with passionfruit icing

incomplete post.

Surfing the net a couple of days ago, I stumbled upon a recipe for an alleged simple, moist and delicious banana muffin. Now, I don't like actual bananas, but bananas in food and drinks are great. And after Christmas, I was craving banana muffins/cupcakes more and more. Chel's cupcakes were a little sweet, but lovely and moist and yummy! I was already going out that day to fetch a few things, and so I decided to pick up a few things for the muffins as well. Now, me being me - I did not bookmark the page (or shut down my computer properly, thus not recording it in my browser history) so on my return, when I was itching to start baking, I could not find it!

Taking a quick look on the net, I found a replacement recipe and decided to try it. There was no harm in it after all. It had no butter or oil in the recipe, and had less sugar. So it was a "healthier" alternative to traditional banana muffins.

As I am Dyan, and Dyan doesn't really tend to follow instructions properly, I made adjustments to the recipe as I saw fit (and based on what ingredients I had on hand). You can find the original muffin recipe here at Group Recipes and the icing recipe originates from the Love Food recipe book series.

Just a few notes on how mine turned out, they were a little dense and dry - I will work on getting them lighter, with a touch more moisture next time around (maybe by adding a form of liquid other than eggs, or just adding another egg). The flavour of the bananas didn't come through too well as the only bananas I could find were the ones that were just ripe. Not a single ripened banana could be found in the fruit market when I went. And I do implore that you use a thick yoghurt, not a skimpy, thin fat free yoghurt for the icing.

Here's what the original recipe with my amendments.

INGREDIENTS

makes 18 muffins 10 jumbo muffins

Muffins:

• 2 3 beaten eggs
• 3 4 very ripe mashed bananas
• 2 cups plain flour self-raising flour (my mother doesn't accurately label containers, so I was unsure about what kind of flour I had on hand, although I was assuming it was plain flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda (there was also no baking soda in the house, so I thought they'd turn out mega flat)
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Icing:

• 1 2 passionfriuts worth of pulp
• ? cups icing sugar
• ? cups plain yoghurt vanilla flavoured, 98% fat free yoghurt

PUTTING IT TOGETHER

Preparation:

• Preheat oven to 175C
• Prepare muffin tin/s

Muffins:

• Mash up the bananas
• Add the eggs and mix until combined
• Mix all the dry ingredients together in a separate bowl
• Stir the banana mixture in with the dry ingredients
• Divide the batter amongst your prepared muffin cups (remember, muffins rise a lot so don't fill up each muffin cup completely 3/4 should be fine. unless you're fairly sure that it won't rise due to a lack of self-raising flour or baking soda)
• Chuck them in the oven for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick poked in the centre of a muffin comes out clean

money down the drain

I'm pretty sure that I'm not alone in this area - I have this money that I work hard for, and then I have no idea where the hell it goes. I can still remember the time my first pay came in (more than 1K because for some reason I didn't get paid till six weeks after I started), that money was liquidated in the span of a few hours. What it went to, I have no idea - I know there were some books purchased, and a couple of movie tickets - but that can't have cost that much!

So due to the state of our finances, Chel and myself have decided that we will start spending diaries so we can at least see where our money goes. I've always been a diary person, but I never seemed to utilise most parts of it. To be honest, my diary is always neat and organised in the first few months of the year, and then it all falls apart thereafter. And I only used the week pages, and none of those notes pages, or the financial planner section (which I have sort of just discovered this year in my mocha Deben Designer A5 Week to View - & El has the same one, but in pink). And OMG, it is a life saver!

I've been using it to keep track of the things I spend my money on, and how often. I even pencil in future purchases I know I will make. It helps keep things in perspective - and helps me keep my new year's resolution to handle my money in a more informed and practical manner in order to have some form of savings.

So hopefully, I keep at it and continue to shame myself by looking at just how much I spend on books, food, random non-essential craft items and clothes - and when the next year comes around, I will have savings and be a smarter or at least more practical (meaning less impulsive) shopper.

a very sgp christmas

Just a few close friends from high school - more like sisters really - and a lot of good food. There's nothing more that I'd really need to have a great time. It takes me back to those carefree lunchtimes back at school where we just ate, talked, tried to finish the homework due next period and simply enjoyed each other's company. We were all unique, with our own interests and goals - but those differences were the things that brought us together and kept us together this year when we all went our separate ways to gain the skills, knowledge and experience we needed to do whatever it was that we had our minds set on. And although our busy schedules only allowed us to meet rarely, its nice to know that when we are together, it feels just like it did back then.

This post by the way will showcase some of the first publicly shared photos taken by Felix, my Samsung WB500, all resized of course.

So, the Christmas party was held at Chel's house, most likely because she did most of the work and its the easiest for everyone to get to. I was told the night before to come early and help her set up - and to prepare the salsa for the nachoes. So, at about 0900hrs on the 22nd of December, I showed up on her doorstep bearing salsa ingredients, a two-tier cake stand and two bottles of wine. Believe me, it was a little difficult to get it all there via public transport, but I managed =]

She gave me the rundown of the menu, and my mouth was already watering in anticipation of lunch. We prepared the table for all the food that was to come and got to work on the chicken and salsa while snacking on the chocolate covered cherries. And I set up the cake stand - it was hard work trying to put the cherries, strawberries and cupcakes on the stand and not in my mouth. Kass then showed up at about 1000hrs bearing the cake, and we both made suggestions regarding the chicken: "dude, put butter on it", "no dude, more" - all the while Chel was saying that she'd blame us if it turned out bad. Good thing it didn't, eh Chel?

In time, the others began arriving with their contributions: El and her potato salad, Jackie and the Caesar salad with homemade croûtons, Mariel and her pretty chocolate cupcakes. All who were left were Zari and Megz, bearing wine and buffalo wings. Lunch was set to be served at 1130, but of course that wasn't going to happen. You see, we have running history of never going anywhere on time. This was never pinned on just the one person, for we have all been guilty of being late. However, being late when the others are seated infront of food which smells delicious was not the best thing to do. It was almost torture to sit there and not consume anything but the appetizers while we waited - after all, it was the polite thing to do, to wait for the rest of the guests.

Mariel's very prettily iced chocolate cupcakes

THE MENU.

Appetizers

Sausage Rolls

Meat Pies

M&M's

Starburst Snakepit Snakes

Starburst Gummi Fruits

Starburst Party Mix

Nachos

Mains

Buttered & Herbed Roast Chicken served on top of Roast Potatoes

Home-made Garlic Bread

Lasagna

Caesar Salad

Potato Salad

Buffalo Wings

Dessert

Chocolate Cupcakes with Icing

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries & Cherries

Banana Cupcakes with Passionfruit Icing

Golden White Chocolate Mudcake

After lunch, we sat around the television like one big happy family. I think a lunchtime special of Beyonce's music videos was on and we sat around, still nibbling on bits and pieces. After a good dose of Beyonce and her body, feelings of regret at how much we ate settled in, which was only quenched by even more food. Which was then followed by 17 Again and Harry Potter & the Half Blood Prince, again accompanied by some slightly healthier snacks such as cherries (covered in chocolate) - and took what seemed like a million photos.

We left that night, completely stuffed, but still wanting more. As was said multiple times throughout the day when we went for seconds although complaining we were full, or when we did things completely stupid or pointless like try to recreate Beyonce and Shakira's dance moves: "this is why we don't have many friends" - because we act like total idiots and love food a bit too much.

Dedicated to SGP, to another year of laughs, tears & good times

ventures into the sunlight

So these blissfully sweltering hot days haven't come to an end yet, and bearing public tranport in this heat was not exactly on the top of my list. However, it was all for a good cause - to visit our darling El after her surgery. We came, bearing about $40 in junk food and chocolates - with more on the way when Megz and Jackie finally arrived.

The forcast for the Western Suburbs was set to be 38 degrees or something like that - a day that I immediately did not like. But, with the air conditioning out of order at home, anywhere would have been better. Naturally though, the day didn't start off too well. I woke up, realising I was fully burnt from the outing with uni friends the day prior and spent quite a lot of time trying to reconcile myself with the fact that my skin tone was even more uneven than usual. I then missed the bus, which resulted me in having to trek it to the station. That I wouldn't have minded too much if it wasn't 9am and already over 25 degrees!

Well, I made it to the shopping centre in one piece, and before Chel, Mariel and Zari did. We loaded up on junk food and headed off to Elisah's. The trip was uneventful and fairly cool. I am sad to say that we may have been a touch too loud on the train, but in our defence it was fairly empty anyway.

At El's we caught up on each other's lives - for it was possibly the first time in a while since all of us were together - and then we hit the pool. As promised, I will not post any photos taken. And that was how we wasted countless hours, talking by the pool and stuffing our faces =]. Nothing of too much significance occurred during that time - unless you count Mariel's phone falling into the water, with Megz and Jackie standing by doing nothing but watch it slowly sink to the bottom.

Having filled our Vitamin D quota for the day (or the entire week in my case), we retreated inside into the airconditioning, where we ate some more and wasted a few more hours playing with El's dog Bella. She is the cutest little thing! So energetic and ever so adorable! Megz and Zari tried to teach her to lay down, roll over and shake hands - so some extent of success. I am very proud of them for their patience and skill.

When the time came for us to leave, we said our goodbyes saying that we shall see each other next week for the Christmas party. El's brother kindly dropped us off at Chel's house from where we were to make our own way home. While waiting for various rides home, buses and such, Mariel tried to come up with an excuse for why her phone was now out of order, and why she couldn't catch the train home. I can remember looking up from my Zune to see her punching her leg. WTF I can imagine you all thinking.

Her story kinda goes like this (I think): she was holding her phone and then she fell, hard on it and it dropped or something (hence the leg punching). I don't know if that even is the right story, you'd probably have to ask her yourself. But from this, Chel decided to come in and experiment with costume make up. I don't know whether or not it worked, but it was ever so amusing to watch her try.

Mariel's bruise from falling on her phone or something

When I finally arrived home, I discovered that I was red. Like, tomato red. Beet red. I was freaking burnt. And not just my arms and face and stuff, oh no - but my freaking scalp as well! It killed to comb my hair =[

So yes, that concludes this long winded post, bitching about the sun and the heat. But the day was a good day. I got to spend time with some of my closest friends, and do wast we do best. Eat and goof off while still having the time of our lives.