Banana walnut muffins 香蕉核桃馬芬

We love bananas. It is a very versatile food; it can be breakfast, snack or dessert. Plus, it is so cheap! (However, it is high in potassium, so don't eat it with an empty stomach, especially people with kidney disease.) Banana goes well with walnuts or other nuts, like pecan. I was in the mood of something sweet, but it has to be quick and easy. This is the best recipe to fit my mood. It came from a recipe I bought at Barnes and Nobles when it's on sale. I loved it because it has a lot of pretty pictures and the instructions sound reasonable. However, this recipe is somehow the ONLY thing I've used from the book! I baked the muffins according to the original recipe, but I didn't quite like it. I modified the recipe a little and came up with the second batch. Hope you will like it too!

Banana Walnut Muffins (makes 12 medium muffins):

• 150 g cake flour (original recipe calls for 140 g, 5 oz. plain flour)
• 2 tsp baking powder (original recipe calls for 1 1/2 tsp)
• 3 Tbsp butter, room temperature (original recipe calls for 55 g, 2 oz)
• 60 g sugar (original recipe calls for 170 g, 6 oz) (This is NOT a typo!)
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 medium banana, medium ripe
• 70 g chopped walnuts (original recipe calls for 55 g, 2 oz pecans)
• 80 g water (original recipe calls for 3 fl oz, 85 mL milk)

Instructions:
1. Cream the butter and sugar together.
2. Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until fluffy.
3. Mix in the mashed banana. (Mash the bananas right before you start the recipe, so that it won't be too juicy.)
4. Alternately mix in the dry ingredients (cake flour, baking powder) and the water. Fold gently.
5. Add the chopped walnuts. Fold gently.
6. Spoon the mixture into the prepared muffin cups (wiped with butter). If desired, sprinkle some finely chopped walnuts on top of the muffins.

7. Bake at 375F (190C) for 20 minutes.

8. Cool in the tray on a wire rack for 10 minutes.

For babies:
The twins love to eat bananas, but somehow Joshua is not favoring bananas recently. Bananas have a lot of potassium, which is very important for their muscle growth and function. A lot of babies don't get enough potassium in their diet. To make Joshua interested in banana again, I adjust the amount:

180 g all-purpose flour (again, you can use up to 1/3 (60 g) of whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
3 Tbsp butter, softened
1 1/2 Tbsp (27 g of sugar) (the bananas, when riped, are very sweet. No need to put more sugar in.)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 medium bananas
2 Tbsp of milk (or just enough to mix until no flour seen)

Bake at 350F for 12 min. Make 24 mini miffins (scoop 1 1/2 Tbsp batter for each muffin)