These Strawberry Banana Muffins were a last-minute addition to my Mother’s Day Brunch line-up. They were so last minute that I had my husband run to the store to pick up more strawberries about an hour before our company was due to arrive!

I spotted this recipe on Just2Good and followed it to a tee. Due to a limited produce selection, I ended up using frozen strawberries. Due to overzealous muffin-tin filling, I ended up with only 14 muffins instead of the suggested 18. I needed to bake them a bit longer, but they turned out beautifully! It’s worth noting that the muffin tops don’t brown when they are done, but they will spring back when lightly pressed.

The strawberry banana combination is delicious – something I had never thought to put in a muffin. The bananas lend a subtle sweetness and great moist consistancy to the muffin, while the strawberries provide bright bursts of flavor.

Strawberry Banana Muffins

Yields 18 muffins

2 1/4 Cup of flour
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 Cup fresh strawberries, diced
3/4 Cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 stick of butter, melted
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin pan with 18 paper liners.
2. In a large bowl combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.
3. After mixing, gently fold in the strawberries, making sure to coat them with flour.
4. In another bowl, combine the brown sugar, eggs, butter, bananas, and vanilla until mixed thoroughly.
5. Slowly combine the wet mixture with the dry mixture and stir until just combined. Overmixing will result in tough, dense muffins.
6. Divide batter evenly among the 18 muffin cups.
7. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.
8. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

I spotted this recipe for Banana Nut Biscotti on the blog Gaga In the Kitchen (originally from Cooking Light). I’ve been meaning to try my hand at biscotti for a while, and this recipe looked like a fun departure from the usual biscotti flavors. I absolutely love banana bread, but since I am not a fan of nuts, I decided to use mini chocolate chips instead.

This was my first attempt at biscotti, so I don’t know exactly how the dough is supposed to feel. When I combined the wet and dry ingredients, the resulting dough was quite crumbly and did not hold together well. Since I may not have added enough mashed banana, I threw in an additional tablespoon of canola oil and a little more mashed banana. After these additions, the dough was soft, moist and workable.

I was quite happy to find that making biscotti is very easy, and the resulting cookies are delicious! These biscotti have a nice subtle banana flavor, and the chocolate chips work well. I will be making these again, and look forward to trying other biscotti recipes. Any recommendations on what I should try next?

Banana Chip Biscotti

Yields 24 cookies

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup mashed very ripe banana (about 1 banana)
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted
Cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350?.
2. In a small bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, combine banana, oil, vanilla, and egg.
4. Stir in flour mixture. The dough should be sticky. If it is not moist enough, add additional mashed banana or vegetable oil.
5. Stir in chocolate chips.
6. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands, shape dough into 2 (8-inch-long) rolls.
7. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray or parchment paper.
8. Place rolls on prepared baking sheet and flatten to 1/2-inch thickness.
9. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until tops are golden and firm.
10. Remove rolls from baking sheet and cool 10 minutes on a wire rack.
11. Cut both rolls diagonally into 1/2 inch slices. You should get 12 slices per roll.
12. Place slices, cut side down, on baking sheet.
13. Reduce oven temperature to 250 and bake for 15 minutes.
14. Turn the cookies over and bake for an additional 15 minutes.
15. Remove the cookies from the baking sheet and cool completely on a wire rack. The cookie centers may be slightly soft, but will harden as they cool.