Banana Hazelnut Muffins

Let’s talk about muffins.

And bananas that are so sweet, you barely have to add any sugar.

And rich, creamy hazelnuts (That maybe you had leftover from Cilantro Hazelnut Pesto)

Buttermilk, that gives your muffins a little extra fluff and tang.

Vanilla bean paste that adds real flecks of vanilla beans (if you squint you can see them in the above pic)

Let’s talk about overdoing it on the cinnamon and not apologizing.  Bananas, vanilla and cinnamon. It’s really hard to over-do any of those things.

These are some TASTY muffins.

My husband was recently left for 4 days to feed himself while I visited family in California. He survived off of a jumbo size bag of these muffins, milk, scrambled eggs, and some rotisserie chicken

It’s true that man cannot live off of bread alone, but my husband would probably be the last one standing, if he were put to the test. He LOVES bread. All bread. And he even made a special trip to pick up buttermilk, the day before I left, because he knew that something tasty would come from it. Cornbread, biscuits, muffins, he doesn’t know a ton about baking, but he knows that after that little carton shows up in the fridge, sweet carbohydrates will soon materialize.

 

Side note: While my husband was eating muffins, my Basset Hound, George was rebelling against my absence by trying to eat my Kindle.  Apparently, that’s how he showed that he missed me, by destroying something expensive. Normal dogs would whine and mope, right? George eats electronics.

He was very interested in the muffins when I was taking photos. How do you get mad at that face? I’m still trying to figure it out.

 

I just love how easy muffins are. You don’t need a mix. They taste so good from scratch! The only thing you really need to be careful about is not over mixing them. Once the flour has disappeared, I mean the very second it is fully combined, stop mixing. I know I relay this caution with every sweet bread, muffin, pancake, or waffle recipe, but really, it makes a big difference! Over mixed quick doughs are dense, not fluffy.

Once you get a good basic muffin recipe that you like, add-ins are a breeze. You can make any type of muffin! It’s a great way to use fruit that’s about to spoil or to clean out your cupboard.

What’s your favorite muffin recipe, and what are some of your favorite uses for buttermilk?