The Easiest Banana Muffins

Once upon a time, I went on a quest to find a good banana bread recipe. I tried so many different ones, but none seemed right. Some didn't taste enough like banana, some were too dense, others required extra ingredients like sour cream but still didn't taste right, and I began to despair of ever finding the perfect recipe.

Then one day, in the summer of 2011, I went to India for the first time.

And my friend Amanda made me her banana bread.

And I knew, I had found the one. THE one. 

And here it is...the simplest, easiest, most delicious banana bread (or muffins, in this case).

Easiest Banana Muffins

Original Recipe

3 ripe bananas, mashed (If the bananas are kind of small, I use 4. I recommend NOT using the stumpy little banana variety though...they're too starchy and not sweet enough).

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 cup of sugar

1 egg

2 cups of flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup chocolate chips (or more...)

In a large bowl, mix the vegetable oil, sugar, and egg together. Add mashed bananas. Then add the flour, salt, and baking soda and stir just until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Scoop into 12 greased muffin tins or into a greased 9x9 baking dish or bread pan.

Bake at 170 degrees C (350 degrees F) for 20-25 minutes for muffins, or 40-45 minutes in a pan, or until golden brown and toothpick comes out clean.

I also love to make a batch of these (since bananas go bad quickly here so I seem to always have overripe bananas) and then wrap them with cling wrap, put them in a Ziplock freezer bag, and freeze them to have on mornings when I need a little something sweet with my coffee. Take them out of the freezer and microwave for about 30 seconds.

Thank you, Amanda, for changing my life ;)