Best Banana Muffins (so easy, a toddler can make them)

Yes, you read that right, a toddler can make them. Except for the measuring and the putting them in the hot oven part, but still, they are very easy. I have been making this recipe since I was about 16. My mom sometimes worked in the evenings so I was learning how to cook. My mom gave me a cookbook called Clueless in the Kitchen: A Cookbook for Teens by Evelyn Raab. It is still my favorite cookbook. The recipes are simple but delicious. The author is entertaining. She even includes menu plans, information for shopping at the grocery store, and diagrams for cutting produce. (I still open this book to check the ratio of milk to egg every time I make french toast for my husband.) Anyway, it is still available on Amazon. I bought it a few Christmas’s ago for my brother after he moved out of my parents’ house, but I don’t think he has cracked it open yet. Maybe someday when pigs fly!

This is my adaptation of the banana bread recipe in the book. If you have some bananas lying around, waiting to die a terrible death, give them new life as yummy banana muffins! Really, you’ll feel better about yourself for saving them from such a sad ending.

Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. I use the foil cupcake wrappers because the muffins just come out of them so much better than the paper ones. If you are using wrappers, put them in the muffin/cupcake pan. (Or have your toddler do it!) If not, you can grease the pan with spray or Crisco, whichever you prefer.

In a large bowl, mix together 3/4 cup white flour, 1/2 cup whole wheat flour, 1 tsp cinnamon, dash of nutmeg, 1 cup sugar, and 1 tsp baking soda. (I measure each ingredient out and let my toddler dump it in.)

My cute little guy likes to stir the dry ingredients.