I had some browning bananas to work with and wanted to try something other than the usual bread or cupcakes. I knew bananas and chocolate went well together and I knew chocolate and coffee went well together...but how about a combo of the two? I knew the flavors were there, but had no idea if these would rise and dome like a muffin.

Worked out very well, just keep a napkin handy to catch the crumbs!

*my pictures aren't always the best and my kitchen is always a mess when I bake*

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins     makes 12-14

    1 3/4 cups flour
    3/4 teaspoon baking soda
    3/4 teaspoon baking powder
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    3/4 cup sugar
    1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, room temperature
    1 large egg
    4 average sized mashed ripe bananas (3 if large)
    3 tablespoons buttermilk (google on how to make the homemade version, if needed)
    1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    1 teaspoon cinnamon
    6 teaspoons very strong coffee, cooled (I used instant espresso)

Chocolate Chip Topping

    3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
    2/3 cup brown sugar
    1 tablespoon cinnamon
    (optional: nuts, coconut, oats, etc, etc)

Step 1:

Mix butter, sugar (white), and egg until fluffy.

Step 2:

Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt. Mix until just combined, it will look a bit lumpy.

Step 3:

Add mashed bananas, vanilla, buttermilk and coffee. Mix until well combined. Batter should resemble cake batter. The amount of coffee really depends on the flavor you want, start with 3 teaspoons and taste, add more or less, whatever you like.

Step 4:

Scoop batter about 3/4 full in each liner. You want to leave room for the topping.

Step 5:

Spoon a heaping tablespoon of chip mixture on top of each muffin. Add more or less, however you like it. Feed the leftover topping to child, send child to grammy's for the day.

Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Step 6:

A tip from my friend Paula Deen, spray the top of your muffin pan with nonstick spray, this will make it easier to remove your muffins from the overflow, rather then fight and chisel with the melted sugar. (of course, I forgot to do this...these pans should take me a week to clean)

Step 7:

I was going to add a coffee drizzle (espresso and powdered sugar) on the cooled muffin but ran out of sugar.

Cool and enjoy! No really, let them cool and harden a bit.(the crumbs on the plate are really bugging me :P)

What is the difference between a cupcake and a muffin? These are moist and soft like a cupcake, so maybe it is one? Who knows, who cares?!