This recipe came about from experimenting with Michael Ruhlman's book Ratio. Inspired by his muffin batter formula, I started playing around with simple recipes I could make for my family. I prefer to measure the majority of my ingredients by weight as I find it is much easier and proven to be more accurate and requires a few less dishes. My trick for nice fluffy muffins with good height is to bake for 5 minutes at a high heat to activate the baking powder and then continue baking at a lower heat. Mini chocolate chips give a better chocolate/bite ratio. It's always ok if more than 1/2 cup fall into the batter.
This recipe is easy to pull together on short notice as long as you have a ripe banana or two laying around! I used to keep a stash in the freezer but since we now make this simple recipe once a week, I find that bananas just don't last long at our house anymore. Always moist and tasty and pleasing for both little and big people. The vanilla sugar adds a nice aroma and crisp topping. Simply save your used vanilla beans in a jar and fill with sugar and keep in your pantry. Use to top muffins, cookies, etc!
—Anne-Marie Kavulla
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