Mini Epiphany

Sorry guys, size does matter.  But not the way you think.  A couple weeks ago I made the most adorable mini banana muffins, and I've been thinking about them ever since.  I have had what I would like to proclaim a mini epihany.  

In modern food culture, it seems that bigger is always better.  The sheer quantity of calories you can consume per dollar seems to have more importance than the actual quality of whatever you happen to be eating.  People want their sandwich measured in FEET, and the beef on their burger put in terms of POUNDS.  There are TV shows, such as Man v. Food, that seem to relish in America's love of large portions, and more often than not, make me lose my appetite altogether.  When you have such a large amount of food in front of you, how much are you really appreciating what you are eating?  I think we've all had that special taste of something that was just so good, that you savored every morsel for every second of its consumption.  Eating slowly, and in smaller portions really makes you enjoy what you have that much more.  I'm not advocating that we all starve ourselves.  By all means, eat until your full.  But there is something to be said for little bites of banana bread where you can take advantage of each crumb.

Is that burger big enough for you?  Really, you sure?

Now, I wish that the true inspiration for this post had such purely noble intentions.  In reality, I had a single overripe banana sitting on the counter fragrantly reminding me of its presence.  Not wanting to waste a banana, and being too lazy to buy more, I did what any logical person would do.  I spent the next 15 minutes whipping up 1/3 of a recipe for banana bread.  Adding to my laziness, and my immediate need for banana bread (did you know that a full loaf of banana bread takes an HOUR to bake?!?) I decided that this would be the perfect time to try out a mini muffin tin that I had never had the occasion to use.  Well that idea turned out to be genius.  My muffins passed the clean toothpick test after a pithy 12 minutes in the oven, which worked out to one minute per muffin if you keep track of such things.

My adorable little mini muffin tin next to its full sized counterpart for reference.

While those 12 minutes flew by, I thought I'd continue using up the left overs of my kitchen by whipping up some cream cheese frosting to top the mini muffins.  After a few more minutes, my muffins had cooled and donned their frosting caps, and my craving had been satiated.  I can't be sure whether it was my love of all things small and adorable, or the higher bread to frosting ratio that the small size resulted in, but that was some of the most delicious banana bread that I've had in a long, long time.  The whole thing was gone in three or four bites, but I enjoyed every last one of them.

Small things are always cuter when placed in things too big for them.

This whole experience has left me with a new respect for small baked goods.  I still love making the occasional layer cake for birthdays and other special events, but I think I've found a less guilt inducing way to have my fix of baked goods more regularly.

Tropical Banana Bread

Adapted from Orangette

You could make any baked goods miniaturized, I just choose this particular banana bread recipe because of the aforementioned lone ripe banana, and I had the other ingredients on hand.  The addition of coconut and rum to what is otherwise a fairly traditional banana bread, also seemed to make this recipe very appropriate for summer.  A sprinkle of demerara sugar on top adds a special crisp to the top of the muffins that remains even after they are frosted.  The recipe I've written below has most of the ingredients reduced to 1/3 of the original.  This worked out perfectly to make one dozen mini muffins, but you could always multiply everything by three (except the vinegar, keep that to 1/8 tsp) to make a regular sized loaf of banana bread, or three dozen mini muffins.  The cream cheese frosting is also delicious but is completely optional.  When I have made this recipe as a full loaf, I am more than happy to eat it plain, and the demerara sugar topping means no one will miss the frosting if you leave it out completely.

Next time I make this, I'm also tempted to soak some golden raisins in rum to plump them, chop them up and add them to the batter.  Let me know how it turns out if you try it first.

Also, I really must encourage that you buy fair trade bananas.  My travels to Ecuador, where many commercially avaliable bananas come from, opened my eyes to the injustice that is imposed on the hard working people who are working for most commercial banana providers.  The same of course is true for chocolate, coffee, and so many other ingredients/staples that often imported to the U.S. without any regard for the farmers and workers that provide them.  For bananas, this generally means I avoid "big brands" like Chiquita, and buy my bananas whose their labels inform the shopper of their fair treatment for farmers.  I currently  buy my bananas from PCC, but I know Whole Foods sells them as well.  Here's a little article about how bananas bought at PCC can have a positive impact on the communities that provided them:  http://www.enterprisenewspapers.com/article/20100512/ETP03/705129929&template=ETPZoneEDart

Prep time:  10-15 min.

Cook time:  10-12 min.

Makes one dozen (12) mini muffins.

Ingredients:

1 large banana, very ripe

2/3 cup all purpose flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp grated nutmeg (freshly grated is always preferable)

A scant pinch of salt

1/3 stick of butter at room temperature (a little less than 3 Tbsp), plus extra for pan if not using liners

1/8 tsp distilled white vinegar

1/2 Tbsp dark rum

1/4 cup unsweetened coconut, shredded or flaked

1 tsp demerara sugar

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Butter wells of a mini muffin tin, or use paper liners.  I used butter since I only had full sized cupcake liners on hand, but I think the butter made the sides of the muffins wonderfully golden and extra delicious.  Of course, butter tends to make everything delicious.  If I were giving these away, I might opt for liners since people tend to expect such things of their muffins.

Puree the banana.  I used a handheld submersion blender, but a full sized blender or food processor would also work.

In small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, nutmeg and salt.  Use a fork or whisk to remove any lumps.

In another (larger) bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the sugar and butter until fluffy.  Add the vinegar and rum, and beat again until well combined.  Add the banana puree and the flour mixture alternately, beginning with the banana.  Beat just to combine.  Using a spatula, stir in any flour that was not incorporated on the sides of the bowl, along with the coconut.

Spoon batter into the prepared tin, filling each well about 3/4 full.  The batter is thick and sticky, so I recommend using two teaspoons to do the job.  Scoop up a spoonful of batter with one spoon, and use the other to guide it into the muffin well.  Sprinkle each batter-filled well with the demerara sugar.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.  Let the muffins cool for about 10 minutes in the tin on a wire rack.  Remove muffins from tin and cool completely, which should only take another 10 or 15 minutes.

*Optional:  top each cooled muffin with cream cheese frosting.  See recipe below.

The muffins will keep 1-2 days in an airtight container at room temperature with frosting, or up to four days unfrosted. Refrigerated in an airtight container, the frosted muffins should also last the full 4 days.  I prefer them at room temperature, as I don't like how the cream cheese frosting hardens at cooler temperatures.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

Adapted from my own kitchen experimentation

Warning:  this frosting is addictive.  It still tastes sufficiently like cream cheese, just lighter, and of course sweet.  It also comes together in minutes, which is a great way to pass the time while you wait for your muffins to cool.  If you use this recipe to frost a full sized layer cake, quadruple all quantities.

Prep time:  5 min.

Cook time:  N/A

Makes about 1 cup; enough to top a dozen mini cupcakes with a generous dollop.

Ingredients:

4 oz. cream cheese at room temperature

2 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Beat together cream cheese and butter until fluffy and creamy in appearance.

Add the vanilla, and slowly sift in the powdered sugar.  Beating occasionally between sugar additions.  Continue beating until fluffy, about 1 minute.