It wouldn’t be an understatement to say I got a bit obsessed with all things Nigella after I heard her speak recently. I’d been waiting to bake these for ages when suddenly the baking planets aligned when my neighbour gave me some brown bananas and I found some almost out of date cherries in my pantry. I was good to go.
Talking of out of date items in the pantry and obsessions, I saw on Facebook that a friend had got pantry moths and that was all the incentive I needed to purge the pantry. Now it’s all shiny and new and quite minimalist, at least compared to it’s previous state. I found so many out of date items, they could have almost been museum pieces. I’ve promised myself to buy only what I need and use what I have from now on. In the meantime, now that I have cleaned the pantry so scrupulously, it’s only a matter of time before the pantry moths arrive, because life is so ironic, don’t you think?
I really didn’t know what to call these baked beauties, because they’re not quite a muffin and not quite a cupcake either – perhaps I should have called them cruffins! It doesn’t really matter what you call them, as long as you enjoy them and enjoy you will because that banana, white chocolate and cherry combo is just the business.
If you like enormo-cruffins, you’ll get 12 out of this recipe, but I prefer to stretch things a bit further and get 15 by filling the paper cases about 3/4 full. 12 or 15? The choice is yours!
Have you ever had pantry moths? Got any tips for me – just in case?! Are you a fan of Nigella too?
Makes 15
Ingredients
125g unsalted butter
180g caster sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large ripe bananas
4 tablespoons sour cream
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
300g plain flour
100g glace cherries
100g white chocolate chips
How to – Traditional
- Rinse the cherries under the hot tap to remove all their sticky coating. Drain well, then leave to dry between several sheets of kitchen paper.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan-forced and line 15 holes of two muffin tins with paper cases. Fill the empty holes with water (this will ensure even cooking of the cupcakes.)
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan. When the butter has completely melted, remove the pan from the heat and add the sugar and bananas, mashing the bananas into the pan.
- Stir in the eggs, vanilla and sour cream and beat until well combined.
- Tip the cherries into a separate bowl and toss with a tablespoon of the flour. Toss the cherries into the mixture along with the rest of the flour, bicarb, baking powder and choc chips and stir until just combined.
- Divide the mixture between the 15 cases and cook for 20 minutes until golden and springy to the touch.
- Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool.
How to – Thermomix
- Rinse the cherries under the hot tap to remove all their sticky coating. Drain well, then leave to dry between several sheets of kitchen paper.
- Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan-forced and line15 holes of two muffin tins with paper cases. Fill the empty holes with water (this will ensure even cooking of the cupcakes.)
- Place the butter in TM bowl and melt for 3 minutes at 60C on speed 2 or until completely melted.
- Add sugar and bananas and mix for 5 seconds on speed 4.
- Add the eggs, vanilla and sour cream and mix for 10 seconds on speed 3. Scrape down lid and sides of bowl.
- Tip the cherries into a separate bowl and toss with a tablespoon of the flour. Add the rest of the flour along with the bicarb, and baking powder into the TM bowl and mix for 20 seconds on speed 2.
- Add the floury cherries and the chocolate chips and mix for 10 seconds on reverse speed 4.
- Divide the mixture between the 15 cases and cook for 20 minutes until golden and springy to the touch.
- Transfer the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool.
