The Home Bakers #11: Banana, Macadamia, Coconut and Cinnamon Muffins
It’s our 11th bake for The Home Bakers! Started by Joyce from Kitchen Flavours, The Home Bakers are a group of home bakers who aimed to complete baking all recipes in a chosen cookbook. If you’d like to join us, do find out more about us here: About the Home Bakers. We are currently baking from Coffee Cakes by Lou Seibert Pappas, which is a pretty wonderful cookbook – some of my tried-and-tested favourites were the Chocolate Swirl Bread, Mocha-Cappuccino Cake and Blueberry Streusel Cake.
But this recipe, chosen by Kit from I-Lost In Austen, is currently my top favourite among those we’ve tried. Why? Just look at the next photo:
So soft, so moist, so fluffy! How can one not like a muffin that’s so soft, so moist and so fluffy? (Sorry, on repeat mode here.) The texture of this muffin is truly amazing, every bite of the muffin makes me yearn for more.
On a side note, instead of calling this a cake, I decided to call it a muffin as it is more muffin-like – uses oil instead of butter, no need for a mixer etc… and I think it’s the perfect treat for breakfast!
Another amazing thing about this muffin is the flavours combination. I’ve always heard the combination of cinnamon + apple, but cinnamon + bananas? It’s definitely the first for me and I’m surprised the flavours complemented each other so well. Overall it’s a winner combination (in terms of taste and texture) for me and I’ve already made it again for a friend who loves bananas and fell head over heels in love with these muffins when I gave her some to try.
Golden brown perfection!
So please do give these muffins a try, and let me know if you love it as much as I do! 
On to the step-by-step photos!
Combine plain flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl.
I love, love, love brown sugar, they make the baked goods so caramelize-y good!
Grab some bananas!
Very-ripe bananas are preferred in this recipe as they are:
- Much sweeter; and
- Much softer, making them easier to mash with a wooden spoon (or a potato masher)
I’ve decided to adjust the recipe a little by not using any food processor or blender (as I don’t have them at home). Though food processors and blenders help speed up the mixing process, they are really a pain to wash. So I used the simple, old-but-never-fail method to mix the batter – and it worked! 
Mash the soft bananas with a wooden spoon – easy peasy!
Add in olive oil.
I love how no creaming of butter is needed for this recipe!
And some rum!
The taste of the rum is very subtle, so you can use more if you like the muffin to have a stronger rum taste / smell.
Mix well with the wooden spoon and add in some flaked coconut.
The recipe simply stated “sweetened flaked coconut” and I was wondering whether the author meant the freshly grated ones or the dried ones. In the end I decided to use dried coconut as it’s easier to obtain and I can keep the leftovers easily without worrying about spoilage.
As the amount used is very little, I’m not sure how it affects the taste / structure of the muffin. However, I can taste a little chewiness in the muffin, which I think was due to the coconut.
Mix well and add in sour cream / yogurt.
Sour cream is not cheap to obtain here in Singapore, so I decided to use a cheaper but equally effective alternative – full-fat plain yogurt. It’s cheaper than getting sour cream or crème fraîche.
Mix well and add in some vanilla extract / paste.
Beat in the egg with the wooden spoon.
Add in the flour mixture little by little and stir the mixture into the batter gently.
The batter will look something like this – not overly thick!
Scoop the batter into muffin tins – an 1/4-cup ice cream scoop works best here.
Chop up some macadamia nuts.
I think walnuts will work perfectly well here as well, but I think the amount of walnuts used can be reduced slightly as it has a stronger taste than macadamia nuts.
Sprinkle the chopped nuts over the muffins.
Combine some sugar and cinnamon in a small dish.
Sprinkle the mixture onto the muffins and bake away!
Wait for them to cool on the racks…
Or if you’re eager as me, dig in while it’s still warm! Yum!
Do head over to Kit’s blog for the original recipe (a shout out of thanks to you, Kit, for choosing such an awesome recipe!) If you want to use a blender / food processor to make these muffins, do head over there! As I’ve modified the recipe, I’ve also attached my version below as well. Please head over to other Home Bakers’ Bakes here: Banana, Macadamia Nut and Coconut Coffee Cake.
I’m also submitting this recipe to Recipe Box #21 hosted by Bizzy Bakes!
Banana, Macadamia, Coconut and Cinnamon Muffins (makes 9 muffins)
adapted from Coffee Cakes by Lou Seibert Pappas
Baking Note: This seemed like a really long list of ingredients but don’t worry it’s really easy to put this cake together! Starting with all ingredients at room temperature, it only takes 5 minutes to measure them and another 5 minutes to mix them together – and then they’re ready to be baked! You’ll get some absolutely soft, fluffy, moist and delicious muffins, so do give these muffins a try!
125 grams all-purpose flour (1 cup)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
75 grams brown sugar (3/8 cup packed)
165 grams very-ripe bananas, mashed (5/8 cup mashed, about 2 medium bananas)
3 1/2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon dark rum
15 grams dried flaked coconut (1/4 cup)
60 ml sour cream / plain yogurt (1/4 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
35 grams chopped macadamia nuts (1/4 cup chopped)
1/2 tablespoon caster sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Preheat the oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Line 9 muffin tins with muffin cups.
Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and brown sugar in a small bowl.
Combine the mashed bananas, oil, rum, coconut, yogurt, vanilla and egg in a large mixing bowl with a large wooden spoon, mixing well after each addition of ingredient. Stir in the flour mixture.
Scoop 1/4-cup full of batter into the muffin. Sprinkle with nuts, caster sugar and cinnamon.
Bake the muffins for 18 – 20 minutes in the preheated oven until a skewer inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean. Cool the muffins on a wire rack. Serve them warm or at room temperature.
Store the muffins in a container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat them at 100 degrees Celsius for 5 – 10 minutes.
Happy baking!
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Looks delicious as a cupcake!
It is! Thanks Mich!
I’m really glad that you like this recipe too . You’ve made it into lovely fluffy muffins & I do agreed that they’re addictive! I had 3 at a time LOL No kidding! I’ve never tried cinnamon & bananas too, & was really intrigued by all these combinations that I’ve gotta give this recipe a go. Well, not sure if it’s a winner though. Never try , never know, right. I really do appreciate you baking this delicious recipe with me along with all THB members. Have a wonderful weekend
Hi Kit! Thank you so much for choosing this recipe, I really, really love it! Haha and I agree the muffins are absolutely addictive, despite the seemingly-odd combination. I had lots of fun baking these muffins, let’s bake more for the upcoming THB! Have a great week ahead!
This is one lovely bake! A winner definitely in terms of texture and taste! Thumbs up from my family! I made this in the morning, then I was out the whole day and when I came back after dinner, there was only 1 small slice left! Even then, my son “booked” that slice for his breakfast! haha!
Have a great delicious Sunday!
I agree Joyce! I couldn’t stop at one muffin too
haha I think you need to bake a second batch, your family can’t seem to get enough of it! It’s a pretty healthy bake too so I definitely will be baking these yummy muffins more often! 
Mmmm these muffins are chock a block full of deliciousness
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
Thank you my friend! It’s one of my favourite breakfast food now
Very nice muffin recipe. Love macadamia nuts, a little expensive but they sure look great in this muffin. Thanks for sharing, look forward to trying.
Thank you Annette! Glad you like the recipe. My friends bought some macadamia nuts for me from Australia, otherwise I would have swapped it with walnuts!
These muffins look delicious! Banana, Coconut, Macadamia… Love the combi!
Thank you Valynn! I’m quite surprised this combination worked so well!
The muffins look delicious! I especially love the tops, they look so perfectly crunchy! Yummm
Bananas and macadamia nuts sound divine together!
It’s a surprisingly good combination!
certainly agree with you that it is soft and moist, i like it too! so are the toppings, delicious!
Yes, Lena, it’s an amazingly delicious combination of flavours! I’m getting hungry just thinking of them.
Lovely results and fab pictures!
Thank you for the compliments!
That looks so moist and soft, so drooling now
Haha thanks Raymund! Bake some now
You are right, its a quck bread/muffin rather than a coffee ckae. Nevertheless, this one is a keeper. Love the tons of flavours packed in it.
I agree Anuja, it’s so delicious and do easy to bake that I think I will be baking them more often!
Hi Jasline,
This fast and easy recipe seems good but decided to skip this bake because my family strangely didn’t like to have coconut in our bakes. Just came back to Melbourne from Singapore and didn’t bother to modify this bake…
Zoe
Hi Zoe! Welcome back! Hope you had lots of fun in Singapore
Hope to see you in the next bake!
I love your new blog:D And these muffins look so darn yummy!! I wish I had one for a bedtime treat!! xx
Thank you so much Barbara! Awww I wouldn’t mind one for myself too… gotta whip some of them up now
Oh lord, these look fantastic! I LOVE macadamia nuts and coconut. Is it wrong to eat an entire batch by oneself?
I’m sure it’s not, I wouldn’t mind eating an entire batch by myself too
Hi Jasline,
I love your step by step pictures. And your muffins look really good and yummilicious with the cinnamon sugar on top!!
Thank you for the compliments Grace
Do give the muffins a try, they’re absolutely yummy!
Hi Jasline, nice looking muffins
I love the aroma of cinnamon sugar
Hi Jasline!
I love your “new home” It is so cute and well designed! And those cupcakes look amazing! Congrats!!!!!
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