I have had the pleasure of creating and sharing this simple banana and blueberry muffin recipe for the non-profit organisation, ‘Break3’. Founded in 2018 by Francesca Geraci, Break3’s mission and purpose is to support, empower and equip young people, with the tools to break free from stereotypes and stigmas that negatively impact lives. The number 3 represents not only an abbreviation for freedom but also promotes the three main approaches that their work embodies, including preventative, restorative and therapeutic.
By specialising in early intervention and personal development, Break3 aims to provide opportunities, encouragement and solutions to young people. They are doing so by running workshops, as well as delivering mentoring and coaching programmes both on a one-to-one and group basis. Their vision is to pave the way for young people, allowing them to feel empowered to lead the best life possible, whist at the same time, staying in control and being aware of their personal and social development.
During this lockdown period, Break3 have been running a #WEWILLBREAK3FROMTHIS campaign showcasing what individuals have been up to within their own homes, raising hope and positivity for young individuals at a time where many need it most. The next stage of their campaign will involve people like myself sharing tutorials of our passions for young people to engage with and thereby learn a new skill. This isn’t limited to baking, but home workouts, business skills, music and many many more.
I therefore hope that my contribution of the banana and blueberry muffins to this brilliant campaign will inspire young people to get busy in the kitchen and find a passion like I have for cooking. Remember it’s ok if you make a mess, or if things don’t go quite right (I still make mistakes…like overfilling the muffin tins when I specifically say not to, but mess can be cleaned up and as long as the muffins taste good, who cares how they look right?! And practice makes perfect, just don’t give up and keep going at it and you will achieve great things!
As you can see from my video, if you don’t have some of the ingredients, I have included some alternatives which will work equally as well. If you don’t have vanilla extract then just leave it out! I use muffin liners, but if you can’t get hold of these, then you can simply grease the inside of a muffin tray with some butter and pour the batter straight in there. It will work perfectly!Just be sure to take you eggs, yoghurt and milk out of the fridge about 1 hour before you want to bake so they come to room temperature, otherwise you risk them curdling when you mix them together.
Step-by-Step
- Preheat the oven to 190℃ / 170℃ Fan/ Gas mark 3. Line your muffin tin with muffin cases or grease them with a little butter if you can’t get hold of the cases. Melt your butter and allow to cool slightly.
- In a medium bowl, combine your flour, baking powder, bicarbonate soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mash your bananas, add your cooled butter and sugar and stir to combine and allow sugar to melt.
- Crack the eggs into a small bowl one-by-one – this is to ensure no cracked shell goes into the batter. Beat them into the mix and do the same with the second egg before adding the vanilla, the yoghurt and milk. Stir well to combine.
- Sift your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and carefully fold the mixture until it is just combined. Don’t over mix! Add most of the blueberries and give a final stir.
- Spoon your mixture into the muffin cases (or directly into the tin)until they are 3/4 full. Add some extra blueberries and slices of banana on top and sprinkle some brown sugar on top if desired.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until they have risen and are nice and golden. Remove from the tin and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack before devouring.
You can keep up to date on the latest tutorials and events by following Break3 on Instagram (@_break3) or Facebook (@Break3CIC) and as their founder, Francesca Geraci says, “As a community, the best way to move forward is to move together, so stay safe and keep moving”.
12
servings20
minutes25
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minutesIngredients
75 g Unsalted butter, melted & cooled slightly + extra for greasing if needed
250 g Self-raising flour
1 Tsp Baking powder
1/2 Tsp Bicarbonate soda
Pinch of salt
110 g Caster sugar
3 Super ripe Bananas + 1 extra for topping
2 Eggs, room temperature
140 g Skyr/ Greek yoghurt or 125 ml of milk, room temperature
1 Tsp 1 Tsp Vanilla extract
2 Tbsp Milk
125 g Blueberries
Optional – brown sugar for the top
- Equipment
Muffin tray
1 Large mixing bowl
1 Medium mixing bowl
Wooden spoon
Weighing scales
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 190℃ / 170℃ Fan/ Gas mark 3. Line your muffin tin with muffin cases or grease them with a little butter if you can’t get hold of the cases. Melt your butter and allow to cool slightly.
- In a medium bowl, combine your flour, baking powder, bicarbonate soda and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, mash your bananas, add your cooled butter and sugar and stir to combine and allow sugar to melt.
- Crack the eggs into a small bowl one-by-one – this is to ensure no cracked shell goes into the batter. Beat them into the mix and do the same with the second egg before adding the vanilla, the yoghurt and milk. Stir well to combine.
- Sift your dry ingredients into your wet ingredients and carefully fold the mixture until it is just combined. Don’t over mix! Add most of the blueberries and give a final stir.
- Spoon your mixture into the muffin cases (or directly into the tin)until they are 3/4 full. Add some extra blueberries and slices of banana on top and sprinkle some brown sugar on top if desired.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until they have risen and are nice and golden. Remove from the tin and allow to cool completely on a cooling rack before devouring.
Recipe Video
Notes
- – If you don’t have any Skyr or natural yoghurt, don’t worry, just replace it with 125ml milk and remove the 2 Tbsp milk in the ingredient list.
- – You can use golden caster sugar or white caster sugar – they work just the same. You can also use white granulated sugar but you might find it doesn’t dissolve as well and you may need to stir it a little more.
- – Make sure your eggs, yoghurt and milk are all at room temperature. Just take them out of the fridge 1 hour before you’re due to start baking. This stops everything curdling.
- – Don’t overfill the muffin liners (like I do in the video), as you see, they will overflow – but still taste great! Just fill them until they are 3/4 full and if you have extra batter, just bake another batch when these are out of the oven.
- – Try not to overmix the batter as it will become dense once you bake it.
