Food You Can Eat: Chocolate Banana Cupcakes

I was fretting about what to do with aging bananas that wasn’t banana bread; I found this recipe on All Recipes. Let me tell you – it is so good, so easy, and so not heart healthy. Ah, well.

Ingredients for Cupcakes

    2 cups all-purpose flour

    1 teaspoon baking powder

    1 teaspoon baking soda

    1 teaspoon kosher salt

    3 ripe bananas

    2 tablespoons milk (Optional)

    ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

    ½ cup butter, softened

    1 cup white sugar

    2 large eggs

    1 cup chopped walnuts

    1 cup dark chocolate chunks

Ingredients for Chocolate Frosting:

    1 cup very hot, but not boiling cream

    1 cup dark chocolate chips

    1 to 2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and line a 12-cup muffin tin with liners.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl. In another bowl, mash the bananas, milk, and vanilla extract until smooth. Mix the butter and sugar together (in yet another bowl) until creamy. Whisk in the eggs, then whisk in the banana mixture. Add the walnuts, chocolate, and the flour mixture. Mix until smooth.

Fill muffin cups to the top with batter, then distribute excess batter as needed. Bake in the preheated oven until tops are lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Let cupcakes cool to room temperature, at least 20 minutes.

Pour the hot cream over chocolate chips in a bowl. Let sit for a few minutes, then whisk, increasing speed gradually, until color is uniform. If you prefer a stiffer frosting, add 1 to 2 cups of confectioners’ sugar and beat until smooth. Spread the frosting over the cooled cupcakes refrigerate to firm up the frosting.