Gateway Muffins - Super easy mix banana muffins

 

You will not believe how easy these muffins are. No special equipment or fancy ingredients for the basic mixture and you can pop in any type of add in you like. I first published them on the blog here back in 2014 as raspberry and there is no way to keep track of how often I've made them. The recipe is still almost too good to believe.

If your household is anything like mine, the kids will be eating bananas by the truckload and then all of a sudden stop. It used to drive me crazy but now I don't mind at all, I just make muffins. Also no big deal if you don't have time to cook right now, just peel the banana, wrap them in cling film and pop them into the freezer. When you're ready to cook pull them out defrost and use them, the mushier the better in this case.

Plus they are a gateway muffin to healthy eating and home cooking. They are not actually a health food, but if you have someone who eats too much processed packet foods, chances are you can win them over with these muffins and actually get a bit of hidden fruit into their diet. I sometimes made them with wholemeal (wholewheat) flour and they still taste great.

I made a YouTube video here which is only just over 4 minutes long from start to finish which shows just how fast and easily you can whip up a batch of home made deliciousness.

This is consistently one of the go to recipes I have used over the years. You can have them plain banana or add in chocolate, blueberries, raspberries, pretty much anything at all.

If there is one recipe on the blog I recommend everyone have up their sleeve, it's this one, trust me you won't regret it.

Happy Baking

Linda 

XX

Super Easy Mix Banana Muffins

makes 9 muffins. I often make a mix of different muffins by mixing all the ingredients up to the add in stage, scooping the batter into the muffin tins and then adding different add ins so I end up with a mixed variety of muffins. ie 3 blueberry, 3 chocolate and 3 white chocolate and raspberry.

3 very ripe bananas
1 egg
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 cup oil (I used olive oil)

Optional add ins: 

3/4 cup raspberry (fresh or frozen) and 1/4 cup white chocolate;

 or 1/2 cup chocolate chips; 

or 3/4 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 160C (325F) and line a regular muffin tin with baking papers (you will only need to line 9 of the 12 holes)

In a large bowl using a fork, mash the bananas well. 

Add the wet ingredients and mix well.

Add all remaining ingredients except the optional add in's and mix until just combined.

Divide mixture evenly between the 9 paper cases filling up to the top of each cupcake paper. 

**Add in extra 'add-ins' at this stage. You can make all one flavour or make a mixture. Some ideas are chocolate chip; raspberry/white choc chip; blueberry. Just push the ingredients into the mixture.

Bake until the top is golden and a skewer inserted comes out clean (around 30 minutes).

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2025. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes. Affiliated links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own.

Easy Pistachio Basque Cheesecake Recipe

I just celebrated my birthday, and with the kids pretty much grown up, finding a night we can all be together to have dinner in between their casual jobs, school, uni and other commitments is a bit tricky. 

I was sitting down Friday night working out what day we should organise my dinner and realised that if we didn't do it that Sunday it would be a month again before we would all be together so that's how this cheesecake came to be.

My Chocolate basque cheesecake recipe (click here for link) is one of my go to easy favourites. If you make it in the morning it can actually be served that night. I decided I didn't want the lead up to my birthday to be spent rushing to put together a layer cake and I had already been thinking of changing up my cheesecake recipe to use some of the pistachio cream I had in my fridge and luckily for us it worked out perfectly.

Basque cheesecake is crazy easy to make, my recipe has 5 ingredients plus a pinch of salt and it's just about making sure everything is room temperature and mixed well at a low speed. Even lining the tin is easy just scrunch up baking paper and press it into the tin. It's the ultimate lazy dessert.

I did add an extra step by decorating around the edge with more pistachio cream and chopped pistachios. Just to make it a bit more birthday-ee. But you can totally miss that out and it will be gorgeously burnt and delicious.

I still want to make myself an actual proper layered birthday cake,  it will have to wait at least a month but that will give me enough time to come up with some fun ideas. 

Happy Baking

xx

Linda

Pistachio Basque Cheesecake - makes a 6" cheesecake which will make 6-8 snack serves. Store in fridge for up to 3 days. Can be frozen wrapped individually in plastic wrap and thawed in the fridge.

450g (16oz) cream cheese at room temperature

300g (10 1/2 oz) pistachio cream

3 eggs room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

225g (8oz) thickened cream (dollop cream) (heavy cream)

good pinch salt

Optional decoration extra pistachio cream around 1/4 cup and 1/4 cup chopped pistachio nuts

Line a 6 inch wide by 3 inch high, round baking tin with baking paper. To do this crumple up the paper in your hands and then place over the baking tin and press down I used a spoon to press a line around the bottom rim and then turn the edges over the top rim.

Place cooking rack into middle of oven and preheat to 220 C Fan forced (430F).

Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature so the mixture will be silky smooth. Place into mixer bowl and mix at low speed until smooth and creamy. You do not want any lumps at this stage and also we are not trying to incorporate extra air or volume. The room temperature ingredients and slow mixing are key steps.

Scrap down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs one at a time and vanilla and mix until well. Continue to scrap down the sides of the bowl until the mixture is completely combined and smooth.

Warm the pistachio cream in the microwave for about 30 seconds until it is fluid but not hot and fold in with a spatula, there should be no lumps and no streaks when you are finished.

Add the thickened cream and salt and mix well.

Pour mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 25 mins, increase temperature to 230C (450F) and cook for a further 5 mins. 

Turn oven off and allow to cool in oven with door ajar for 15mins. 

Put cheesecake into fridge for at lease 4 hours or overnight.

Prior to serving remove from tin and allow to sit at room temperature for 20 mins. If your cheesecake is stuck and you can't get it to release, it's just some of the fats set hard. Run a plastic spatula around the edge between the paper and tin and if it still won't come out pop the base into hot water for a second being careful not to splash the cake and it should easily slide out.

**Optional extra decorating step -after cheesecake is cooled in fridge, immediately on removal from fridge while still chilled.

Remove cheesecake from baking paper and spread a thin layer of pistachio cream around the sides of the cheesecake with an offset spatula or knife.

Place the chopped pistachios on a plate.

Holding the cake by the flat sides roll the pistachio cream covered edges in the chopped pistachios. They will stick to the the pistachio cream. 

Original photos and recipe from the Bubble and Sweet blog ©Linda McCubbin 2025. I love when people share my blog ideas and give credit. Please feel free to link back to my blog for non commercial purposes. Affiliated links and adds may earn me money, however all ideas and opinions are my own,