Cinnamon Sugar Topped Banana Bread

This week is going to be a busy one for us! It seems like that's how life has been lately. So much to do and never enough time. Now that we're parents we savor every last minute of sleep in the morning. I know it sounds terrible, but mornings are sort of a blur. I hope we're not the only ones ;) Our breakfasts are often rushed or non-existent, so when I have an hour or two to spare on Sundays, I love to bake bread or muffins for the upcoming week. Something that makes a nice little snack for me while I take care of the baby or that Stephen can take with him on his drive to school in the morning. This banana bread was perfect for us. I used up some frozen ripe bananas that I had and was able to use a cinnamon sugar mixture from a few months back. The bread itself was moist, tender and had a lovely little swirl in it. The topping was heavenly. The sugar got all crunchy when it baked which created a nice contrast in texture. If you're a pecan lover like me, they'd be a great addition... and cinnamon chips would be too! I hope you'll give this recipe a try- I know you're going to love it!

Cinnamon Sugar Topped Banana Bread
Ingredients 
1¼ c. all-purpose flour
½ c + 2 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 c. very ripe bananas
¼ c. buttermilk
¼ c. (½ stick) butter, at room temperature
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. vanilla

Topping & Swirl:
⅓ c. sugar
1 tbsp. cinnamon

DIRECTIONS: 
1. Move oven rack to position where pans will be in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly butter & flour (spray or line with parchment) the bottom of 1 loaf pan, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg, beating until incorporated.
3. Mash bananas on a plate using a fork. With mixing speed on low, add bananas and vanilla, beat until smooth.
4. In a small mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. With mixing speed on low, alternate dry ingredients and buttermilk (this will help prevent the batter from clumping up). Mix until just combined. Pour half of the batter into the prepared pan. Then sprinkle half of the cinnamon-sugar mixture over top. Pour the remaining batter over, then sprinkle the remaining mixture on top.
5. Place in oven and bake for approximately one hour, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, and the top is golden brown in color (if the top is getting too dark, place a sheet of foil over the loaf and continue baking until the bread is fully baked). Remove from oven and let cool for 10 minutes, then loosen the sides of the loaf and remove from pan onto wire rack. Let cool completely (about 1 hour
) before serving or storing.
Life Made Simple Family Recipe | Makes one standard size loaf

Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodle Blossoms

A few years back I was on the hunt for Pumpkin Spice Kisses. Unfortunately every Target in the state of Utah was sold out! So the next year when they were back in stock, I picked up a hefty stash of them. One of my favorite ways to use them (aside from snacking on them) is in these snickerdoodle blossoms. The other day while the little one slept I broke out my KitchenAid and whipped up a batch. The dough is soft, buttery, tangy and full of cinnamon flavor with a hint of pumpkin. I like to roll the balls of dough in a cinnamon sugar mixture that has a teaspoon of pumpkin pie spiced mixed in. I think it really compliments the kiss! These blossoms make an excellent treat, perfect for gift giving or for sharing with your family!

Pumpkin Spice Snickerdoodle Blossoms
Ingredients
3 c. all-purpose flour
1½ c. granulated sugar
1 c. (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
1 egg
¼ c. pumpkin puree
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1½ tsp. vanilla

Pumpkin Spice Coating:
3 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

½ bag Hershey's Pumpkin Spice Kisses

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a Silpat mat.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high for 2-3 minutes, until light and fluffy. With mixing speed on low add pumpkin puree, egg then vanilla. Mix until just combined.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, soda, cinnamon, cream of tartar, and salt. With mixing speed on low, slowly add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Mix until combined.
4. Remove bowl from mixer and chill dough for 30 minutes. Once dough is sufficiently chilled, use a standard size cookie scoop to create balls. Roll dough in hands to form balls, then roll into pumpkin spice mixture. Place onto cookie sheet and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a measuring cup.
5. Bake for 10-12 minutes, rotating the sheet half way through the baking process. Cookies should look soft and should have slightly firm edges before removing from the oven (don't over cook them or they will be dry and crumbly). Allow to cool for 2 minutes before pressing a kiss into the center of each cookie.
6. Let cookies cool on sheet for 3 additional minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
Recipe adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction, Soft & Thick Snickerdoodles | Makes approximately 3 dozen cookies

Cinnamon Sugar Banana Nut Muffins

I always find myself with one overly ripe banana left on my kitchen counter. Since most recipes for banana bread or banana cookies call for more than one banana it's always tricky to figure out how to use it. Last week I tossed it in a smoothie and the week before I bit the bullet and ate it. But this time around I thought I'd bake up a small batch of muffins using only one large spotted banana. That's right... it's a half batch. Aside from the fact that we only had 1 banana, we can never eat an entire batch of 12 muffins, so 6 just seemed practical. If you happen to have two ripe bananas then go ahead and double it. I wanted to experiment a little with this recipe. I knew I wanted to use a little bit of whole wheat flour but I also wanted to add nuts and some kind of topping that wasn't crumbly or overwhelming. I ended up using ¼ c. of whole wheat flour, which made them just a little more wholesome and then tossed in  ¼ c. of chopped pecans. The topping is a cinnamon sugar mixture that you sprinkle on top once you've scooped the batter into the muffin tin. Have you ever walked by one of those nut stands at a sporting event, you know, the ones that sell those cinnamon sugar coated pecans? Yep, your entire house will smell like one of those!

Cinnamon Sugar Banana Nut Muffins
Ingredients
¾ c. all-purpose flour (or 1 c. if you don't want to use wheat)
¼ c. whole wheat flour
⅓ c. brown sugar
1 egg
6 tbsp. melted butter
2 tbsp. sour cream or buttermilk
½ c. mashed ripe bananas, from one large banana
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. cinnamon, heaping
¾ tsp. vanilla
¼ c. chopped nuts, plus more to sprinkle on top

Cinnamon sugar sprinkle:
1 tbsp. sugar
¹⁄₈ tsp. cinnamon, heaping

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray or line six wells of a standard size muffin pan, set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together butter and sugar. Add sour cream (or buttermilk) and mashed bananas, mix on low for 30 seconds. Add egg and vanilla, mix until just combined.
3. In a small mixing bowl, combine flours, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Whisk together then with mixing speed on low, gradually add dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Remove bowl from stand and fold in chopped nuts. Using a large scoop, fill each well ¾ of the way full (or a little more if you have some extra). Sprinkle with extra nuts. In a small bowl combine cinnamon and sugar, sprinkle mixture over the tops of each muffin.
4. Place in oven and bake for 18-22 minutes. The tops should be lightly golden brown and they should be nice and firm. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pans for 2-3 minutes before removing and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve just by themselves or with some whipped cinnamon butter!
NOTE: You will want to double this recipe for 12 muffins
Life Made Simple Original Recipe | Makes 6 standard size muffins