Browned Butter Banana Muffins with Streusel Topping

By now, we all know that I have a slight obsession with browned butter.  There is just something magical about this nutty flavored butter.  I love the versatility of it; it can be added to both sweet and savory dishes.  The addition of browned butter adds so much flavor and depth to any recipe.  Who knew that something as simple as putting butter in a pan over heat and allowing it to “cook” and brown for a few minutes would make such a drastic flavor change?  I don’t know who thought of this originally, but I’m so glad they did!

Banana bread alone is delicious, add a schmear of butter, a dollop of cream cheese frosting and you’ve got a treat that is perfect for breakfast or dessert.  One day I was thinking about what I could do with some very overly ripe bananas I had.  Although I LOVE banana bread, I wanted to do something a tad different but that would still be appropriate for breakfast or a snack.  Ideas started pouring through my head and something that incorporated brown butter was at the top of my list.  No matter what concoctions passed through my mind, I couldn’t shake the addition of browned butter.  So with that, I started developing a recipe for browned butter banana muffins.

These muffins were delicious.  They were sweet, but not overly sweet, just the perfect amount of sweetness for breakfast with a nice cup of hot coffee.  The base of the muffin starts out as many banana bread recipes, but I added brown sugar to this recipe.  I think the brown sugar added a rich, almost caramel flavor to the muffin base.  Combine that caramel flavor with the earthy, nutty flavor of browned butter and you’ve got a winning muffin. The whipped egg whites lightened the texture and helped create a nice, fluffy muffin.  The addition of the streusel was not overly sweet but helped add a little sweetness to the muffin as well as a pretty topping.      

Browned Butter Banana Muffins with Streusel Topping

Ingredients:

For the muffins-
1 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour
1/2 Tsp baking soda
1/2 Tsp baking powder
1/2 Tsp sea salt
1/2 Cup packed brown sugar
1/4 Cup granulated sugar
2 Eggs, separated
2 Egg whites
1 Tsp vanilla
1/2 Cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
3 Ripe bananas (about 2 cups)

For the streusel-
3 Tbsp cold, unsalted butter
1/4 Cup flour
3 1/2 Tbsp granulated sugar

Directions:

For the streusel-

Cube the cold butter and place in a small bowl.  Add the flour and sugar, using a fork cut the ingrdients together, until small pea-sized balls form.  Set aside.

For the muffins-

Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin tin with liners, spray liners with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Place butter in medium saucepan over medium heat.  (Butter will begin to crackle and foam as it melts.)  Once the crackling subsides, the butter will begin to brown.  Swirl the butter around the pan as the butter cooks.  Once the butter is brown remove from heat.

Place all egg whites (4 total) in a bowl and beat on high until they begin to stiffen.  Once the whites begin to stiffen add 1 tablespoon granulated sugar and beat until stiff peaks form.  Set aside.

In a medium bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add the sugars and stir to combine.  Add the egg yolks, vanilla and browned butter and whisk to combine.  Once ingredients are thoroughly combined, fold in 1/3 of the egg whites until combined.  Add the remaining egg whites, fold gently until no white is visible. 

Spoon into prepared muffin tin and sprinkle with streusel topping.  Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes, until muffins are golden and set.  Immediately remove from muffin tin and transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.  Store in an airtight container.

***These freeze well too.  Individually wrap each muffin in Saran wrap and place in freezer.  When ready to eat remove desired amount from freezer, unwrap and microwave for a few seconds.

Recipe source: A Lynsey Original