Tag Archives: Banana

Cakes and Bakes, Snacks

Eggless Wheat Banana Cupcakes | Healthy muffins | Easy recipe

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I have been baking cakes and cupcakes with wheat flour, jaggery and ghee since many years now and I am happy to say that my kids too have got so much used to this flavour that they love it much more than store bought maida based cupcakes. I bake them for their school tiffin box and also as an evening snack before they go out to play. ❤️

Now that they are at home whole day (demanding for food quite often 😅), my cooking has also increased and while I was about to make these banana cupcakes, I realized I had not shared the recipe on the blog. So quickly took some pictures and here I am writing this recipe while they are enjoying the cupcakes. ❤️

Cinnamon gives a wonderful aroma and flavour to these cupcakes and that makes these cupcakes super tasty too. They come out so soft too and you can never say it does not have eggs in it.

Hope you all try these delicious, filling cupcakes too and I am sure you will love it too. Happy and healthy baking! ❤️

RECIPE:

Ingredients: { Makes 6 medium sized muffins }

1 Cup = 240 ml

Dry Ingredients:

1 Cup Whole Wheat flour / Atta

1/4 tsp Cinnamon powder (or Vanilla essence)

1/4 tsp Baking soda

A pinch of salt

Wet Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Mashed Bananas ( I took 2 small overripe Indian bananas)

1/2 Cup Jaggery powder

1/4 Cup Water

1/4 Cup Ghee

1 tsp Vinegar (or lemon juice)

Step by step recipe:

1. Sift together using a sieve 1 Cup wheat flour, 1/4 tsp Cinnamon powder, 1/4 tsp Baking soda and a pinch of salt. Keep aside.

Note: If using Vanilla essence, you can mix with wet ingredients.

2. In another mixing bowl, take 1/4 Cup mashed bananas, 1/2 Cup Jaggery powder, 1/4 Cup Water, 1/4 Cup Ghee and 1 tsp Vinegar. Mix very well using a spatula.

Note: I mashed two overripe Indian bananas and got 1/4 Cup of mashed bananas. Even if you use three Indian bananas, it’s fine. Cupcakes will come out well. Just take care to mash really well.

3. Now add the dry ingredients mix to the wet ingredients mix and fold using the spatula. Do NOT overmix. Just mix so that you don’t see any dry flour specks in the mixture.

4. Preheat the oven at 180 C for 10 to 15 mins in the center rack of the oven. If using microwave convection oven, choose the option of turning both rods on.

5. Meanwhile line the muffin pan with liners or just grease well with ghee or butter. Add a spoonful or two of the batter into each mold.

6. Bake at 180 C for 18 to 20 mins. Mine gets done exactly at 18 mins. Keep an eye after 15 mins into baking time so that the cupcakes don’t turn brown on the surface. Allow them to cool and then enjoy!

Note: To check if done, insert a toothpick in the center most cupcake. If it comes out clear or with tiny crumbs and is not wet, then the cupcakes are well baked. If it comes out wet, bake for few minutes more.

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Notes:

* These cupcakes lasts well at room temperature for a day. Just keep in a moisture free container. After a day, refrigerate it and then microwave for few seconds before consuming.

* I have used 1/4 Cup mashed Bananas to 1/2 Cup mashed Bananas in this recipe and it does not make much difference. It depends on how many overripe bananas I have. If I have two, I add two and if I have three, I add all three. Just make sure to not increase the quantity more than 1/2 Cup though.

* I recommend using Cinnamon powder for this recipe as it gives such a wonderful aroma and flavour. But if you don’t have, you can use vanilla essence or even Cardamom powder too.

* Always remember to sieve the dry ingredients to get soft muffins, specially when using whole wheat flour.

* Ghee can be substituted with melted butter, Jaggery can be substituted with brown sugar or regular sugar and Vinegar can be substituted with lemon juice, all of same quantity.

* Don’t overmix both the dry and wet ingredients. Just mix well once. Overmixing can lead to hard muffins.

* Preheating the oven before placing the muffin pan is a very important step. Don’t forget it. Preheat at 180 C for 10 to 15 mins.

* Bake in the center rack of OTG or with both rods on in a microwave convection oven. Keep an eyes after 15 mins into baking time but don’t keep opening oven door before that. Mine gets done exactly at 18 mins in OTG.

* To check if done, insert a toothpick in the center most cupcake. If it comes out clear or with tiny crumbs and is not wet, then the cupcakes are well baked. If it comes out wet, bake for few minutes more.

* You can give this to kids as evening snack or in their tiffin box for a filling, tasty treat.

For more Healthy cakes, cupcakes and cookies recipes, you can check my collection:

Healthy Cakes, Cupcakes and Muffins

For Baking tips for Beginners, you can check:

Baking Tips for Beginners

More recipes with Bananas like Banana pancakes, Banana Rava Cupcakes, Chocolate banana cake:

Banana recipes Collection

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Cakes and Bakes

Eggless Banana Rava Cupcakes | Easy one bowl Banana semolina muffins

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Bananas are the most brought fruit in our grocery shopping as my darling daughter loves it. 😍 She eats one daily after breakfast and also when she’s hungry in the evenings. But even then, due to the onset of summers here in Qatar, the bananas turn black and overripe very quickly. Though it is still tasty on the inside, they are slightly sticky to hold and I don’t feel like giving her to eat as it is (don’t want her love for bananas to diminish away 😍). But what to do with those bananas now? 😄

That’s when this mommy puts on her thinking caps (my brains work overtime now 🤣) as to how to use the leftover bananas who stare at me, pleading to be used up whenever I pass through them (dramatic much?? 😅 That’s me 😂). So one week it’s Jaggery Sheera with the bananas and the next week it’s banana chocolate cupcakes or Vastad rottis or the easiest wheat banana pancakes with them. Finally, when all these options got exhausted, I found out a new way of using the bananas.

Substituted mango pulp with mashed bananas in my Mango Rava Cupcake recipe and it came out so well that it has become a regular at my place (as of now 😅). So much that the bananas are purposely left to turn black 😅 to make these delicious cupcakes. 😍

By the way, did you notice the toy bananas in my picture? It is from my daughter’s food toy collection, which her brother too loves a lot and they both play in this set up which I have made for them. 😍 Though the places for the toys keeps changing throughout the day, before sleeping, I set it up like this so that our mornings are welcomed by this beautiful, cute scene. ❤️

You can also see my son’s vehicle collection which me and him arrange in various ways. We spend hours sitting there and I don’t realize how time passes with this little boy. ❤️

Anyhow, hope you all try these cupcakes and I am sure you will like it. Do let me know if any doubts and it will be a pleasure to help. Happy and healthy cooking! ❤️

RECIPE: { 1 Cup = 250 ml }

Ingredients: { Makes 7 cupcakes }

1 Cup mashed Bananas { I took 5 overripe small variety Indian Bananas }

1 Cup Semolina/ Rava / Sooji { regular variety }

1/2 Cup Jaggery powder

1/4 Cup Ghee

1 tsp Baking powder

1/4 tsp Salt

1/4 tsp Cardamom powder

Step by step recipe:

1. Preheat the oven at 180 C for 10 mins.

2. Take 1 Cup rava in a large mixing bowl. Add 1/2 Cup jaggery powder to it. Keep mashed bananas and other ingredients ready as well.

3. Now add the 1 Cup mashed bananas along with 1/4 Cup ghee, 1 tsp Baking powder, 1/4 tsp each of salt and cardamom powder.

4. Mix well into a even mixture using a spatula.

5. Now take a muffin pan ready and line with cupcake liners. If you don’t have liners, just grease well with ghee. Fill three fourth of the mould with the batter.

6. Bake in the preheated oven (which has been heated at 180 C for 10 mins) in the center rack of the oven at 180 C for 25 to 30 mins. Mine gets done at 25 mins exactly. Insert a toothpick in the center of the center most cupcake to see if done. If the toothpick comes out clear, it’s done. Else bake for couple of mins more or till done.

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7. Allow it to cool slightly. Then serve warm or at room temperature.

Notes:

* I keep in an airtight container for a day and it lasts well at room temperature for a day. Refrigerate after that and microwave slightly before consuming.

* I use the small variety Indian bananas which have turned overripe. You can use any variety of bananas but just make sure they are really ripe and mashed well.

* I used the rava that I use for making upma. It is not very fine but regular semolina size. Just don’t use very coarse semolina. If you only have coarse variety, powder it in a mixer first and then use.

* Grate jaggery finely and use if you don’t have jaggery powder.

* Ghee and cardamom powder gives the cupcakes a wonderful flavour. So don’t skip or replace it.

* 25 mins got my cupcakes to bake perfectly and 30 mins made the top part slightly crisp. So please check at 25 mins and if done in the center, remove from the oven.

* I got this idea of using mashed bananas from my Mango Rava Cupcakes where I use mango pulp instead.

* I also make these three recipes with leftover overripe bananas:

# Jaggery Sheera – I add mashed bananas towards and end along with jaggery water, mix well. Tastes very delicious. This tastes like Sapath which is made for Satyanarayana vrath prasad in many households.

In fact these Banana Rava cupcakes are a cake version of the Sapath prasad. The taste is quite similar to it.

# Vastad rotti – Tawa fried version of Mangalore Buns

# Eggless, whole wheat, Chocolate Banana Cake – Can be made as cupcakes too

# Wheat Banana Pancakes – Instant snack for the kids with bananas and wheat flour.

* If you are new to baking, you can check this post which I wrote to help my readers – Baking basics for Beginners

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Breakfast time, Snacks

Wheat Banana pancakes | Snack idea for kids

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My daughter gets attracted by fancy names and few months back, she came to me saying “Amma, I want pancakes!”. She had seen it in some video. I told her pancakes are nothing but our dosas, just sweet version of it like our amchi Surnalis. She just would not accept it and wanted me to make the original pancakes for her.

So, I had to look up for pancake recipe (since I had never made nor eaten it before) but found it rather unhealthy with maida (which we never buy) and sugar. So I substituted it with wheat flour and jaggery. It came out very well and she was very happy to see it. ❤️

From that day onwards, when she’s hungry, she asks me to make these pancakes. I have improvised it by adding bananas to it too as it helps me finish off the over ripe bananas (who stare at me to use them up 😁) and also makes the pancakes more nutritious.

My 2 year old son too loves it a lot and it fills my heart with happiness when I see them eating together dipping the little pancakes in honey and eating with their tiny hands. Beautiful memories which will be in me forever. ❤️

Hope you all try and love these pancakes too. Happy and healthy cooking!

RECIPE:

Ingredients: {Makes about 18 to 20 small pancakes}

2 Cups Whole wheat flour/ Atta

1 Cup mashed overipe Bananas

1/4 Cup Milk

1 Tbsp Jaggery powder (optional)

1/4 tsp Baking soda (skip if making for kids aged less than one year) * check notes

Salt to taste

Step by step recipe:

1. Add the mashed bananas and jaggery powder in a bowl. Mix well.

2. Sieve wheat flour, baking soda and salt in the same bowl.

3. Add milk and water to form a smooth, thick, lump free batter of slightly thick consistency.

4. Heat a flat pan and when it gets hot, pour the batter using a spoon onto the pan making small pancakes as shown.

5. Cover and cook on medium flame till the surface cooks. Add ghee over it.

Note: Be careful to cook on medium flame as high flame can cause the pancake to turn black underneath due to bananas.

6. Flip gently and cook for couple of minutes.

7. Remove and serve with bananas, butter and honey.

Notes:

* I make these pancakes without baking soda too and my kids love it that way as well. They don’t turn fluffy but turn out very soft like dosas.

* You can skip bananas if you don’t have. It comes out like regular pancakes.

* You can skip jaggery if the bananas are very sweet. Use overripe bananas for best results.

* I make sweet dosas similar to this. Just mix together wheat flour, jaggery and salt with water and make a slightly thick batter. Good for quick to make evening snacks for kids.

* For kids, cook the pancakes in ghee and serve with butter and honey with bananas on the side. It’s very filling and they are sure to love it too.

* Do cook these pancakes in medium flame and not high flame as it can cause it to turn black underneath.

Desserts

Easy Nendran Banana Halwa | Nendrabale kele halwo

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This halwa is a quick fix for mommies like me who don’t have the time for elaborate halwa making as kids keep pulling our legs to come play with them 😄. Kerala Bananas or Nendrabale kele (in Konkani) is a regular in my house as kids love it very much right from when they were babies.

I usually cut the bananas into round shape, fry it in ghee and give them but sometimes it gets over ripe very quickly (all thanks to the summers here). So I make this halwa which my husband’s aunt made when she had less bananas to make the original version of nendrabale halwa.

This is super easy to make yet comes out too delicious for words. We love it a lot for our post dinner dessert and kids enjoy it as well. My daughter has given it a name “Banana squares”. Trust kids these days for modern and unique names for our age old dishes 😅.

Hope you all try this when you have leftover nendran bananas staring at you to use it up 😄. Happy and healthy cooking!

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

3 over ripe Nendran Banana/ Kerala Banana/ Nendrabale kele

1/2 Cup to 3/4 Cup Jaggery powder or grated Jaggery (to taste)

2 Tbsp Ghee

1/2 tsp Cardamom powder (optional)

Step by step recipe:

1. Peel and mash the bananas well using hands.

2. Heat ghee in a pan (preferably non stick) and add the mashed bananas. Fry well on medium flame till the rawness of the bananas goes away. Takes about 5 mins.

3. Now add jaggery powder.

4. Now continuously mix till the mixture leaves the sides of the pan and turns golden in colour. Takes about 10 mins of continuous mixing. Add Cardamom powder and mix once.

5. Remove and put in a plate greased with ghee. Level using spatula. Cut and serve after it cools slightly.

Notes:

* Over ripe nendran bananas work well for this recipe as it can be easily mashed with hands and cooks quickly too.

* Normal banana halwa can be made this way too but the texture would be different and not thick like this nendran banana halwa.

* Jaggery can be adjusted to taste as per the sweetness of the bananas.

* Fry the bananas well in ghee before adding jaggery so that there is no rawness in the halwa. After adding jaggery too, keep stirring well on medium flame till the mixture leaves the side of the pan. Both these steps as very important to get perfect halwa.

Breakfast time, Konkani Recipes, Snacks

Vastad rotti | Wheat Banana flatbread

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I am sure if you are checking this recipe, it must be either due to the amazement of the unique name “Vastad rotti” or have savoured this delicious snack made by your grandmother and just wish to recreate it in your kitchen.

Anyhow for all of you, Vastad rotti is nothing but tava fried version of the famous Mangalore Buns. My grandmother made these rottis as evening snack when she did not want to deep fry the leftover buns dough again. They tasted so delicious that I loved it more than buns itself.

After marriage, when I tried it for the first time, my husband did not know about it but to my amazement, he too loved it very much. So now whenever there are leftover bananas, he asks me make these rottis. In fact, sometimes he brings bananas only for this. Such is the love for these cute small Vastad rottis. 😍

Hope you all try and love it too. Happy and healthy cooking! ♥️

RECIPE:

Ingredients:

3 Cups Wheat flour (or as required)

1 Cup mashed bananas

1/2 Cup Curd or Yogurt

1/4 Cup Powdered Jaggery or Sugar

2 Tbsp Besan/ chickpea flour

1 tsp Cumin seeds/ Jeera

A pinch of pepper powder

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Baking soda (optional)* check notes

Step by step recipe:

1. Take mashed bananas in a large bowl. Add besan, jaggery or sugar, cumin seeds, pepper powder, salt and baking soda ( if adding).

This is an old picture. I add powdered jaggery now.

2. Add curd and mix well using a spatula.

3. Now slowly add wheat flour 1 Cup at a time and keep mixing till it forms a dough. Knead with hands lightly.

4. Coat the dough with oil and cover and keep overnight or for 6 to 8 hours to ferment at room temperature in a warm place.

5. When making vastad rottis, make equal portions of the dough.

6. Roll like you roll out puri into a thick circle. Use dry flour if needed.

7. Heat a tawa and place the rolled roti on it. Look at it puff up and form tiny bubbles on the surface.

8. Add ghee. Flip and cook the other side too.

9. Serve hot with chutney or dalitoy ( Konkani style dal).

Notes:

* Actually the measurements of this recipe can vary a lot depending on the variety of bananas, water content in curd and quality of wheat flour. So please go with the step by step recipe and follow accordingly.

* You can also make with leftover bananas even if you have only couple of them. Not necessarily 1 Cup mashed bananas are required.

* Add curd along with other ingredients and see how much wheat flour is needed to get it to form a dough.

* Please do not add water while forming this dough. The moisture should come only from bananas and curd.

* I skip baking soda sometimes and even though there is a difference in texture, taste is almost the same. With baking soda, the texture is flaky like a paratha and without it, the texture is like a thick chapati.

* After fermentation of the dough, the dough might leave water and turn very sticky. Just add more wheat flour and form a manageable dough.

* Roll the dough into a thick circle and cook well on medium flame. On high flame, the rotis can turn black due to the presence of bananas in it.

* You can use powdered jaggery or sugar in the dough. Does not make much difference.