Recipe: Banana Sour Cream Muffins with Mascarpone Frosting

We had bananas I had to use up again… I have a really good Banana Muffin recipe… but this time I wanted to try something a bit different….

So I decided to add a little more spice (cinnamon and nutmeg) and I wanted to try adding sour cream to the batter…

This recipe for Banana Sour Cream Muffins is good on its own… but if you want to take it a step further…. frost it with Mascarpone Frosting.

I came across a banana muffin recipe from Giada DeLaurentiis that frosted banana muffins with Mascarpone Frosting… so I decided to make my Banana Sour Cream Muffins and frost them with her frosting recipe…. I did adapt her recipe slightly…. the result was divine…. I couldn’t have asked for a better result.

TIPS

I used paper liners for the muffins…. I think they’re easier to get the muffins out of the pan with them.

I use very ripe bananas… almost totally black… they’re very soft and the banana flavor is strong… they’re so easy to work with… just mash them with a fork.

I melt my butter in a measuring cup in the microwave. I cut the butter into one tablespoon chunks… it will melt more evenly if you do this.

This recipe made 14 muffins.

I used a little more cream cheese than Giada’s recipe…. I made hers but decided that it was off a little…. and needed more tang…. the honey is very sweet…. so I used 4 ounces (or half an 8 ounce package) of cream cheese.

Use an ice cream scoop to fill the muffin tin… it fills the exact amount you need.

My butter and cream cheese were at room temperature… it made for a very soft frosting… after making your frosting, you may want to put it in the fridge for about 10 minutes to set it up a bit better.

I list the nuts as optional… they certainly add to the flavor in the muffin and the look of the frosted muffin… but you can leave them out if you prefer.

The recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of honey… this becomes a very sweet frosting… if you prefer more tang in your cream cheese/mascarpone frosting… start with two tablespoons and taste it before adding more.

For instructions on how to toast walnuts see my post.

I hope you try this… it was simply delicious!







PRINT RECIPE

Recipe: Banana Sour Cream Muffins with Mascarpone Frosting

All you need:

For the Muffins:


3 very ripe bananas, mashed
6 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup sugar
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
Pinch of salt
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ cup sour cream
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon baking powder
1 ½ cups flour
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Mascarpone Frosting (optional)

For the Mascarpone Frosting:


4 ounces ( ½ of an 8 ounce pkg) cream cheese, at room temperature
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons honey
½ cup toasted walnuts






All you need to do:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.





Line a muffin tin with paper liners.







In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until fairly smooth.







Add the melted butter and stir completely with a fork.








Add the sugar, egg, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt…. mix completely.







Add the sour cream… mix completely.





Sprinkle the baking soda and baking powder over the batter and stir…. Mix completely.




Add the flour and mix until the flour is completely mixed into the batter.




Optional Step…. Add the walnuts and mix completely.















Scoop out the batter into the paper liners in the muffin tin, filling 2/3 full.


Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean.

Cool on a rack for 5 minutes then turn out the muffins out of the muffin tin and cool on rack.

If frosting the muffins,cool completely before frosting.

To Make the Mascarpone Frosting:

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy.

Beat in the mascarpone cheese and then beat in the honey.

Frost the muffins and sprinkle with the walnuts.