By Meryn Vanderhorn
The Story:
For as long as I can remember, visits to my grandmother's house have always included a gift to my brother and I: a dozen or so banana muffins sprinkled with chocolate chips and candied cherries, packed in a container.
She separates the batter and mixes the cherries into half, so my dad and my brother don't have to endure the hardships of eating baked goods with fruit in them. I don't remember anyone ever asking her to bake muffins, but since I was a kid whenever we went to her house she was usually somewhere in the cooking process. Her house would be filled with the enticing aroma of vanilla and the warmth of the oven.
As far as I know, my grandparents don't own an electric stand mixer (if they do, they refuse to use it), so my grandma would mash the bananas with a fork, and mix the other ingredients in one by one, then stir them by hand. This made the process take much longer, but my grandma didn't seem to mind putting in that little bit of extra effort.
When I was a little kid I used to help her bake; I have countless memories of sitting at her kitchen table, helping mash bananas or measure cups of flour. Since the pandemic started I’ve been unable to spend much time with my grandparents. Because I’m going to school I can’t go inside their house, as it would put them at risk. Still, every time my family goes to their house to have an outdoor dinner, my Grandma has made a batch of muffins. It's this simple act of gifting us these homemade treats that lets me know how much love she has for me and my brother.
For as long as I can remember, visits to my grandmother's house have always included a gift to my brother and I: a dozen or so banana muffins sprinkled with chocolate chips and candied cherries, packed in a container.
She separates the batter and mixes the cherries into half, so my dad and my brother don't have to endure the hardships of eating baked goods with fruit in them. I don't remember anyone ever asking her to bake muffins, but since I was a kid whenever we went to her house she was usually somewhere in the cooking process. Her house would be filled with the enticing aroma of vanilla and the warmth of the oven.
As far as I know, my grandparents don't own an electric stand mixer (if they do, they refuse to use it), so my grandma would mash the bananas with a fork, and mix the other ingredients in one by one, then stir them by hand. This made the process take much longer, but my grandma didn't seem to mind putting in that little bit of extra effort.
When I was a little kid I used to help her bake; I have countless memories of sitting at her kitchen table, helping mash bananas or measure cups of flour. Since the pandemic started I’ve been unable to spend much time with my grandparents. Because I’m going to school I can’t go inside their house, as it would put them at risk. Still, every time my family goes to their house to have an outdoor dinner, my Grandma has made a batch of muffins. It's this simple act of gifting us these homemade treats that lets me know how much love she has for me and my brother.
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Ingredients:
3 ripe bananas ⅓ c veggie oil ½ cup white sugar ½ tsp salt 1 egg 1 tsp vanilla 1 ½ c flour 1 tsp b soda 1 tsp baking powder ½ c chocolate chips ½ cup chopped cherries |
Recipe:
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