Easiest Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

For some college students having access to food of any type is limited, and is frequently compounded by having to settle for cheap, tasteless food, or junk-food altogether.  I would argue that with a little forethought it doesn't have to be that way with recipes as the one that follows.

I stumbled across this recipe for Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins in an old cookbook--a perfect snack, breakfast alternative, coffee (or tea) addition, take-along and substitute for bad food!  Easy to make while watching your favorite sit-com.  

On a side note, this recipe calls for "sifting" the flour and dry ingredients.  If you happen to have a 'sifter', use it, but if not, simply get a sieve or strainer and shake the dry ingredients into a bowl-that's about the complexity level.  Totally worth the extra upper body strength!  Man, are they delicious!  

Since I was feeling especially decadent I topped them off with the chocolate sauce from Simple Boston Cream Cupcakes.

Equipment:

Sifter

Large Mixing Bowl

Ingredients:

4 ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup sugar

1 pinch of salt

1 egg

Sift:

1 1/2 cup flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Instructions:

1. Wash your hands.

2. Preheat oven to 350F degrees.

3. Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and nutmeg.

4. Mash your bananas and combine with sugar and egg.

5. Slowly add the sifted ingredients to the banana mixture.

6. Add butter, vanilla, and chocolate chips.

7. Add batter to medium-sized muffin tins, almost filled.

8. Bake for 8-10 minutes until tops begin to turn golden brown.

9. Easily freeze and save a couple for future need.

Egg White Omelet For One

The egg-white omelet is really no different than the 'Basic Omelet for Anthony'.  It just consists of a few different ingredients, and two additional steps--chopping and sautéing a few veggies.  Egg-whites don't always have the richness and depth of flavor that a whole-egg omelet will have, thus, I suggest adding a few veggies and a little cheese.

A time-saver for this recipe is to buy the egg-white cartons which will save you time and avoid wasting the yolks; however, buying pure egg-whites is not always the cheapest route.  You will need to decide what suits your budget and schedule best.

Equipment:

Cutting Board

Knife

8" non-stick skillet

Ingredients:

1 tsp butter
PAM Spray
1/3 cup of egg whites, to cover the skillet

1/4 cup sharp cheddar
2 Tbls yellow or red or green peppers
2 Tbls onions (red, white, yellow or green)
2 Tbls Canadian Bacon (or ham)

Instructions:
1. Wash Your Hands.
2. Prep your veggies and sauté in 1 tsp of butter over MEDIUM heat.

3. Once they are partially cooked (to your liking), set them aside.

4. Spray your skillet with PAM and leave the heat at MEDIUM.

5. Pour 1/3 cup of egg-whites into the skillet to cover entire skillet surface.

6. Do not touch, lift or jiggle.  Let it begin to congeal!
7. As it begins to turn 'cloudy', add your salt, pepper, cheese.

8. Sprinkle your veggies and ham over top.

9. Use a spatula to separate the edges and gently fold one half onto the other.  May need a large spatula.

10. Turn the heat off and let sit for 30 -60 secs.
11. Slide onto a plate with toast and a bottle of hot sauce (or ketchup).

Bandilicious Chicken Marinade

Everyone needs a go-to marinade in a pinch--this one is not exclusively for chicken, but could be used for vegetables you are planning to grill or sauté.  Whisk everything together and let the marinade work its' magic while you go to class, the gym, work, whatever.  When you return, preheat the oven and set your skillet on MEDIUM-HIGH.

What makes this marinade so flavorful is an old time classic seasoning salt: Cavenders Greek Seasoning  found in any grocery store where the spices and salt and pepper reside.

Equipment:
Pyrex dish (for marinade or use large freezer bag)
Baking sheet covered with aluminum foil and large enough to fit all chicken breasts
PAM Non-stick spray
Large Non-stick skillet (for sautéing)

Ingredients:
3-4 large skinless chicken breasts, scored

Marinade:
6 cloves garlic, chopped
1/2 to 3/4 cup olive oil
Juice from one lemon
Juice from 1/2 lime
3-4 tsp of Cavender's Greek Seasoning
2 tsp of Cayenne
2-3 tsp of Freshly ground pepper to generously coat one side of chicken
2-3 tsp of Kosher salt, enough to generously coat one side of chicken

Instructions:
1. Wash your hands.
2. Place chicken breasts in a pyrex dish after scoring the breast with a sharp knife

3. Salt and pepper the chicken breasts generously.

4. Sprinkle the cayenne and Cavender's Greek Seasoning over chicken.

5. Add the olive oil and squeeze the lemon and lime.

6. Add the minced garlic.

7. Take your washed hands and lather the chicken in the marinade.
8. Make sure you push garlic and spices into the scored slats of the chicken breast and any other layers.

9. Cover the pyrex with seran wrap / clear wrap and let marinate for several hours.

10. Once you are ready to cook chicken, preheat the oven to 350F degrees.
11. Remove chicken from marinade onto a plate with paper towels and pat dry.

12. Allow chicken to come to room temperature.
13. Cover your baking sheet in foil or use PAM non-stick spray
14. Heat your non-stick skillet over MEDIUM-HIGH.

15. Sear the chicken with breast side down for 3-4 minutes and DO NOT TOUCH or MOVE it!

16. Sear the other side for 3 minutes.

17. Place all the chicken breasts on your prepared baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes.

18. Remove from oven and cover with foil for 5 minutes to complete cooking.
19. Slice the chicken and serve with your salad, rice or taters.

The Original Green Machine

Continuing on my quest to suggest easy meals that lower your grocery bill without making you eat junk food, I thought it imperative to teach you a basic recipe for pesto--The Original Green Machine--in my opinion.  There's alot of hype about kale, green juice, green monster detox, and "green everything", but none of them go on spaghetti quite like Pesto, the original green pasta sauce.

A friend gave me this recipe years ago--the nice thing is that if you don't have enough basil, add more nuts and parmesan or parsley. (On occasion I have even bulked it up with fresh spinach. Kale would be an option as well).  If you like less spice, remove a garlic clove--you decide what makes your taste buds happy.  The best part is that making pesto home-made is cheap and will give you 2-3 times the amount that a store-bought jar will cost you.

If you have leftovers, store it in a jar and put it on the sandwich you are taking to class or the library!

Equipment:
Magic Bullet-type blender

Ingredients:
2 cups basil, packed
1/2 cup parsley, chopped
1/3 cup walnuts or pine nuts (walnuts cheaper)
1-2 garlic cloves
1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/2 lemon juice, plus to taste
1/3-1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil--this is gradually added until smooth consistently.
1/2 tsp Salt & Pepper, plus extra to taste

Instructions:
1. Wash you parsley and basil.

2. Peel garlic cloves and coarsely chop nuts.

3. Grate parmesan.
4. Add all of the ingredients except for half of the olive oil.

5. Pack everything into the blender and begin pulsing.  It may require a few stops and shaking to get everything combined.  But persist.

6. Adjust flavors as you see fit:  more cheese, more basil, more salt, more lemon, or more oil.
You should have a beautiful, silky, bright green concoction waiting for your hot pasta.  No need to heat this!

7. Get your bread or pasta ready, because you are about to have one fantastic vegetarian meal!