I've been making these banana muffins for several years now. I love them, and so does the rest of the family. They are sweet, dense and full of banana flavor. These are by no means "light" muffins. Actually, the original recipe has a mascarpone cream frosting to go along with them, but I leave that off. Frosting would make it a cupcake and to some crazy people, i.e. the husband, it's unacceptable to have cupcakes for breakfast. I know, he's not in his right mind!

Banana Muffins
from Giada De Laurentiis via Food Network

3 C all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
2 C. sugar
1 C. vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 T. vanilla extract
4 ripe bananas, peeled and coarsely mashed

Line 18 muffin cups with paper liners. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Whisk the flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a medium bowl to blend. Beat the sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a large bowl to blend. Stir in the banana. Add the dry ingredients and stir just until blended.

Divide the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Bake the muffins on the middle rack until the tops are golden brown and a tester inserted into the center comes out with no crumbs attached, about 25 minutes. Transfer the muffins to a rack and cool slightly. The muffins may be eaten warm or cooled completely and frosted.

Makes 18 muffins