Banana Crunch Muffins

I finished my last final yesterday!! What relief. That was not a fun week and wow did I eat way too much bad stuff to keep myself awake or try to make myself happier about spending hours and hours studying. I was planning to bake after my last final but now all I want to do is eat healthy stuff.

I made these banana crunch muffins a while ago and had been wanting to make them for even longer. I originally found them on Deborah's site. They sounded so good - coconut, granola, diced and mashed banana, walnuts. Unfortunately they didn't live up to my expectations. They were good muffins for sure, but I think I was most disappointed by the fact that they had no crunch! Deceptive banana "crunch" muffins. Take into consideration my view on banana baked goods too though (not a huge fan).

If this sounds good, you might also like these muffins:
Applesauce-Oat Bran Muffins
Mom's Banana Apple Bread
Pumpkin Pecan Raisin Muffins
Orange Berry Muffins

Banana Crunch Muffins
Adapted from Ina Garten found on Taste and Tell

3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 extra large eggs
3/4 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 bananas)
1 cup medium-diced ripe bananas (1 banana)
1 cup small-diced walnuts
1 cup granola
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut, plus more for sprinkling on top

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Line 18 large muffin cups with paper liners. Sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the melted butter and blend. Combine the eggs, milk, vanilla, and mashed bananas, and add them to the flour-and-butter mixture. Scrape the bowl and blend well, being careful not to overmix.

Fold the diced bananas, walnuts, granola, and coconut into the batter. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling to the top. Top each muffin with a bit of coconut. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan then unmold and move to cooling rack.