Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Banana Muffins in Venice


I am in Venice right now, visiting my family, and breathing in the soul of my ancient home town.  I haven't been able to do much baking or cooking, until I saw some sad looking bananas that begged to be used instead of tossed.  It is so hot here that everything spoils really quickly.  Having made banana muffins everyday for few months at one of my last jobs, I knew I could make them without a recipe.   My mom had just tossed some old baking powder so I only had baking soda at hand.  They turned out really tasty, and a happy fellow ate three of them!

Venice is as beautiful as ever, but I can hear her cries at every corner.  There are massive amounts of tourists coming every day, and with that many problems follow.  I know that complaining here won't serve any purpose, so I will leave you with some pictures of this magnificent and fragile city. 


Venetian lights have a wonderful pink hue.  While it is now a modern trick, in the past the glass had certain metals added to it to make it transparent, that also caused the glass to turn pink in time. 


I love looking at Venetian windows, they are so unique and their style reflects the hundreds of years when Venice was a powerful republic.  This little palace is a jewel and is seen from the Gran Canal, near San Marco square.


The campanile of San Marco is really straight, not sure how the picture came out like this, I decided to not straighten it.  The frog is part of a statue set at the tip of the old customs point, Punta della Dogana, which is now beautifully restored after being in state of disrepair for years.

Banana Muffins
makes 12

4 oz butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
3 medium bananas, mashed
1 tsp white vinegar
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
Pecan or walnuts (optional)

Pre-heat oven at 350F.  Butter or paper line the cups of a muffin pan.  Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt together.   Beat the butter and sugars together until fluffy.  Add one egg at the time, and mix until well incorporated.  Add the mashed bananas and the vinegar, cleaning the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.  Add the flour mixture and mix until just incorporated.  Fold in walnuts or any other nuts if desired.  Portion into the pan and bake until the top springs back when gently pushed.

11 comments:

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

A place I'd love to see and photograph. Those muffins are lovely!

Cheers,

Rosa

Mari said...

That' s so funny!Every time I visit my family in Venice I make some banana bread or muffins...The pictures are really great!Have a fun time, I came back on Sat and the weather was gorgeous!

Simona said...

I hope to be there in the fall. Is the Bovolo still closed to the public? The website says so, but maybe it is not up-to-date. It's been closed for some time now. It's one of my favorite places in Venice (together with many others, of course ;). Maybe you know, but we had a good storm dumping rain on the Bay Area all day yesterday.

Anna said...

The photo with the frog is awesome! Great that they repaired it. The muffins are a must try recipe.

-B
http://maskingmetaphors.blogspot.com/

VenetiaMicio said...

J'étais à Venise au mois de juin et j'ai eu l'occasion de rencontrer Silvano Bluoscar, le dernier week-end. Dommage de ne pas avoir su que tu visitais ta famille à ce moment-là, nous aurions pu nous voir ! Peut-être une autre fois.
Danielle

The Kid said...

Great blog :)

The Kid said...

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Toy Boat Dessert Cafe said...

MM i just made some banana muffins today, but these look super delicious!

Laura said...

Thanks everybody for your comments. I am in Zadar, Croatia, right now, what an amazing place.

German said...

What envy. Going to Venice and have a place to cook is my dream!. Whatever in my trip section blog if you want you can check some good Venice ideas, let me know if i´ve been missing somethong in my Venice trips.

London Cleaners said...

I like the pictures you have taken! That one with the frog is so funny! I like your blog !

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