Banana Muffins with Baklava Filling

I was reading the cookbook, “My Greek Table: Authentic Flavors and Modern Home Cooking” by Diane Kochilas, when I saw her recipe for Whole Wheat Baklava Muffins with Greek Yogurt. I didn’t have whole wheat, Greek yogurt, or pistachios. I did have plain yogurt and good substitutes for the rest of the ingredients, so here’s my version.

Makes 12

Ingredients

For the filling

• 1 1/3 cup of chopped walnuts
• 6 tbl packed brown sugar
• 2 tsp of cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground cloves
• Pinch of fresh ground black pepper (three grinds of pepper grinder)
• 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• Grated zest of a small orange
• 3 tbl butter, melted

For the muffins

• 2 1/2 cups King Arthur all-purpose flour (315g)
• 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/3 cup of plain whole milk yogurt
• 1/2 cup coconut milk (original recipe used whole milk)
• 1 cup mashed ripe banana (2 bananas)
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup honey for drizzling over muffins once cooked

Tools:

12-cup Muffin pan, tall muffin pan liners, medium bowls, small bowl, large bowl, whisk, wire rack, fork, spoon

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190 °C) .
2. Line the muffin pan with the paper liners.
3. Make the filling by mixing all the filling ingredients in the small bowl and set the filling aside.
4. In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together
5. In a medium bowl, whisk the olive oil, yogurt, milk, banana, and egg together.
6. Gently stir the wet ingredients (banana mixture) into the dry ingredients (flour mixture) until just combined.
7. Fill each of paper-lined muffin cups 1/3 full of batter.
8. Place a heaping tablespoon of the nut filling in each muffin cup. There will be leftover filling to use later, so save it.
9. Use the remaining batter to cover the nut mixture, by filling the cups to just below the level of the pan.
10. Sprinkle the remaining filling evenly over the twelve muffin cups.
11. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Remove the muffins from the oven and transfer them from the pan to a wire rack.
12. Using a fork, drizzle the honey over the muffins

Notes:

The original recipe did not bake the leftover nut mixture on top, instead, it called for sprinkling it over the tops of the muffins after they had been drizzled or brushed with honey.