Strawberry Jam Filled Banana Peanut Butter Oat Muffins with Oatmeal Crumb Topping

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This recipe is one of six recipes developed by noted food bloggers for the Peanut Butter & Co. and Bob’s Red Mill Nuts About Oats Recipe Contest. The recipes were created using Peanut Butter & Co. peanut butter and Bob’s Red Mill® Extra Thick Rolled Oats. The contest was a part of our 2012 yearlong initiative “Build a Better Breakfast with Peanut Butter.”

The combination of peanut butter, banana and oats is fantastic in muffin form. But what I love most about this particular muffin is the secret bite of strawberry jam in the center, hidden away as a surprise. Think of it as a lovechild between decadent oatmeal banana bread and jam-filled peanut butter donut, only easier to make, more fun to eat and way healthier for you. Best of all, once they’re made and cooled, stick them in a ziplock bag in the freezer and pull them out individually the night before for a quick and easy breakfast in the morning.

Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Total time: 1 hour and 20 minutes
Yield: 20 muffins

Ingredients

For the muffin batter
2 medium ripe bananas
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour*
1 cup Bob’s Red Mill® Extra Thick Rolled Oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3/4 cup Peanut Butter & Co. Smooth Operator peanut butter
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup strawberry jam

For the crumb topping
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill® Extra Thick Rolled Oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

*Also available from Bob’s Red Mill

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Line a standard muffin tin with paper cups or spray them generously with cooking spray.

2. If your bananas are very ripe already, you can skip this step but if the bananas aren’t super ripe, place them on a baking sheet (unpeeled) and put in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until the banana skins have turned completely black. Remove the bananas from the oven to cool, but keep the oven on at 350˚F.

3. Place the flour, oats, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Using a balloon whisk, stir the ingredients together until they are evenly distributed.

Melt the butter in a small skillet (preferably one with a silver bottom, not black nonstick) over high heat, until the butter has melted and starts to foam. Reduce the heat to medium and cook until the solid butter fat parts start to brown, stirring constantly. Turn the heat off and let the residual heat brown the rest of the butter. Do not let it burn, but if all the butterfat hasn’t completely turned brown yet, turn the heat back on to low to give a little nudge.

5. Pour the butter into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add the brown sugar and vanilla. Mix on medium speed for 30 seconds to combine ingredients and cool the butter. Peel the bananas and add them to the batter, mixing on medium high speed to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing on medium between additions, to combine. Add the peanut butter and mix on medium to incorporate. Add the buttermilk and mix on medium to incorporate.

6. Remove the bowl from the standing mixer. Add the dry ingredients and stir by hand with a wooden spoon or large spatula until just combined. It’s okay if there are a few lumps or dry ingredients. Spoon a generous tablespoon of muffin batter into each muffin tin. Then place a teaspoon of strawberry jam on top of each partially filled muffin cup. Then cover the jam with the rest of the muffin batter divided evenly (about two tablespoon per muffin cup), making sure the jam stays in the center as much as possible.

7. Make the crumb topping by combining all the flour, oats, sugar, salt and cinnamon together in a medium bowl. Drizzle the melted butter over the dry ingredients and toss with a fork, until clumps start to form. Sprinkle and divide the topping over the muffin tins.

8. Place in oven and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the muffin comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.