I don’t remember if I ever mentioned that my father is a pilot. It does somewhat relate to this banana pecan quinoa muffins, jaja, stick with me.
Retired airline pilot is his official title, though that was just a job for him, he’s passionate about flying as I am about baking – you get the idea – so he decided to buy a plane to fly around the country for the last few years he has before some observation (vision, hearing, whatever) is made while renewing his licence and he’s not allowed to fly anymore – he’s 73 and that day is fast approaching according to him.
Now, if you had a vision of me in dark sunglasses, hair flowing as I step out of a car right in the middle of the runway, hopping into a jet with my very cool carry on, I will point you to this picture. And will be here when you come back, laughing, or snorting even. I understand, it caught you by surprise.
What about the recipe, right? The thing is I had these muffins cooling off this past Sunday morning – a mix of bananas, quinoa flour, pecans and chocolate, intended for the Chocolate Party – when my father called and said ‘how about we go flying to see (insert his friend’s name here), and come back tomorrow? You have to leave right away or we won’t be able to make it on time’.
Being as I told you before, not a list maker which is a reflection of a lack of planning and innate organization skills, I answered yes, said goodbye to these banana muffins and their photography session, took a quick shower, grabbed something to wear the next day, my multifocal contact lenses (my most precious possession from now on), my camera and was on my way to my father’s house – a one hour ride – from where we drove another hour to the airfield, fueled up and in about one more hour we were up in the air, in this little excuse of a plane who scares most people I know. Me? I’m as happy in it as I am in the kitchen.
So all of this preamble is to tell you that I flew almost on my own for the first time!
Such a phenomenal feeling. I didn’t land on my own of course, my father is not so unconscious – he was in the plane with me after all – but really navigating an airplane is completely different from the hundred other times I hopped into a small plane and simply enjoyed looking out the window. This time I had to keep my eye on all the instruments, keeping the altitude, the course, the horizon aligned, all the while reading the chart in front of me to know what town or lake we were flying over to know exactly where we were. I was able to fly and take pictures of my grandmother’s ranch where I spent many summers and christmases growing up.
Flying a small plane is very visual, literally. You have to see where you are, the climate that surrounds you, if there’s another plane near you. A jet is a complete different feeling, not so hands-on, pretty much like making bread in a bread machine and kneading it from scratch. And the feeling is incomparable.
The muffins were waiting when I came back, screaming breakfast from every crumb, with an unexpected aftertaste from the quinoa flour, and the sweet crunch of pecans and dark chocolate pieces. After a few days they were still perfect. And gluten free too.
Today’s 5 related recipes worth looking at:
- SAVORY QUINOA MUFFINS from Rachel Cooks
- CHOCOLATE BUCKWHEAT BANANA NUT MUFFINS from The Bojon Gourmet
- DOUBLE CHOCOLATE BANANA MUFFINS from Gluten Free Canteen
- BLUEBERRY CHOCOLATE CHIP QUINOA PANCAKES from Ambitious Kitchen
- QUINOA CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES from Cake on the Brain
Banana Chocolate Pecan Quinoa Muffins – Gluten Free
- Yield: 12 muffins 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeIngredients
- 1.5 oz 40g pecans, toasted
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup 100g organic sugar
- 8 Tbs 115g unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cup plain yogurt
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup buckwheat flour
- 1 cup quinoa flour
- ½ cup ground pecans
- Pinch of salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 ripe bananas (mashed)
- 4 oz 115g dark chocolate, chopped with a kitchen knife
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF /180ºC. Line a 12 muffin mold pan with paper liners.
- Coarsely chop pecans.
- In a large bowl beat eggs and sugar for 2 or 3 minutes. Add butter, yogurt and vanilla and
- mix.
- In a bowl, mix buckwheat and quinoa flours, ground pecans, salt, baking powder and soda, and add to the wet ingredients. Give it a few stirs, but leave some dry spots.
- Add bananas, pecans and chopped chocolate and mix just until combined.
- Fill muffin liners, dividing evenly. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until a tester comes out clean.
- Let cool on a wire rack.
barely adapted from La Tartine Gourmande, by Beatrice Peltre
Silvia says
November 7, 2013 at 15:11Hola, Paula.
Me gusta la idea de la quinoa en estos muffins. No tadaré en hacerlo. Saludos.
Catherine @ Chocolate & Vegetables says
November 7, 2013 at 15:46Mmmm, banana and chocolate! One of life's more excellent combinations.
Pamela @ Brooklyn Farm Girl says
November 7, 2013 at 16:18Wishing I had one of these muffins for breakfast this morning! Looks delicious.
Deb says
November 7, 2013 at 17:53What an exciting weekend! I would agree that muffins can wait if a flying session is involved! Although I certainly would like to try one (or two) of the fabulous Quinoa Muffins with my morning coffee!
Susan says
November 8, 2013 at 01:15Wow! Great story. And I'm going to make these muffins for a gluten-free work colleague.
Liz Berg says
November 8, 2013 at 02:08What a phenomenal experience for you! I bet these muffins were phenomenal, too 🙂
e / dig in says
November 8, 2013 at 03:04darling, you should have had champagne, not quinoa, after that momentous occassion! fabulous!
wp_vknotes_admin says
November 8, 2013 at 10:30haaaaaaaaaaa, you made me laugh e!
Guru Uru says
November 8, 2013 at 06:25Delicious muffins, banana and chocolate is classic 😀
Cheers
CCU
ela@ it's better when I make it myself says
November 8, 2013 at 12:18Wow, what a great story! I used to fly for a living…while serving coffees and teas. Great muffins too, my favorite combo! And chunky chocolate is so much better than chips. Happy day!
mividaenundulce says
November 8, 2013 at 13:13Dame unos minutos que me acomode la boca en su lugar, y es que la abrí tanto cuando leí que habías piloteado que fue difícil volverla a su sitio…ja,ja,ja..qué experiencia más maravillosa, siempre me apasionó lo de los aviones, varias veces he volado en cabina y es una experiencia increíble e imagino que en los aviones pequeños la sensación debe ser mucho más.
wp_vknotes_admin says
November 9, 2013 at 00:17Me hacés reir mucho Nydia, y me encanta encontrar tus mensajitos en castellano acá! Ahora estoy con ganas de aprender enserio!
Abbe@This is How I Cook says
November 8, 2013 at 16:19My manservant has always wanted to learn to fly. I think you best learn while you can and maybe one day that little plane will be yours. What fun, flying with your dad, though! And I love spur of the moment things! They keep the excitement in life. And you even had breakfast when you got home!
Marissa | Pinch and Swirl says
November 8, 2013 at 17:58Brave girl! That's a serious bucket list item to check off…and these muffins! They look absolutely delicious.
Laura Dembowski says
November 8, 2013 at 19:55Flying with your father sounds incredible! I'd much rather fly in a little plane like that with people I trust than in a big commercial plane. Now that is truly scary. The muffins seem like a wonderful breakfast for sure!
valentina maria kenney wein says
November 8, 2013 at 20:48these look amazing — and perfect for my gluten-free son! 🙂 (I love the paper cups, too — so pretty!)
yummychunklet says
November 8, 2013 at 21:15Thanks for sharing such a great post! Great looking muffins, too!
Laura (Blogging Over Thyme) says
November 8, 2013 at 23:04Love this post–it was so much fun to read. I can imagine that it must be an incredible feeling to actually fly an airplane yourself. I've only been in ONE tiny, tiny airplane in my life (and that was for skydiving–not exactly the same experience, haha), but its definitely a different feeling when you're not in a massive commercial jet.
Now..onto the muffins! WOW! They look so scrumptious. Love how they use quinoa flour too. Thanks so much for sharing! I'm definitely going to make these.
vanillasugarblog says
November 9, 2013 at 00:11I need to start baking with quinoa!
Love this idea.
Great post!
Have a great weekend!
Renee says
November 9, 2013 at 00:34My dad was a pilot too. He had a Cessna 172 which looked a lot like your dad's plane. I remember all those plane rides and when he let me handle the controls when we were in the air. Your post brought back so many wonderful memories and tears in my eyes because I miss my dad so much.
wp_vknotes_admin says
November 9, 2013 at 00:55Wow Renee, I had no idea about your dad! This is a 182. I'll fly you around if you ever come to Argentina (with my dad on board of course, jaja!)!
Angie Schneider says
November 9, 2013 at 04:04wow You flew for the first time…well, I can't even drive.
Buckwheat and quinoa…these banana muffins sound and look wholesome, Paula.
Kathy says
November 9, 2013 at 12:00How very cool! A few years back, my son took flying lessons, and we got to see his first solo landing. My husband is a retired Air Traffic Controller, so we were in the control tower to watch. My heart was in my throat. The most exciting part was that my husband was able to give him his landing instructions. My son was so surprised to hear his fathers voice…a thrilling day for both of them!
Quinoa is a new favorite grain for me. These muffins sound healthy and delicious! Have a great weekend, Paula!