Healthy Ragi Banana Muffins | "No Maida, No White sugar" | with & without oven | how to bake perfect Muffins | Finger Millet Banana Muffins

 

Let's start this Auspicious New Year (2021) with the Healthy Baking recipe. Muffins are individually baked items similar to cupcakes but are little-bit moist. It comes with different flavours and that depends on how creative and innovative you are. But, is it possible to prepare muffins without all-purpose flour and refined sugar? Yes, it is. I baked my muffins using Ragi flour and Jaggery powder, and it came out unbelievably superb and perfect.

 

This post was originally posted on November 30, 2019, which I'm updating now with the video and few more tricks to make perfectly soft, spongy and fluffy Ragi banana muffins. I have been baking healthy cakes since my childhood and all the credits go to my mom who was the one behind my healthy baking recipes. We celebrate our birthdays with her homemade "No Maida, No Sugar" cakes since our childhood and we have started to follow the same as they are healthy and super yummy, of course.

Perfect Ratio:

• Though these cakes can be made using 100% Ragi flour, 50% Ragi flour and 50% Wheat flour works best taste-wise.
• Even I tried this recipe with 75% Ragi flour and 25% wheat flour. We loved the taste except for the fact that the natural little coarse texture of the Ragi flour is explicit in the cakes.
• If you are a health freak, just go with 100% Ragi flour and enjoy the healthy muffins.

How to get the Perfect Muffins each time?

• The butter should be at the room temperature but not too soft to touch.
• Fill the cups up to 2/3 portion which yields perfectly raised muffins. If you fill up to 3/4 area of the cup, it may leak from the sides while raising, especially when baked on stove-top.
• Adding too much of leavening agent than the required amount may deflate the muffins.
• Opening the oven or lid often would deflate the muffins as the temperature of the oven fluctuates by doing so.
• Preheating is very much mandatory to get the perfectly baked spongy and fluffy muffins.
• Over mixing the muffin batter results in the dense cake. Keep in mind to fold the batter gently until combined.

You can bake the perfect muffins even if you don't own an oven, muffin tray or silicone cups. Trust me, disposal cups do the job without any mess. I have shown in the video making muffins with disposal cups and silicone cups, both in the oven and on stove-top.

 

Do's and Don't Dos while filling the cups:

• If you want to make muffins without butter paper cups, greasing is the must thing to do. No matter whether you use disposal cup or Silicone cup or muffin tray, grease it well with butter or oil (or use non-stick spray) and then pour the batter directly up to 2/3rd portion of the cup.
• If you have butter paper cups, there is not any need to grease the cups. Just put the butter paper cups inside the silicone cup or disposal cup or muffin tray and pour the batter into the butter paper cups up to 2/3rd area of the butter paper cup.
  

Furthermore, you can top the muffins with chocolate chips, nuts or dry fruits as per your desire. Don't expect the usual muffin taste in this recipe, but expect much more, they are just more than that!
This is a fool-proof 'must-try' recipe for kids and a feast for all cake-lovers. 

⏲ Preparation Time: 15 minutes

⏲ Baking Time: 20 to 30 minutes
🍽 Servings: 12 to 15 muffins

Ragi Banana Muffins

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A perfectly soft, spongy, fluffy and healthy Muffins prepared with Ragi flour, Banana and Jaggery powder.

What to Use? [1 cup = 250 ml]

• Banana- 1 
• Egg -2
• Butter - 3 tbsp 
• Vanilla extract -1/2 tsp
• Ragi flour/ Finger Millet Flour - 1/2 cup
• Wheat flour- 1/2 cup
• Jaggery powder - 3/4 cup
• Baking Powder - 1&1/4 tsp
• Milk -1/4 cup
  

Steps Involved:    

• Mash one well-ripened banana and take in a large mixing bowl.
• Add 2 eggs or 1/4 cup of curd and whisk very well.
• Now, add in the softened butter whisk until combined well.
• Add in the vanilla extract.
• Sift ragi flour and wheat flour and add along with the baking powder.
• Start folding the batter adding milk to it. Do not over-mix.
• Grease the disposal or silicone cups and fill up to 2/3rd area of the cups. If using butter paper cups, place them inside disposal or silicone cups and fill up to 2/3rd portion of the butter paper cups.
• Preheat oven at 180-degree Celcius. If baking on a stovetop, preheat sand or salt for 10 minutes on the medium flame.
• Bake the muffins in the oven for 18 to 22 minutes and bake on a stovetop for 20 to 25 minutes. Check after 15 minutes and decide the exact timing.
  

Visual Treat: 

 Video link for "Healthy Ragi Banana Muffins" post: 

https://youtu.be/0XUT10N8JXI

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For comforting the easy understandability of the recipe, the step by step detailed procedure, along with the picture is shown below:

Step-by-Step Procedure with Pictures

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How to Make?

Steps for Making Muffin Batter:

• Take a ripe banana and mash it well with a fork. Add the mashed banana to a large mixing bowl.

• Break two eggs into the bowl. You could add 1/4 cup of curd instead, to make it eggless.

• Whisk the banana and eggs very well until foamy.

• Add in the butter now. The butter should be at room temperature when adding to the bowl.

• Whisk the butter to combine with the egg or curd mixture.

• Add Jaggery powder to the mixing bowl. If the Jaggery powder looks very lumpy, grind it in a mixer jar to make a fine powder.

• Mix well the Jaggery powder with the other ingredients. 

• Add in the vanilla extract. I skip this many times and replace with cinnamon and cardamom powder for the natural flavour.

• Take half a cup of Ragi or Finger-millet flour and sift it into the bowl.

• Also, sift half a cup of wheat flour and sift it into the bowl.

• Add in the baking powder.

• Add in the milk at the room temperature. 

• Start folding the batter. Fold the batter with a spatula and remember do not over-mix after adding the flour.

• The batter should be now of pouring consistency like this.

• Grease the disposal cups with butter or oil.

• If you have silicone cups or muffin tray, grease them also with butter or oil.

• Pour the batter such that 2/3rd area of the cup is covered.

• If the butter paper cups are available, put them inside the silicone or disposal cups. And, there is no need of greasing them with oil or butter. Pour the muffin batter up to 2/3rd area of the butter paper cups.

• Tap gently the cups to get rid of the air bubbles.

For Baking in the Oven:

• Preheat oven for 180-degree Celcius.
• Bake the muffins at the same temperature for about 18 to 22 minutes. After 18 minutes, check for the baked status by inserting the toothpick inside the muffin. If the toothpick inserted comes out clean, take the muffin cups out. If not, bake the muffins for a few more minutes.

• See the perfect muffins straight from the oven. Perfect! isn't it?

For Baking on a Stovetop:

• Preheat sand or salt for 10 minutes over the medium flame.

• Bake the muffins for 20 to 25 minutes keeping the flame on medium.
  

• After 15 minutes, check whether the muffins are done or not. If not, bake for a few more minutes.

• WOW! See how perfect the healthy muffins are!

Tips to get Best Muffins:

• Dare not change the flame during the baking period and dare not open the lid often. It may spoil your cake from being fluffy.
• You can substitute eggs with a quarter cup of curd.
• Disposal cups work best for muffins.

 

Healthy Cake Treat for a Happy New Year 2021!