Honey Banana Cupcakes with Nutella Ganache

Warning: This post has many pictures. Warm, melty Nutella Ganache happens to be very photogenic.

This is how I like my cupcakes. Not with towering frosting or piping bag swirls.

Just big, drippy spoonfuls of chocolate ganache.

I never really got into the cupcake craze. I like cake…and I like frosting. I’ve just never been ga-ga over it.

But honey banana cupcakes? With NUTELLA ganache?

That I’ll go ga-ga for.

If I could put that ganache into an IV, I would.

I’d be dead within the week, but I’d die so, so happy.

Nutella ganache is chocolatey and dark and creamy and hazelnutty, and ohmahlordie you really just need to go make it now.

You’ll probably just want to grab a spoon and eat it straight from the pyrex measuring cup. That’s cool.

But if you have some leftover, put it on the cupcakes. Trust me.

Banana cupcakes and Nutella ganache are made for each other! Meant to be together. These things have the chemistry of the Golden Girls.

The cupcakes, warm from the oven, are simple and sturdy and a little sultry from the honey. Plain, they make a great snack. Smeared with peanut butter or cream cheese, they’re a perfectly acceptable breakfast.

But with warm nutella ganache dripping down its sides, these cupcakes are all dessert. Dark, sweet, elegant dessert.

These cupcakes can be whipped up in about 20 minutes and they only dirty up 1 bowl. And the ganache? 5 minutes.

To frost these, you take a spoon a drizzle the warm ganache over the cupcakes until it just begins to trickle down the sides like lovely Nutella icicles. Frosting a dozen of these babies takes about 5 minutes.

Which means you can have these cupcakes made, cooled, and frosted in under an hour.

Which also means this might be the most dangerous recipe in your collection.

Ideally, we’d all be good and follow the rules and wait until the ganache has cooled and thickened on the cupcake before digging in. But let’s be real. That’s not happening. Besides, that’s why they make napkins.

Honey Banana Cupcakes with Nutella Ganache

Yield: 12

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

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Ingredients

For the bananas:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup honey
• 3 large extra ripe bananas (about 1 1/4 cups), smashed
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the ganache:

• 1/2 cup nutella
• 1 ounce unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1/2 cup cream

Instructions

For the bananas:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake liners.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture then add butter, honey, smashed bananas, eggs, and vanilla to the well and whisk together.
4. Use a wooden spoon or spatula to gently combine wet and dry ingredients until batter is combined, but still lumpy. Do not over mix.
5. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups and bake for 25-27 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove, allow to cool in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely.

For the nutella ganache:

1. Place the chopped chocolate and nutella in a heat proof bowl. Heat the cream in a microwave or on the stovetop until barely simmering. Pour cream over nutella mixture and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Whisk together until smooth.
2. Use a spoon to drizzle ganache over cupcakes until it just barely runs over the side. Allow to cool.

Did you make this recipe?

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