Recipe very slightly adapted from Caribbean Cooking; makes 12 muffins.
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
2-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup + 1 Tbsp granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 mashed very ripe bananas
1/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Either butter a 12-muffin tin, or line with muffin papers (that's my method), and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt.
In the bowl of a KitchenAid type mixer, on medium speed, cream together the butter and 1 cup of the sugar, until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and then add the vanilla. Beat until the mixture turns light yellow.
Mash the bananas in a small bowl, and stir in the half-and-half.
With the mixer on low speed, stir the flour and the banana, alternating some of each, into the egg and butter mixture. Do not overbeat; stir just until everything is combined, and stop.
Use an ice cream scoop with a release (a disher) to fill the muffin cups evenly.
In a small bowl, stir together the remaining tablespoon of sugar and the cinnamon. Sprinkle the mixture over the muffins.
Bake for 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Remove from the oven and set the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes; then lift the muffins out of the pan, and set them directly on the wire rack to cool until you're ready to eat.
Serve warm or at room temperature.