Do you like to see musicals on the stage? Though I have never seen one on Broadway – I’ve never been to New York – a Saturday matinee of the latest touring musical sensation is one of my favorite things. I have seen many that I have absolutely loved and would love to see again; there have been a few that I wasn’t a huge fan of as well. But for the most part, between the beautiful stages and scenery, the catchy tunes and snappy dialogue, and perhaps most importantly the great actors who have some of the most amazing singing voices, I am impressed and in awe of the shows I see.
My favorite at this time is without a doubt The Lion King. I was lucky enough to see it again this past weekend. The first time I saw it, it was absolutely magical. It is the most creative and unique show I have seen. Having no idea what to expect that first time, I became a five year old, my eyes wide with wonder, wanting to take in all that surrounded me, even though that was impossible.
The sets are great. There are many jokes interspersed in the somewhat heavy and very moving musical. I’m not ashamed to say it made me cry both times. The songs are fabulous and the actors’ voices soar. Some are familiar songs from the movie, others have been written just for the stage but are no less impressive.
However, it is the costumes and how the musical is presented that is truly amazing and keeps you engrossed every second the stage is occupied. I don’t want to ruin the surprise if you haven’t seen it and wouldn’t even know how to explain it, but the costumes transport you to the wild as you no longer see the actors but the animals they are portraying. It is a feat of the imagination and makes The Lion King certainly the most impressive and creative show I’ve seen.
Though a bit of the magic is gone the second time seeing it, I quickly became just as enthralled as the actors walked through the theatre and the music grabbed my attention and emotions. Five years old once again, the two hours and forty minutes vanished far before I wanted it to, my attention completely undivided, as I clutched my Simba stuffed animal souvenir in my hands.
If you ever have the chance to see The Lion King I highly recommend it. Even if you aren’t typically a musical theatre fan, even if you didn’t care for the cartoon, give this show a try. I bet you’ll love it, and sometimes we all need to bring out the kid still hiding inside of us.
After a busy day out at the theatre it’s great to wake up to a nice breakfast the next morning. I’m thinking Bananas Foster Muffins. This week’s Muffin Monday challenge was to make a muffin with bananas. As you know I never bake with bananas because I eat two a day and would prefer other flavors in my baked goods. But I was up for the challenge and figured a good banana recipe would make all of you very happy.
I fell in love with these banana muffins after one bite. They definitely taste like traditional banana bread with a deep flavor from the dark brown sugar. It is the chunks of bananas that really set these muffins apart from traditional banana bread. I sautéed them with butter and brown sugar and added a healthy dose of rum off the heat. Taste this mixture; it is fabulous and very reminiscent of bananas foster.
The pieces of banana throughout the muffin add a burst of pure banana flavor with just a hint of rum. The whole muffin is very moist with a tender crumb. The flavor will transport you right to New Orleans with a waiter flambéing bananas foster tableside. I think I’m going to have to bake with bananas more often.
Bananas Foster Muffins #MuffinMonday
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 10 1x
Ingredients
Bananas
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 medium bananas, sliced ½ inch thick
- ½ cup packed dark brown sugar
- 1–2 tablespoons rum
Muffins
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¾ cup packed dark brown sugar
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- ½ cup almond milk
- 2 large eggs
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Oil 10 cups in a muffin tin generously including the tops.
- Make the bananas. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Melt butter in pan. Once melted add bananas and sugar. Cook until bananas have softened and are slightly caramelized and the sugar has turned into a thick syrup. Remove from heat and stir in rum. Let cool while you prepare the batter.
- In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl, stir together sugar, oil, vanilla, milk, and eggs until well combined. Add 1/3 of the banana mixture and mash until it is well combined with the other wet ingredients. Add the flour mixture and mix until just combined. Add the rest of the bananas and stir into the batter until evenly distributed.
- Using a regular sized ice cream scoop, scoop batter into prepared muffin tin, filling all the way to the top. Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating halfway through if necessary, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffins comes out with only a few moist crumbs. Cool completely in pan. May be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days, or frozen wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for several hours or in a 350 degree F oven for about 15 minutes.
- Prep Time: 25 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
This is great, banana fosters muffins sound awesome! I have all of the ingredients on hand too, looks like I will be making these soon 🙂
Ooohhh, yay! I know you’ll love them! And they’re kind of healthy with all those bananas, right?
Excellent. Very moist and flavorful. I enjoyed it!!
Thanks!
I don’t think there is any spectacle that can beat live theatre for entertainment. And The Lion King is one of my favorite shows. Watching a stage full of dancers and singers and actors, sometimes it’s hard to take it all in! Your muffins look so moist inside and I love the chunks of banana!
It is so hard to take it all in. I wish I could see and notice everything, but I loved every moment of the show again! Thanks, Stacy!
Ahhhh I’m so jealous! I’ve never seen the Lion King. I’ve seen tons of other musicals, 99.9% on Broadway, but still not The Lion King *sigh*
AHHHH MUFFINS! BANANAS!
★★★★★
But you live in NY! Go see The Lion King – you’ll love it. What’s your favorite musical?
Kayle=broke.
Hard to pick! I have a list: Wicked, Rent, In the Heights, and Spamalot lol
★★★★★
Well, I hope one day you can see The Lion King. Also loved Spamalot and In the Heights (I will never forget when the guy who wrote it won teh Tony and rapped his acceptance speech). Rent is a little weird, but I think it has the best music in any musical I’ve seen. I’m a little luke warm on Wicked, but my Mom and aunt and grandmother all loved it. Soooooo many good shows out there.
Spamalot and In the Heights are my 2 favorites that I’ve seen live prob–helps that they were the original casts
★★★★★
Oooh, the original casts – that must have been amazing!
omg they were! For Spamalot we were like 6th row from the front, we were sitting 2 rows behind Tom Hanks! That was the first Broadway musical I ever saw (I was just a lil 15 year old :P)
★★★★★
That must be like the best memory! I love sitting close to the stage. If I’m more than a few rows back, I’d rather not go. Of course it’s typically not that hard to get tickets here in Detroit. When I went to see Kathy Griffin (with my dad) Rosie O’Donnell was sitting a few rows behind us. I still wish I would have gone to talk to her and get an autograph.
ahhhh loooove Kathy Griffin!
★★★★★
I dream of going to New York and to Broadway. I’ve never seen a live musical on stage. Lion King sounds great, I love the movie even though it makes me cry.
But I also love these bananas foster muffins! Chunky rum-flavored bananas in a muffin….mmm!
You should try to see a musical where you live. Shows tour all the time. I don’t remember Lion King the movie much, but the musical definitely made me cry.
Laura,
just had to tell you these muffins look perfect and amazing!!! yum! especially love the muffin tops! If I could get away with just eating these, I would!
Thank you so much, Alice, and thanks for visiting 🙂 I am all about perfect muffin tops!
I’m not sure I could see it. I just got so upset seeing the cartoon video at the awful scene that even the Elton John song makes me cry. Maybe one day…. I think my favorite play was Wicked. I did see two on Broadway with Gran…Hairspray during it’s opening month and 42nd Street which Gran really enjoyed as did I.
I may have to make these instead of my patented banana nut bread. These look fabulous.
Ahhh, but the fact that musicals can bring out emotions in you is what makes them so amazing! You would for sure love these muffins because I know how much you like banana bread.
Laura,
thanks so much for visiting Eat2gather! Looks like we have somethings in common! Writing, love of Pie, and the Mitten! Looking forward to getting to know you ; )
Have a great day,
Sheila
Thank you for visiting and leaving such a sweet comment, Sheila 🙂 It’s always fun to “meet” another blogger!
Last broadway show I saw was cats and les miz
sad I know.
I need to fix that!
I have never seen Cats, but just recently saw Les Miz on its last tour and loved it. My mom didn’t really want to see it, but now it’s one of her favorites.
The first time I saw a musical was Evita in San Francisco. I was very young and still remember it. And bananas foster is such an extraordinary flavor combination! These muffins sound amazing Laura!
Theatre makes such an impact. Some of my best memories are seeing musicals. I haven’t seen Evita though. Thanks, Paula!
I like the addition of rum, its not something I drink by itself but has an amazing flavour in baked goods
I don’t drink a lot of alcohol, but I love baking with it. I put a little in everything I can!
Haha, same here! I rarely drink, but I always find myself thinking “how can I add wine to this..?” or something along those lines
These are phenomenal. I reduced the sugar by 1/4 cup in the muffin portion and added 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. Really, really good!!!
★★★★★
Yay! I am so glad you liked these muffins, Cindy! I haven’t thought about them in a long time, and now I need to make a batch!
I loved how simple this recipe is, my husband loved them, and I added pecans and caramel sea salt chips just to the top.
★★★★★
Sounds, awesome with your additions. I’m glad you enjoyed, Deny!