Nutella Banana Swirl Muffins

I have been counting down the days until I got to make this muffin again, because it is one of my ultimate favorites.  I never used to be a huge Nutella lover, but now I really don't know why!  It is SO good and I could probably eat it on anything.  When I was looking at different muffin recipes on Pinterest a few months ago, I found this gem: Nutella Banana Swirl Muffins (http://www.thenovicechefblog.com/2013/01/nutella-banana-swirl-muffins/).  I love banana and I love Nutella, so to me this seemed like a no brainer!

From the recipe, I only made a few slight changes.  Instead of using vegetable oil, I used unsweetened applesauce, I omitted the chopped pecans, and I used an egg white instead of an egg (since I had to quarter the recipe, it was too difficult to use a quarter of an egg, and it was much easier to measure out the equivalent in egg whites).

After I made these for the first time, I knew that they would be on the remake list.  While the top of the muffin with the Nutella swirl was the star, the banana muffin on the bottom was still delicious.  I waited for the banana to get very ripe before baking it, so the banana flavor really came through.  When they first come out of the oven, the Nutella has a crunchy shell around it but is so soft and melty on the inside.  If you have any leftover after the first day like I always do, the Nutella on top loses the crunchiness and becomes soft, but it is still extremely delicious.  You can choose to eat these any way that you like, but I recommend eating the bottom part of the muffin and then saving the top for last!  The combination of the Nutella with the banana is spot on, and it really raises the bar from the classic banana chocolate chip combination.