Banana Bread

Bananas are such a loved commodity in our house that I hate to see any go to waste. Banana bread is the perfect use for those few that have gotten a little too ripe. The banana is not overpowering and is heavan with a cup of coffee.  It also got the happy dance from Daniela!

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (approx 4-5 medium)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup oil or melted butter
1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
1 recipe Streusel-Nut Topping

Streusel-Nut Topping:
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 Tbs all-purpose flour
2 Tbs butter
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350. Grease bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of 9x5x3" loaf pan; set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and ginger. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture; set aside.

For streusel-nut topping: in a small bowl combine brown sugar and flour. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in walnuts.

In a medium bowl combine eggs, mashed bananas, sugar, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in walnuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle streusel-nut topping over batter.

Bake 55 to 60 minutes, or until toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean (if necessary, tent with foil the last 15 minutes to prevent over browning). Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on rack.

Serves 16 slices

Courtesy of Better Homes and Gardens

Coffee Cake

It was that time of year again, our annual 6 family trip to Tahoe. This year all of the families needed to provide their own breakfast. True to form, I spent the week prior cooking and baking. I've been playing around with the blueberry coffee cake, but wanted something more, hmm, I guess traditional. Ok, something buttery, cakey, and cinnamony. That's what I really wanted. Bonus? I had my heart shaped cake pan I hadn't used yet :-). Ask my 1st grade girlfriend Kokomi how amazing this was. I think she ate her weight! Super easy cake!

Ingredients:

Nonstick cooking spray

2 sticks of butter, at room temperature

2 1/4 cup of sugar, divided

2 eggs at room temperature

1 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbs baking powder
1/4 tsp salt (I use Kosher)
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1 Tbs brown sugar
2 Tbs powdered sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350. Spray bunt pan with nonstick spray. Using an electric mixer, mix together butter and 2 cups of sugar in a small bowl. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, then add the sour cream and vanilla and mix until blended. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. Add half of the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until well blended, then the remaining dry ingredients until well combined. In a small bowl, combine remaining 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, brown sugar and mix until well combined. Pour half the batter into the cake or bunt pan (heart shaped in my case). Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar mixture over the batter, then pour the remaining batter over the sugar mixture. Bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean, approximately 50 minutes to 1 hour. Let cool until slightly warm, remove from bundt pan and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

Serves Kokomi :-)

Derived from Food Network

Cheesy Bacon & Sausage Breakfast Quiche

It was time for our annual "5 Families" trip to Tahoe and I had signed us up for breakfast.  Great.  Except I was stumped.  This is 5 complete families in one large house for a ski trip.  And I needed a breakfast that would be filling, but give them the fuel they needed for skiing, and be quick.  So, really, I needed something I could make ahead and reheat there.  I really have no idea how or why, but quiche popped into my head (as well as the blueberry sour cream coffee cake).  This is one of the quiches I made ahead, froze, and reheated in Tahoe.  It worked great and I had many a happy skier!

Ingredients:

1/2 lb breakfast sausage (I used the Jimmy Dean turkey sausage crumbles, HUGE time saver!)
8 slices center cut bacon, chopped
1 small onion, minced
1 green bell pepper, minced (can be omitted for picky eaters)
1 frozen deep dish pie shell (another HUGE time saver)
1 1/4 cups milk
2 eggs
1 Tbs all-purpose flour
2 1/4 cups grated cheese

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350
In large frying pan, cook sausage links 4-5 minutes, until cooked through (omit if using the sausage crumbles, instead, simply reheat them in the pan).  Add bacon to pan and cook until crispy; remove, leaving 1 Tbs grease.
Sauté onion and pepper in grease for 12 minutes, until softened.
In pie shell, layer cheese, bacon, onion, green pepper, and sausage.  In a bowl whisk together milk, eggs, and flour.  Pour over layered pie.  Bake 45-60 minutes until set, then cool for about 1/2 an hour.

Serves Plenty

*Derived from Food.com

Blueberry Sour Cream Coffee Cake

The idea of coffee cake makes me think of curling up with a steaming mug of coffee and the Sunday paper.  This coffee cake is perfect for that!  Also,  I've made it ahead of time, put it in the freezer, and taken it out before we hit the road for Tahoe.  Thaws and reheats very well.

Ingredients:

 Coffee cake:
1/2 cup butter
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup fresh (or frozen) blueberries

Filling / Topping:
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans (optional)
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350.  Butter a spring-form pan.
Batter - Combine 1 3/4 cups flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl.  Cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in eggs, then the sour cream and vanilla.  Whisk in the flour mixture. 
Filling - Mix remaining 1/2 cup flour, brown sugar, pecans, melted butter, and cinnamon.
Assembly - Pour half the batter into the spring form pan.  Sprinkle blueberries over the batter.  Sprinkle half of the filling on the batter.  Add remaining batter and top with remaining filling / topping mixture. 
Bake for 75 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean.

Serves 8 - 10

 

*Derived from Sam's Club

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

One day I had some bananas that were too ripe to eat and in the refrigerator some left over chocolate chips begging to be eaten each time I peeked in.  What to do?  What to do?  I know, muffins!  Perfect mid morning snack for Berto and Daniela can take one to eat at school.  I even took a few to the office, they requested I bring more. They'd have to fight Daniela for them, and I can guarantee she'd win. Don't mess with Girlfriend's food!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 large (or 5 small) bananas mashed
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup mini chocolate chips (I used regular sized ones, but just used fewer)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 and either spray muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray, or take the easy way out and use muffin liners like me.  In a bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a separate bowl combing bananas, sugar, egg, vanilla, and melted butter.  Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir just to combine, then fold in the chocolate chips.  Divide batter evenly into the muffin tin, bake for 25-30 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.  Reduce the time by 10 minutes and  you can make mini muffins.



*Derived from Little B Cooks