Banana Bread Cake

Ingredients:

Non-stick baking spray, for the pan (baking spray has flour mixed in)
8 tablespoons (one stick) salted butter (melted and cooled)
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 large eggs (beaten)
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4-5 over ripe bananas, mashed

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1-2 tablespoons sugar, if you feel it is needed

Turbinado sugar, for covering the top

Directions:

1)  Preheat the oven to 350F°.  Spray an 8x8 pan with non-stick baking spray or line it with     parchment paper.

2)  In a stand mixer with paddle attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand-held electric mixer), beat together the butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla until well blended.  Add the bananas and mix until combined.

3)  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Add the dry ingredients in to the wet ingredients and beat until just combined.  Add the pecans (if using) and mix until combined.

4)  Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread it evenly.  If you wish to follow this step, sprinkle the Turbinado sugar over the top.  The author recommends covering the who surface completely with sugar; as much as you like.  This and baking sugars maintain their crystallization and give a pleasant crunch.

5)  Bake until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes.  Let the bread cool slightly in it's pan on a rack.  Slice and serve warm with salted butter or cream cheese.

6)  When completely cooled, cover the pan with foil and store at room temperature for up to two days.

Makes eight servings


MY NOTES:

*  I've made this recipe about four times and it's come out perfectly each time.

*   The recipe calls for an 8x8 pan.  I am going to try it with a bundt pan the next time I make this.  I think as long as the banana isn't in big chunks (which she says you can do) but rather smooth, a bundt pan should work.  I would warn you should leave cakes in bundt pans about a half hour for ease in removing.  I put the pan on a large cooling rack.

*  The recipe calls for salted butter.  You are already using salt in the batter recipe.  I don't think it's needed.  I've always used unsalted butter.

* The recipes says 4-5 bananas.  I've always used five.  I make sure they are fully ripened and I slice them into the mixing bowl before using the hand mixer to get a really smooth batter.  Just a matter of personal preference.  Also, with more banana, I have never felt the need to add extra sugar to the batter.

*  I've always used the chopped pecans, because I am used to making banana bread this way (my mother's recipe which is on this blog.)  It is stated you can also use chocolate chips as a substitute for the nuts.  I'm not sure I would like that combo, but I agree that it would work.

*  I do use the Turbinado sugar over the surface of the batter.  It makes a nice crunch.  I do not use it thickly, although I suppose you could.

*  As an aside, it says the prep time is 15 minutes, cooking is 45-50 minutes.  You might even get buy with 40 minutes depending on how your oven runs.  Let cool 5-10 minutes...or longer.

Rossi Pasta

I discovered this pasta company called Rossi Pasta in Marietta, Ohio.  It may be the same company I used to have available through Whole Foods where they had extra long pasta in spinach or tomato.  There are truly no artificial ingredients in these dried pastas.  I made the "Tomato Basic Garlic" recently and have the "Parsley" still to use.  It's hard to explain what makes them so unique other than you would think dried pasta is dried pasta, yet this product has a remarkably fresh taste.  It costs more than the boxed pastas from Italy, but oh so far superior.  

The company link is:  https://www.rossipasta.com/

….and now I won't forget again when re-ordering.  There is only one shop (in Ellicott City) that carries this line and one in North Truro on Cape Cod in Massachusetts.

Poultry Stock

 

 

When making stock from chicken or turkey carcasses upon which little meat is left, there are two points to be made:

First, use them quickly, without waiting for them to get dried up and stale.

Second, it is a mistake to cook them too long, or a strong and unpleasant flavor of bone will result (this is what makes pressure-cooked stocks so horrible) and the stock will be cloudy.  Whenever possible, it is a great improvement to add a small portion of raw veal or beef when making such stocks, and to add onions, carrots, celery and herbs.

~~ Elizabeth David

Kathy's Rum Cake

Just Out of the Oven

 

 

Kathy's Rum Cake

 

 

Ingredients:

 

1 package yellow cake mix (other flavors also work great)

1 package instant vanilla pudding (the 3.5 ounce small box)

4 large eggs

1/2 cup rum (it can go up to one cup)

1 cup plain yogurt

1 cup poppy seeds (optional)

1/2 cup vegetable oil

 

Directions:

 

1) Beat all of the ingredients at medium speed for five minutes.  Pour into a greased ten inch bundt or cake pan. 

 

2) Bake for one hour at 350 degrees.

 

3) Cool fifteen minutes then turn out.

 

A Special Art Deco Shaped Bundt Pan

  

Glaze:

1/4 cup butter

2 cups powdered Confectioner's Sugar

2 to 4 tablespoons milk, cream or hot water

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

Melt the butter in a saucepan or microwave.  Add to the powdered sugar.  Add the milk-water and vanilla extract.  Stir to blend, beat until smooth and creamy.  Add a bit more milk if necessary.  
 

 Drizzle the finished glaze over the cake.  You can vary the glaze by adding other extracts or citrus zests.

 
NOTES:
 

* I used Duncan Hines yellow cake mix

 

* I used a medium brown rum as it's all I had

 

* I used a Greek full fat plain yogurt which fell slightly short of one full cup, so I added a few teaspoons of sour cream to fulfill the measurement.

 

* I skipped the poppy seeds

 

* I used Wesson oil.

 

*For the glaze, I microplane zested a navel orange and juiced the entire thing.

 

* I used cream instead of milk

 

* I forgot the vanilla extract (duh) but it came out fine.  And after going to buy a good quality bottle.  Shaking head at self.

 

* I didn't wait 15 minutes for a cool down.  The non-stick pan made the cake quite brown so I put a rack over the top and turned it, then let it cool outside the pan.

 

About five minutes in I put the glaze over the cake, with wax paper under the cooling rack, then reused it two more times in the coating process.  The fresh orange gave it a brisk, clean flavor. 



Con Queso Rice

 
Con Queso Rice

Ingredients:

2 cup black beans
1 1/2 cups white rice, uncooked
1 teaspoon salt
3 cloves garlic, peeled and diced
2 small onions, chopped
1 four-ounce can, chopped green chilies
1 fresh jalapeno, chopped
1 pound Jack cheese, shredded
1 pound cottage cheese


Directions:

The original directions call to cook beans from scratch, but for ONE cup of beans?  Use canned, drain and rinse.

Cook rice with 3 cups of water, a pinch of salt, for twenty minutes.  Cool slightly.

Mix rice, drained beans, garlic, onions, and chilies in big bowl.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. 

Butter a large casserole.  Cover bottom with a layer of rice, a layer of the bean mixture, then a layer of cheese and cottage cheese and repeat to the level you wish.  End with a layer of rice.

Bake for 30 minutes.  Add final sprinkle of cheese and cook 5 minutes more.

Serves 6
=======================================================================

NOTES:

This recipe came originally from Diet for a Small Planet, a hippy Bible for wholesome cooking in the late '60's, early '70's.  The original recipe was bland and this has been spiked a bit more.

I didn't have white rice (I usually use Basmati) so I used a frozen Trader Joe's brown rice, which was fine, but I think overall, the recipe would benefit more visually and taste wise with white.  I used about four cups cooked, which fell a bit short of the quantity it should be.  This lead the layers to be thinner than I think it should be.

I used one can of black beans and that was more than enough.  It gave a sprinkling effect of beans throughout the rice, little dots of color and didn't seem excessive. 

I used one large clove of garlic, not 3, and a small onion.  I sautéed the jalapeno and onion briefly, then added the garlic at the very end.  I wanted it pre-cooked briefly rather than raw, even though it would bake in the oven later.  I mixed all of this with the beans and rice.

I also used small containers of cottage cheese.  I half thought about blending it to get rid of curds.  A pound of cottage cheese would have been the large container.  I would never eat that much, so I used about three small containers, less than half a pound, and by mixing it in with the rice and beans, you didn't notice the texture.

The store I was at didn't sell Jack cheese in a block, so I used mixed pre-shredded Cheddar Jack mix.  I think it needs something sharper with the Jack, because even with the chilies the dish was bland.

You were supposed to end with a layer of rice, I ended with a layer of cheese for the crusty effect, and all told, I made about two layers in a 9 x 13 casserole Pyrex dish.

I can see this as a side dish with grilled meats.  It's a bit much as a main, and I only ate a small portion then others ate it as leftovers. 

The dish needs something else.  The chilies don't produce enough heat.  A shake of just about anything would help:  cayenne powder, chipotle powder, hot sauce, salsa.

Orange, Tofu, and Bell Pepper Stir-Fry

 

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup canola oil, divided
• 5 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
• 1 (14-oz.) pkg. extra-firm water-packed tofu, drained and cut into 3/4-in. cubes
• 1/2 cup fresh orange juice
• 1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
• 1 cup sliced green bell pepper
• 1 cup sliced red bell pepper
• 1 tablespoon thinly sliced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon grated orange rind
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
• 1 teaspoon light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 (8.8-oz) pkg. precooked brown rice (such as Uncle Ben's)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

1)  Heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat.  Combine 1/4 cup cornstarch and tofu cubes in a bowl and toss.  Add the tofu to the pan and cook eight minutes or until golden brown, then remove from the pan.

2)  Combine remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch and orange juice in a small bowl.  Heat remaining 1 tablespoon of oil in pan over medium high heat.  Add onion and bell peppers and cook one minute.  Add juice mixture, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sugar and salt and bring to a boil.  Stir in the tofu.

3)  Place 1/2 cup of rice on each plate and top with 3/4 cup of the tofu mixture.  Sprinkle with chopped cilantro, if desired.

NOTES:

*  This dish is considered a 20 minute main.  By using the mise en place technique (everything measured and ready to be entered), you can make this time limit.

*  You can use a variety of rices.  I had basmati brown rice on hand.  Also Trader Joe's frozen brown rice, but instead I used a Mahatma yellow rice.

* You can use a variety of vegetables in this dish.  I didn't have cilantro, but would have used it if it were available.  I did not use an orange, but I did zest about one tablespoon of fresh ginger from a knob to use up the ginger.  I could also see using broccoli florets, snow peas, and a variety of other things, including different types of tofu such as "aged." 

* I was out of unseasoned rice vinegar so used Mirin instead.  There was no noticeable difference.

* The sauce does make a lovely sticky glossy sauce that is a combination of sweet, sour and heat (from the red pepper flakes.)  I found I had to play around with the sauce to make more and to get a better balance in the flavor.  I kept adding small portions of orange juice, a little more orange zest and squeezed the rest of the fresh orange into the sauce.  You can also add hot chili oil found in the Asian section of markets.

* I made a smaller portion of rice, but even then, there was some rice left over which is fine.  It can be worked into something else tomorrow.  The vegetable portions were all gone.  I would definitely add more vegetables than the recipe calls for.  I used carrots cut on the bias.

The Perfect Pitcher of Margaritas

The neighbors wanted to work up the perfect recipe for a pitcher full of Margaritas.  Ingredients were a given.  The issue was "quantity" and "measuring."

Ingredients:

1800 Resposado Tequila (750 mgl bottle)
Grand Marnier (250 mgl bottle)
3 Fresh Limes
Bottle of Margarita Sour Mix
Bottle of Simply True Limeade
3 cups of ice cubes


Directions:

Halve and juice three fresh limes.  Place in pictcher, pulp filtered out.

Pour in 1 1/2 cups Margarita sour mix

Pour in 1 1/2 cups Simply True Limeade.

Stir.

Add 4 1/4 ounces Grand Marnier

Add 9 ounces of Tequila

Add 3 cups of ice

Stir with a gang-related stiletto switchblade.


As you can see from the photographs, we kept upping the ingredients.  This is our recipe for this week.  It could change on a dime.