Holy Crap!

... that's what my son's friend said when he shared a piece of his banana bread. I never make banana bread. I don't know why. But for some reason the bananas frozen deep in the coggles of my deep freeze were calling to me ... it's cold in here, please let us out. So into a bowl of warm water they went to thaw. I don't even have a favourite banana bread recipe. I know that's strange - everyone has a banana bread recipe. I headed to a cookbook given to me by my daughter for christmas a year ago. I hadn't even used the cookbook before (I'm a internet addict). The cookbook is one of those put together by a community for charity cookbooks, from Ontario, I think. The recipe title won me over - Never Fail Banana Bread. I never make banana bread because my "fondest" memories of banana bread as a kid is biting into a slice only to feel that oh-so wonderful feeling of the gooey, unbaked dough in the center - that's just gross. Or dry and crusty - to avoid the gooey issue that banana bread is famous for. So Never Fail sounds promising. I have a bad habit of juggling and changing recipes, even before I've tried it once. I did make a few minor changes to this recipe, but nothing life-shattering.

Never Fail Banana Bread

2 cups flour - I used 1 cup all-purpose & 1 cup whole wheat
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt - I used 1/2 tsp
pinch cinnamon - I used 1/2 tsp
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup shortening - I used 1/2 cup margarine
3 - 4 mashed ripe bananas (if using frozen, thaw and then cut tops off. squeeze out into bowl like toothpaste - no mashing required)
2 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla - I omitted this

In mixer bowl, blend bananas and margarine together. In same bowl, combine all remaining ingredients (wonderfully easy!). Blend well. Pour into greased loaf pan. (Recipe did not specify size of pan. I used 8x4, which made a beautifully crested loaf). Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 70 minutes. (I had my oven at 375 degrees for first 30 minutes then reduced heat to 350 for 40 minutes). I was scared my bottom was going to be too dark but it was fine. Test for doneness with a cake tester - should be clean, not gooey. Remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool before slicing - good luck with that one!

Zesty Blueberry Scones

I found this recipe on the AllRecipes.com website. I made a few minor changes to the original recipe, but nothing drastic. The scone is a cousin to the tea biscuit and the muffin so the same rules apply - the less mixing, the better. Overmixing makes for a tough scone (or biscuit or muffin). I do use my KA mixer but only on low and just enough to blend the ingredients together. If you think that you're going to overmix with an electric mixer, then don't use it and mix up the recipe by hand, and make sure your butter and milk are cold (similar to a pie crust, the cold helps - heck, you can even put your flour in the freezer for a bit to chill it too).

In mixer bowl combine:

1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp salt (the recipe calls for this but I don't bother because I used salted butter/margarine)
orange zest (or lemon - I like lemon better but only had oranges), approximately 1 Tbsp.
Add:
5 Tbsp cold butter or margarine, cut in small cubes

Mix on low speed, just until the mixture resembles coarse, pea-size crumbs.
Take a handful of the flour mixture and give it a bit of a squeeze. It should just barely hold together.
In a one-cup liquid measuring cup measure:
1/4 cup sour cream (I used plain yogourt - didn't have sour cream and wasn't going to the grocery store in an ice storm!)
Add and stir to the sour cream:
1/2 cup milk


To the flour mixture add:
1/2 cup frozen or fresh blueberries (or currants, or anything else that tickles your fancy)
Just toss the frozen berries enough to coat with flour. Don't want to be bustin' those berries.
With mixer off, add the milk/cream all at once. Turn mixer on low just until the whole thing comes together, then STOP!
Well-flour your hands and your counter. The mix will be sticky. Turn dough out onto your work surface and gently shape into a disc. (You can also scoop the dough with a spoon directly onto your greased or parchment-lined baking sheet.) Again I stress, do not overwork the dough.
Transfer the dough onto a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet and using a knife, score the round into 8 (yes, 8) wedges. Do not separate the wedges before baking.


To get that nice golden brown look, mix 1 egg with 1 Tbsp milk and brush onto the dough before baking. I usually will just brush milk over the top if I don't want to waste a precious egg. Either way, sprinkle sugar over the top. I use cane sugar or a coarse sugar. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 10 - 15 minutes, or until golden brown. When done and cooled a bit, break the scones apart and cool on a wire rack. Put on the pot of tea and enjoy!

In Like a Lion

Well, old man winter did not loosen his grip as we entered the month of March. The first Monday of the month we were blessed with a hum-dinger of an ice storm. That's my willow tree - pretty, huh? So what's a body to do when the kids have another day home from school and you're housebound for the day? You bake scones!

Take-out & waffles

So hubby "K" decides he wants waffles for breakfast...homemade waffles. OK, no problem. I don't particularly care to make waffles. It's a lot of mess & time consuming, for such a small return and I find regular waffles kinda boring. Besides, it takes so much milk. I boot up the 'puter in search of a different recipe, perhaps something a little healthier. I'm always changing recipes anyways. I find a recipe that uses part oat flour as well as all-purpose. Hmm...I recently ground up quick oats into flour in my blender, so I'll go that route. I decided to double the recipe as it's Sunday and all the kids are going to be wanting some too. The recipe (doubled) calls for 3-1/2 cups of milk - can't seem to get away from using, what seems liks a whole jug of the white stuff. I substituted some of the cow juice for plain yogourt, and I didn't have enough of the oat flour for a double recipe so added whole wheat and kamut flour. Off I go a-mixing and a-making. The batter was fairly thick and I was concerned that the recipe wouldn't yield much, but I was able to pump out 20 darling waffles so I was pleased. I made a blueberry sauce to go with them - not my usual recipe for blueberry sauce but it lured me in with it's title, "Simple Blueberry Sauce." I like simple - let's give her a go. Oh, and the "take out" part of the title - a little hint for waffle-making. The next time you're eating Take-Out, keep the plastic forks. They're great for fishing out the waffles stuck in your hot waffle iron and won't scratch the finish like a metal fork will.

Waffles

2 eggs
1 cup plain yogourt
2 - 2 1/2 cups skim milk
4 Tbsp olive oil (or canola)
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup kamut flour
1-1/2 cups oat flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tbsp sugar
8 tsp baking powder
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground nutmeg

In bowl of electric mixer, add eggs, yogourt, milk, oil and vanilla. With paddle attachment, mix together well on low speed. In separate bowl, measure the rest of the ingredients. Using a whisk, mix together dry ingredients. With mixer turned off, add dry ingredients to milk mixture. Turn mixer on low, mixing until batter is smooth. Heat waffle iron (I used a hotter/higher setting). Ladel approximately 1/3 cup of batter into each waffle section (this will depend on your waffle iron).

See the steam coming out of the waffle iron? That's a sign that they're baking. When the steam is just about all dissipated, the waffles are done. You don't want to be opening the iron before then - trust me, it will tear your waffles, change the temperature of the iron and that steam is hot!

Hey, there's that famous Take-Out fork in action!

Simple Blueberry Sauce

1-1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen (no need to thaw)

3 Tbsp liquid honey

1/2 cup orange juice, divided

1 Tbsp cornstarch

In a saucepan heat on medium, blueberries, honey and 1/4 cup orange juice. Bring to a boil.

In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch and 1/4 cup orange juice. Add to boiling berries. That's it! Simple!

Let's Review - a cookbook

We all have tons of cookbooks. Some were handed down, others were wedding gifts. There's those that we just had to have! But how often do we use all of those books collecting dust? I find that I always go back to the same tried and true cookbooks every time while the others sit there, broken-hearted, thinking that I don't love them anymore. It just can't be helped ... when one has proven itself over and over, always faithful, you know that there's no going to any other. For me, the Company's Coming cookbooks by Jean Pare (pron. Perry) are my go-to books, every time. They're beautiful, with lots of color photos so I know what it's supposed to look like and she has great little tips throughout.
Company's Coming Most Loved Treats is one of my all-time favorites. Pare shares some of her best recipes from cakes to cookies, desserts, squares & bars as well as sweet snacks. Every book includes a measurement table for conversion and each recipe offers Nutritional Data which is especially helpful for those counting those dang calories or fat intake. Jean Pare also shares her story, which is an interesting read. I love her "golden rule of cooking" and it's a philosophy I've lived by in the kitchen as well, "never share a recipe you wouldn't use yourself." That's why I trust the Company's Coming cookbooks. The recipes are clearly written, use ingredients that are either already in the pantry or easy to get & the recipes work! Nuff said.

It's all about the aroma...remember the days of waking up early in the morning with the smell of homemade bread wafting through the house? Ah, there's really nothing like it - except perhaps for the shear pleasure of hacking off a thick slice of same bread (while still warm, of course) and smearing it with butter and molasses. As a mother I've always tried to create that same type of wonderful memory for my kids - no, I can't say that I faithfully get up before the birds to have fresh bread out of the oven before they go to school but they love to come home from school and before opening the door, they can smell that great aroma of chocolate chip cookies. All their friends think I'm "cool" because I actually bake my own goodies - who'da thunk - me, cool!
And there's no better way to share some quality time with a friend than over a cup of tea and a blueberry-lemon scone (it does NOT rhyme with phone, it really is pronounced SKON, it's a British thing and that's what they call it and so that's what it is, I'm not just trying to sound snobby).
So let's get acquainted. Let's share our favorite recipes, memories and experiences in the kitchen. Hopefully we can learn from each other and help each other along the way. After all, that's what friends are for. So come at sit at my kitchen table and I'll put the pot on while we wait for something delicious to come out of the oven!