Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Mom texted me today and said she needed a cake for a birthday at work. Right away I remembered this banana cake I've been wanting to try...

This cake is from White On Rice Couple. I changed the original recipe by adding nutmeg and molasses and halving the sugar. 3 cups of sugar AND 8 bananas? You're joking right? I also left out the pecans and the butterscotch sauce all together because I didn't have the time to get in to all that fanciness.

Cake Ingredients:

3 c Flour
1 T Baking Powder
1/2 t Salt
1/2 t Nutmeg

1 c (2 sticks) unsalted Butter, room temp
1 1/2 c Brown Sugar
4 Egg Yolks
2 whole Eggs
1/2 c Canola Oil
1 T Molasses
8 ripe Bananas

Icing Ingredients:

8 oz. package of Cream Cheese
2 sticks Butter
3 c Powdered Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 and grease two 10" cake pans or use two 9" pans and make a couple of cupcakes too.
Mash bananas and set aside.
Mix flour, b powder, salt, and nutmeg and set aside.
In the bowl of your stand mixer beat the butter on high until fluffy.
Add sugar and cream with the butter.
Add eggs and mix just til combined.
Add canola and molasses and mix til combined.
Add dry ingredients to mixer and mix just til combined.
Add bananas and mix just til combined.
Pour batter into cake and muffin tins depending on the size you are making.
Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, the cakes are done when they are firm to the touch and a knife comes out clean from the center.
While the cake is cooling make your icing.
Beat the butter and cream cheese in a mixer until fluffy, then add powdered sugar one cup at a time beating well and then add vanilla.
Once the cake is cool cut each layer into 2 horizontal pieces making 4 pieces all together.
Layer each piece of cake with cream cheese icing in between and then ice the top and decorate with walnuts.

Revani: Turkish Semolina Cake

For my fam's mother's day dinner I made an awesome semolina cake layered with lemon curd and topped with fresh whipped cream and berries. I doubled the original recipe from Food For Poems to make two 9 in round cakes and instead of soaking the cake in simple syrup after it was cooked, I used orange juice. I thought the cake had enough sugar baked into it and I think the orange complimented the lemon curd nicely. This was really just a spin on a summery strawberry short cake that is one of my favorite cakes to assemble.

For the Cake:

Dry:
1 cup semolina
1 1/3 cup flour
2 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Wet:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
8 eggs

Lemon Curd Recipe Here

Whipped Cream:

2 C Heavy Cream
4 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla or lemon- your choice

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375 and grease and flour two 9" cake pans.
Mix all dry ingredients in one bowl and all wet in another bowl.
Combine dry into wet and mix until just combined.
Pour batter into prepared pans and bake for about 25 minutes or until they are firm to the touch and a knife comes out clean from the center.
Let the cakes cools in the pans on wire racks.
Once cooled, loosen around the edge with a knife and knock the side of the pans with the heel of your hand until you can feel the cake is loose from the bottom.
Flip onto wire rack.
Cut each cake into 2 layers making 4 layers total.
Starting with the first layer soak the cut side up with OJ and then put a layer of lemon curd. Keep soaking with OJ and spreading with lemon curd for each layer until all 4 are assembled.
Make the whipped cream by combining all 3 ingredients and whipping with whisk or beater until the cream holds a nice shape and is stiff with incorporated air. Pile the entire batch on the top of the cake- about an inch and a half to 2 inches thick- wow I know.
Layer the very top with fresh berries.

Whole Wheat Sweet Potato Pancakes

I made these awesome pancakes for my family yesterday morning. They were really tasty and very very easy. I made the batter very early in the morning and just left it in the fridge until they arrived. They were so good they didn't even really need syrup. Just a little butter and yummmmm...

Original recipe from Eatliverun, it had chocolate chips which I left out but that would be awesome too. I doubled the original recipe because I was feeding several hungry people. Also next time I'm adding either vanilla or molasses. It seems to me that pancakes are just more liquidy muffins, so you could probably put all kinds of nuts or seeds or the zest of an orange, or fruit in them.

Ingredients:

3 small sweet potatoes- peeled and diced, microwaved to cook and then mashed
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 cup milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten

1 cup white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice

water if the mix is too thick

Method:

Mix all the dry in one bowl and all the wet in another bowl while you are microwaving your potatoes.
Mash your potatoes and mix them in to the wet ingredients.
Add dry to wet and mix just until combined.
At this point you would add your chocolate chips or what have you, then possibly a bit of water if the mix is too thick.
Heat up your skillet with a little oil or butter and test out the dough to see if the pan is hot enough.
When the test pancake is really getting cooked properly you are ready to start cooking the rest.

Extra Sharp Cheddar Mac and Cheese

I did it again!! Mac and Cheese for mother's day dinner. Here is the link for the first time I made it with white cheddar for my aunt Nan. This time I used New York extra sharp orange cheddar. I tripled the original recipe from Family Kitchen to make enough for our Mother's Day family party and we barely touched the 2nd casserole dish. The ingredients below are for one batch.

Like I said this time I used orange cheddar. It kind of separated and was a little oilier than the white cheddar. I'm not sure if this is because of the orange coloring or what but it freaked me out for a minute when I was making the cheese sauce. When I tossed it with the pasta though, it came out fine.

Ingredients:

1 lb box macaroni
6 Tablespoons butter
2 T. flour
2/3 c. milk
1/4 c. shredded parmesan cheese
about 8 oz feta cheese
1 small 8 oz block New York extra sharp orange cheddar, grated

1/2 c. bread crumbs mixed with 4 T. parmesan cheese for the topping

Method:

Cook your pasta al dente and put it aside.
In a bowl grate all of your cheddar, crumble feta, and mix them with your parmesan so the cheese is all ready to go when you have melted the butter.
In a medium to large frying pan (depending on how much mac and cheese you are making) brown the butter over medium heat by melting it and continuing to stir it until it foams and then brown bits form in the pan and the butter smells really nutty. I really browned my butter this time and it came out better than last time.
Immediately add the flour and stir, it will get all foamy again.
Now add the milk and stir it in.
After a minute of stirring add all of your cheese and turn the burner to low, continuing to stir until the cheese is melted.
Pour the cheese over the pasta in a big bowl and mix to combine it.
At this point you may want to add more butter or cheese if you desire, I added more cheese and a couple more tablespoons of butter. Mix it all in so everything is evenly combined.
Pour the mac and cheese into a cake pan or casserole dish and sprinkle your breadcrumb mixture on top. Put it in the oven on BROIL until the top is brown and crispy.

Grilled Romaine and Radicchio

This is a really easy way to change up the traditional caesar salad. You just buy a bag of those pre-washed romaine hearts, cut them in half long-ways and brush them lightly with olive oil. Throw them on the grill for a few minutes until they are wilted and eat them with a sweet balsamic vinegar or the Martha Stewart caesar dressing that we love. Last night we also tried grilling radicchio and it came out really well.

Mocha Banana Muffins

This recipe comes from The Happy Housewife. My aunt Nan left some chocolate milk in the fridge so I needed a muffin that would go well with it. I didn't add any sugar to this muffin because I added the milk (Wawa brand), which has sugar in it. I beefed up on the bananas and put in some instant coffee to give it an extra mocha kick.

Ingredients:

2 eggs
3/4 cup chocolate milk
1/2 cup apple sauce
1/4 cup strong black coffee
2 mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tsp instant coffee (add to wet so it dissolves)

1 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup coconut
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Method:

Preheat oven to 425. Mash the bananas in a large bowl and then add all of the other wet ingredients plus the instant coffee. In a separate bowl mix all of the dry ingredients and then add them to the wet ingredients. Stir just til combined. Then add your chocolate and coconut, again, mix just until combined. Pour batter into muffin tins, sprinkle with a little coconut for fun, and bake for 3 minutes at 425. Then turn down the temp to 400 and bake for about 12 more minutes or until muffins bounce back to the touch and a knife comes out clean.

Peanut Butter Banana Muffins with Raspberry Jam

It's peanut buller jelly time!! So my friend's boyfriend takes peanut butter and jelly to work every day for lunch (yeah I know) and that was my inspiration for this muffin. If Joe was going to eat a muffin this would be it. I'm thinking about peanut butter jelly cupcakes for his birthday.

This recipe comes from lovefoodeat. It's pretty healthy. I didn't add any sugar because I put in extra banana and I backed off on the peanut butter a bit. It's all whole wheat flour and it's actually vegan because of the flax meal instead of eggs.

I experimented with a new baking technique on this recipe. I am now preheating the oven to 425 and baking the muffins for a few minutes to get a nice crust and a puffy muffin, then I turn it down to 400 or so and bake them the rest of the way. So far good results!! Really nice crusty top. Which I loooooove. This might be my new thing.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup oats
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda

2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tbsp ground flax seed + 4 tbsp water
3 mashed bananas
2 tbsp peanut butter
1 cup water

jelly of your choosing- I used raspberry

flax seeds (for sprinkling on top)

Method:

Preheat oven to 425
Mix flaxseed powder and water, keep it aside. Combine all the dry ingredients and mix well (1st paragraph). In a separate bowl, mash bananas and add all other wet ingredients (2nd paragraph) and mix well. Pour the dry ingredients into wet ingredients and mix till everything is combined. Do not over mix. Grease your 12 cup muffin tin and pour about 2 tbsp of batter into each cup. Then spoon in 1 tsp of jelly into each cup. Then with your remaining batter cover the jelly taking care to spread the batter evenly between each cup- don't run out. If you want bigger puffier muffins only use 9 cups. Sprinkle some whole flax seeds on top for looks. Bake the muffins for 3 minutes at 425 and then turn the temp town to 400 and bake for another 12 minutes or until they bounce back to the touch. Let them cool and enjoy!!

Cute Cartoon from John

My next door neighbor John just sent me this adorable cartoon. Thanks John! Click on the image to see it bigger.

Lemon Poppy Seed Doughnuts with Maxine

Today my friend Maxine and I made Lemon Poppy Seed Doughnuts. It's a basic muffin recipe that we baked in the Wilton doughnut pan. The original recipe called for sour cream but we just subbed extra milk instead. We also changed the milk from whole to 2% since that's what my aunt Nan left in the fridge. Here is the link to the original recipe.

Maxine is so good at zesting lemons!! She also helped me make lemon curd for a cake I'm making later this week. We're planning on baking again this Thursday and I'm thinking pumpkin granola bars. I have to remember to buy pumpkin. And an assortment of nuts. Look for Maxine in the future, we're thinking of making this collaboration a regular thing.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoon 2% milk
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon poppy seeds

For the icing:
juice of 1 lemon (about 2 tablespoons)
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Method:

Preheat oven to 400.
In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. In large bowl, or stand mixer, cream together butter and sugar, until light and fluffy - about 1 minute. Add egg, lemon zest, and poppy seeds. Beat to combine, scrapping down the bowl as needed. Then add milk to mixture and then add flour and beat just til combined. Do not over mix.

Grease your doughnut pan and fill the cups just below the rim. Bake about 12 to 15 minutes or until they bounce back to the touch. Knock them out of the pan and let them cool.

Combine powdered sugar and lemon zest into bowl with whisk and drizzle the icing over top of the doughnuts.
Enjoy!!

Rolo Cookies

I've been trying to make these cookies for a while now. I've had the rolo candies sitting in my cabinet for at least a month telling people not to eat them!! I finally got to them today. Original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:

¾ unsalted butter, softened
½ c. + 2 tbs. granulated sugar
½ c. + 2 tbs. light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 lg. egg
1 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp. salt
¼ c. cocoa powder
2 c. all purpose-flour
24 Rolo Candies

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 3 baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. You don’t have to do this, but it will make it much easier to clean if some of the caramel leaks through.

In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla; beat well. Mix in baking soda, salt, cocoa powder and flour until well combined, but do not over mix.

Shape dough into 1” balls. Flatten slightly in the palm of your hand. Place one Rolo in the middle and roll the dough up around it so that it is completely enclosed. Place on prepared cookies sheets – 8 to a sheet, staggering them, as they will spread quite a bit when baked.

Bake 9-11 minutes until puffy and the edges are set. They will appear very fluffy but will gradually flatten out slightly as they cool.

Cool 1-2 minutes on pans and then remove to wire racks and cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

When I pulled these out of the oven I decided that they needed a little something extra so I threw some ganache on there. Here is my ganache recipe.