Caribbean Banana Bread

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If you read my last post, you know I've got a lot of ripe bananas that need to be dealt with. Banana bread is an obvious choice, but I wanted something different. Katie and I both came across this recipe in the Cooking Light Cookbook. Banana bread with a twist—sounds intriguing.

I wanted to try this recipe because until recently I have always hated coconut. Now, I love it and want to try baking with it more. Toasted coconut is especially yum. I guess my taste buds are maturing. I wonder if I will start to like fish.

Katie, I'm guessing, was interested in the rum flavoring used in the bread. She loves anything with alcohol or coffee flavoring. However, you can probably guess from my blog that we're Mormon, so she's only ever had flavoring and not the real stuff. We often joke that she would be a lush on a constant caffeine high.

So, I baked a loaf and used up two more bananas. The recipe is totally easy, and the result is fantastic. The bread was so moist. The lime, coconut and rum flavoring go so well with the banana. My favorite part of the bread is the top crust with the topping. I could easily take a serrated knife, slice off the top of the loaf, and just eat that. Hey, that gives me an idea! I also love muffin tops. I think this recipe could be turned into some dang good muffins. Next time, I'll try that. Or, if you get to it first, let me know how they turned out.

That's a mighty fine lookin' loaf if I do say so myself.

I brought this to share at work. Didn't take long to disappear.

You know, the entire time I've been typing this, I've been 

singing that "lime in the coconut" song. I think it's going

to be stuck in my head for a while.

Banana Fudge Muffins

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We eat an inordinate amount of bananas in this house. It's one of the few fruits we can all agree on. However, I don't know what happened, but we've got so many they're coming out our ears. Katie must have bought some, I bought some, and then we got some from the Co-op. And, they all seem to have gone bad overnight.

It's time to break out the banana recipes. While I love banana bread, I'm in the mood for something different. Banana cupcakes with chocolate frosting? Sounds yummy, but I don't have any cupcake liners and I don't feel like making a trip to the store. How about chocolate banana muffins with chocolate chips? Ooooh, yes!

These muffins are chocolatey, bananaey, and amazingly moist. So easy to prepare, too. Next time you've got some bad bananas, whip up a batch of these.

Oh. So. Good! But, I don't know how they are at keeping away
alligators.

Wait, you don't have to snarf it down in just two bites!

Baked Pears Without Chocolate

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Our local food co-op is great. We get good food at a nice price, and we're helping the community. Plus, we love to volunteer at the co-op. We always end up working alongside some really nice people.

This month's share included six ripe pears. But as it turns out, I'm the only one in the family who likes pears. Katie, however, was determined to find something she could do with them. She went searching through recipes from our old innkeeper days and found an incredibly simple one for baked pears. Neither of us has ever had them, but Katie decided to make them for dessert. Now, baked pears didn't sound terribly exciting. My motto has always been, "If it doesn't have chocolate, it's not a dessert rather a side dish."* But, I was willing to give baked pears a try.

After dinner, Katie brought out the pears. All three kids wrinkled up their noses, but I forced them to take the obligatory bite. All it took was that first spoonful, and we were hooked. Yum, yum, yum! Happiness in my mouth! They would have been completely devoured in seconds until I spotted my camera, and shouted "Don't eat them all. I want to take a picture for the blog." A recipe this good and this easy must be shared.**

So, here it is.

A little artistic still-life photography of the co-op pears

I admit this is a fantastic dessert. But, I bet I could probably

figure out some way to add chocolate.

*I have a niece who doesn't like chocolate. I know! What's up with that?
**We like this so much we've now had it two nights in a row.

Snow Mountain Cookies

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Mother Nature just can't make up her mind. Is it spring? Or, is it winter? Last weekend, we planted our first attempt at garden in the warm sunshine. This weekend, we watched Liam, our 12 year-old, play soccer in the freezing wind and rain that eventually turned into snow and hail. That's Utah for ya.

Last night, I was in the mood to make treats. Liam suggested Snow Mountain Cookies since our mountains are still covered in snow. It didn't take much convincing. Seconds later, I was rifling through the cupboards to see if we had all the ingredients. Luckily, we usually have an abundance of baking ingredients on hand.

Growing up, this was one of my favorite cookies. The recipe comes from a friend of the family, Linda. I love how the cookies are slightly crispy on the outside and fudgy on the inside. Once when I was in high school, Linda made a big batch for the family. I lost every bit of self control and almost ate them all myself. I remember my mom coming into the kitchen and asking who ate all the cookies. I made a quick exit and headed for the opposite end of the house pretending I hadn't heard the question.

I still haven't mastered the self-control thing when it comes to these cookies, but luckily, I was tired enough when I finished the batch that I went to bed. And, I only had one for breakfast this morning, so that means we have plenty for Family Home Evening tonight.

Give these a go next time you need a treat. They're great whenever—if you have snow in your mountains or only wishing you did.

Fudgy snow-covered cookies

And, our not-so-fudgy snow covered mountains

Russian Cream

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The summer of 1988 was for me a wild and crazy time. That was when I spent three months working in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, a small western touristy town just south of Yellowstone National Park. Since my goal was to earn enough money to put me through another year of college, I worked five jobs. Beginning each day at 4:30 a.m., I was a waiter at a restaurant catering to busloads of tourists. When breakfast ended, I headed to another restaurant for the lunch shift. Then at 6 p.m., I was an actor in a wild west shoot out show in the town square. Next, I performed in "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers" at the Jackson Hole Playhouse. And finally, I finished the day serving the late night crowd at yet another restaurant. Looking back, I honestly don't know how I did it. Just writing about it has worn me out. I think I'll go take a nap.  

...later

I'm back from my nap and feeling much better for it. 

The reason for reminiscing about my Jackson Hole days is that this recipe for Russian Cream reminds me of those days. For the lunch shift, I worked at the Cadillac Grille. I did a quick search on the Internet and was happy to see it's still open. Looking around their Web site, I noticed the restaurant has been remodeled and they have a completely different menu. 

Throughout my summer at the Cadillac Grille, they had two weekly contests awarding prizes to the waiters who had the highest dollar amounts in alcohol sales and overall food sales. Unfortunately, I had two strikes against me. First of all, the daytime waiters didn't stand a chance in overall food sales against the evening waiters. And secondly, as a Mormon, I didn't feel good about pushing the alcohol. One day, I was called into the manager's office who showed me my sales compared to the other waiters. My sales were the lowest of everyone's. I was told I needed to sell more alcohol or look for another job elsewhere. After standing there for a moment in shocked silence, inspiration came. I asked, "What if I made up the difference with dessert sales?" My manager thought it over and finally decided we could give it a try. A third contest was added—highest dollar amount in dessert sales.

I was determined to win, and that's when I made friends with the dessert chef. I can't remember her name, but she taught me all about her creations, the methods of making them, and the ingredients. She even helped me come up with great ways to describe the desserts. And best yet, she let me eat anything that didn't meet her high standards (a cheesecake that developed a crack, a piece of cake not cut with laser precision, etc.).

And it worked! I won the dessert contest each week for the remainder of the summer.

Of all the desserts, Russian Cream is probably the one that almost exclusively saved my job. Whenever a ladies lunch bunch came into the restaurant, I knew it was time to pull out the secret weapon. As they finished their lunch, I would bring the dessert tray by. I could always tell by the looks on the women's faces they really wanted to order something but didn't dare. That's when I would describe the Russian Cream, a wonderfully smooth and creamy dessert with fresh local raspberries. I then would add that I had all the calories taken out. And before you could say, "Howdy Partner" it was Russian Cream all around!

And what I love about this recipe is that for all it's deliciousness, it's incredibly simple to make. Give it a try. It saved my job. Who knows what it may do for you.

 

Cool bowls, eh?

With fresh fruit, it has to be good for you, right?

Chocolate Macaroon Bird’s Nest Cookies

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Here are my favorite Easter candies in no particular order:

1. Yellow or orange jelly beans (and never, ever black)
2. Chocolate bunnies (solid not hollow)
3. Reese's peanut butter eggs (I like anything with peanut butter.)
4. Marshmallow Peeps (I like them stale and chewy.)
5. Cadbury mini-eggs (I have to be very careful not to eat the whole bag at once.)

Easter only comes around once a year, I had to stock up.  And since it's so close to Easter, all of it was on sale at the grocery store. Lucky me!

However, I decided to use some self restraint. I would buy only one thing now, and then raid the kids' Easter baskets in a few days. I also decided to justify my purchase by finding some way to use the candy in a recipe and post it on my blog. I thought it was a great idea, but I knew Katie would give me the one eyebrow raised look.

I pondered over the candy trying to decide which would work in a recipe. The Reese's peanut butter eggs could work well in a cookie or cheesecake, but after cutting them up, they wouldn't be very Easter-y. Same with the chocolate bunnies. And, I couldn't think of anything to do with a Peep chick or bunny.

So, there I was contemplating between the jelly beans and the Cadbury mini-eggs. Hmm... Then, I remembered seeing something somewhere long ago–little nests made from coconut with jelly bean eggs inside. That was it, but I was in the mood for chocolate, so I grabbed a bag of the mini-eggs.

I used a chocolate macaroon recipe for the nests. My five year-old, Tomas, was my sous chef. He did exceptionally well except for when I tried teaching him how to crack an egg. We had a couple of casualties. Tomas was an expert in shaping the nests and making sure each nest had three different colored eggs.

Tomas also helped me deliver the treats to coworkers and students at the office. He was very proud of his creations as he received many "oohs" and "aahs." And, I was very proud of my little baking buddy.

I think they turned out rather well, don't you?

I just wish I had a stale Peeps chick to sit on the nest.

Easier Than Math Chocolate Cake

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Recently, someone told me my recipes are too complicated and asked if I could post something simple. My first reaction was, "Really...? Complicated...? You've got to be kidding." But then, I thought it over for a moment. I have never in my life been able to do math–something that is simple for a lot of people, like my kids. And it's a good thing my kids understand math because they aren't getting any help from Dad.

So, here it is–an incredibly simple chocolate cake recipe that is not only good but ready to eat in just 30 minutes.This is helpful for FHE treats, a potluck event, or if you just need a quick chocolate fix. It doesn't need frosting, and it's best eaten warm.

If you've read through many of my posts, you might be thinking everyday is a birthday at the office. There are certainly times it feels that way, but I am more than happy to bring treats. However, an easy recipe like this comes in handy when life gets hectic, and there's something scheduled every night of the week (last night it was Liam's soccer game in the bitter cold wind). So this morning, I whipped up the batter and popped the cake in the oven in just a few minutes. By the time I finished showering and was dressed for work, it was done. I let it cool over breakfast, and then I was out the door with cake in hand.

It really is that easy, so give it a try.

Happy birthday, Danielle! I thought it would

look better if I cut the cake into squares and

piled them on a plate. Looking at the photo,

it appears rather messy. But, it's a tasty mess.

And, look how simple and easy it is to dress it up.