Banana Bread French Toast

Super yummy change from "traditional" French Toast!!!


1 loaf banana bread
1/2 cup non fat milk
2 eggs
1 TB sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla


Slice Banana bread into 1/2-3/4 inch slices














In a shallow dish beat egg with milk, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla













Heat a griddle over medium heat and grease
Dip each slice in the egg mixture, coating both sides and place on hot griddle










cook for 3-4 minutes until sufficiently browned and flip. Cook another 3-4 minutes and transfer to a plate.









Top with sliced bananas, real maple syrup and a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg.

Best Banana Bread

Super Yummy Banana Bread. Makes FANTASTIC Banana Bread French Toast!

3/4 cup apple juice concentrate
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 egg
1 c milk
4 mashed bananas
5 cup flour
2 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Grease 3 loaf pans and preheat your oven to 350

Cream sugar and butter,















add in apple juice concentrate and egg . Beat well

Slowly add in milk and bananas





Mix flour, baking powder salt and nutmeg in another bowl

Blend in flour 1/2 cup at a time until fully incorporated






Spread into greased pans

 bake for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean




Nutrition per slice(10 slices per loaf) LINK

Pecan Coffee Cake with Southern Comfort Caramel Sauce

This is a delicious Coffee Cake for a cold winter morning or entertaining a few friends.
My husband has expressed interest in learning to bake and had a specific idea of what he wanted. He picked out a recipe and I modified it to fit the exact idea he was looking for.

Cake:
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup non fat plain yogurt

Filling;
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Topping:
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup Southern Comfort Liqueur
1/4 cup milk
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans


Cake:
Cream butter, applesauce and sugar. Beat very well. Add in eggs and vanilla.
Combine Flour, soda and powder in a separate bowl.
Alternately add flour mix and yogurt to the butter mixture and beat until fluffy.

Filling:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Assembly:
Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 baking pan. Pour 1/2 the batter into the pan. Sprinkle 1/2  the filling over the batter and spread the rest of the batter over the top and sprinkle on the rest of the filling.
Bake for 35 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean

While baking make the topping:
Melt butter in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add in Southern Comfort, milk, brown sugar and pecans. Heat and stir for 5 minutes.

When cake is done remove from oven. Pour sauce over the top and place under the broiler WATCHING CAREFULLY until it starts to bubble.... BE CAREFUL IT WILL BURN EASILY!!!!!

Remove and allow to cool on a wire rack about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with your favorite coffee!

My Review of French Wall Rack w/ Bar & 10 Hooks

Originally submitted at Cookware Essentials

Features:

• Painted according to your choice of metal finish
• Ships fully assembled
• Comes with 10 pot hooks
• Artistically crafted in wrought iron
• Available in 12 designer metal finishes
• Dimensions: 25" W x 13" D x 12" H

<...

French Wall Rack w/ Bar & 10 Hooks

Very nice solid piece

By SuperPickle from Sequim, WA on 11/14/2010

4out of 5

Pros: Displays Items Attractively, Easy To Assemble, Sturdy
Cons: Screws not long enough
Best Uses: Function
Describe Yourself: Midrange Shopper

This is perfect for my needs, a nice small wall unit to arrange my pots. The large drywall screws included seemed to do the job with my flimsy cookware but the second I put on a nicer stainless steel set they pulled from the wall. So along with large holes I had to patch, I cant have it centered like I wanted it. The screws included were WAY to short to reach the stud though so I had to find my own. Now that it is attached to studs it supports ALOT!
Overall a great piece.

(legalese)

Hot Cocoa Ice Cream

Ok so not exactly ice cream weather but I saw a Dryer's Seasonal Hot Cocoa Ice Cream and it sounded delicious so I decided to make my own! Sorry no process pictures this time. Both my camera batteries were dead. (Picture is in "soft serve" form...I will add one when it gets to hard form)


1/4 cup powdered unsweetened baking cocoa
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1-2 tsp malted milk powder(not essential , but tasty)
1/4 cup water

2 cups milk

2 cups heavy cream

2 eggs , beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup mini marshmallows


In a heavy sauce pan combine baking cocoa, sugar, salt , cinnamon, and malt powder, Stir in water.  Bring to a boil over medium heat.
Whisk in milk and heavy cream. Clip on a candy thermometer and heat to 150.
In a small bowl beat the eggs. When the milk mixture reaches 150 add about 1 cup to the eggs, whisking quickly. Add that back to the rest in the pan and heat to 170. Remove from heat, add vanilla and cool completely.  Chill in the fridge until very cold(overnight preferably).
Proceed with your ice cream maker per manufacturers instructions....adding 1 cup mini marshmallows when you get near the end of the cycle.



Dont have an ice cream maker??
Follow instructions HERE

Giant Pumpkin Cranberry Muffins

A breakfast creation I came up with when nothing else seemed just right!
A giant, hearty muffin with less than 330 calories,  3 grams of fat and 8 grams of fiber!!
Excellent toasted!!




1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour(eagle mills with ultragrain for the extra fiber boost)
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
scant 1/2 tsp nutmeg
scant 1/2 tsp ginger
scant 1/4 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

Preheat oven to 350. Grease muffin tins
Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. In another bowl beat eggs with pumpkin and applesauce. Add to dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
Fold in cranberries.
Scoop by 1/2 cup into greased LARGE muffin cups(or proceed with regular sized muffin tins, filling 3/4 full or so)

Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean(this is based on LARGE muffins, will be less if you do smaller ones)

Homemade Croutons

Add some crunchy flavor to a salad with homemade croutons.... An excellent use for the leftover insides(or extra bowl) of Crusty Cuban bread bowls or ANY bread!
Also fantastic made with Gluten Free Bread! Just make sure your seasonings are GF too.



Day old bread
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste(with the Cuban bread I do NOT add extra salt)
Italian Seasonings
garlic powder
onion powder
crushed red pepper


Preheat oven to 325
Cut your bread into smallish cubes











place in a bowl



Drizzle lightly with olive oil(amounts depend on how much bread you have...you don't want it saturated , just a light drizzle to coat, I used 1/4 cup with 1 full bread bowl and the innards of 5 more)
Season to taste and toss gently

Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet













 bake for 20-30 minutes(stirring about 1/2 way through) until toasted and golden brown.



Allow to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container.

Slow Cooker Navy Bean Soup

Yummy healthy soup for a cold night! Pairs wonderfully with Crusty Cuban Bread bowls!
Also fantastic with chopped ham if you dont want a meatless soup.




1lb dried navy beans plus soaking water
1 qt chicken or veggie stock
2-14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes
2 large carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 tsp paprika
1 TB garlic powder
pinch of red pepper
1/2 cup red wine(optional)
2 TB fresh parsley, chopped
water
salt and pepper to taste


Soak you beans overnight and drain and rinse

Combine all ingredients in a 6 qt slow cooker, adding enough water to raise the liquid level an inch or so(about 2 cups)

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

* if you want to add ham either add chopped fully cooked ham at the beginning or it is DELICIOUS with a smoked ham shank or a ham bone boiled in. Just remove it about 30 minutes from the end of cooking and pick off all the meat to return to the pot.

Crusty Cuban Bread Bowls

I got this recipe from the Bread Machine Cookbook and I adapted it into bread bowl.

It is a wonderful crusty bread similar to french bread but with a salty twist. It goes great with pretty much any soup. It is pretty salty though so be aware if you are not a salt fan!

2 1/2 tsp yeast
1 TB sugar
2 1/2 cups very hot to the touch water
2 TB dough enhancer(optional but use bread flour if you choose not to use this)
1.5 TB salt
6-7 cups flour



In the bowl of a kitchenaid mixer combine warm water, yeast, sugar and dough enhancer. Allow to sit for 5 minutes until foamy.










Mix in salt and slowly add the flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, switching to dough hook after about 3 cups.




Add enough flour so that it is not overly sticky.
 Knead to a smooth, elastic dough.





Place in a cooking sprayed bowl and turn to coat.












Allow to rise until double.












Punch down and divide into 6 sections. Shape each section into 4 inch rounds and place on greased cookie sheet spread with cornmeal. Allow to rise for an hour.

Preheat oven to 400.
In a small bowl beat 1 egg white with 1 TB water.
Brush each loaf with egg white mixture

Bake 15 minutes and brush with egg mix again.
Bake another 15 minutes until golden and it sounds hollow.
Allow to cool .





Slice off approx 1/2 inch of the top
















 scoop out center leaving a good 1/2 inch wall. Save the insides to make croutons!












Fill with desired soup and enjoy!

Pumpkin Chili with Turkey

All things Pumpkin this week! Tonight is Pumpkin Chili.... a recipe just slightly tweaked from one I found on allrecipes.
Paired perfectly with Pumpkin Corn Bread




1 TB canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper(color of your choice)
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
2 cups Pumpkin puree(approx 1 -15 oz can)
1-15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1-4 oz can green chilies(not drained)
2 TB chili powder
salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil in large pot over medium heat, sautee onions, garlic and bell pepper until tender, add ground turkey and cook thoroughly.










 Drain and return to pot with tomatoes, pumpkin and beans. Season with chili powder and salt and pepper, allow to simmer for an hour.

Pumpkin Corn Bread

Wonderful pair to Pumpkin Chili or add an extra 1/4 cup brown sugar for a yummy sweet morning treat!


1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all purpose flour
*sub 1 cup GF flour if desired
1 cup corn meal
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup butter, melted

Combine dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

Combine remaining ingredients in another bowl.

Fold wet into the dry until just combined and allow to rest










take a 9 x 9 square pan and place a tsp of bacon grease* or vegetable shortening in the center. Place into a cold oven and set to 425 degrees.










When the oven is fully preheated remove pan and swirl around the melted grease or shortening to cover bottom.
While the pan is still really hot pour batter in and spred.

Bake in the hot oven for 15-20 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.










* bacon grease is the BEST if you save yours!! Gives it a wonderful flavor. I understand not everyone does that though. If you want to start, next time you cook bacon just pour the drained grease into a glass jar and top tightly. Store in the fridge. If makes a great pan grease for any savory bread or dish! Or great for making beans, a little stove top popcorn, grease your griddle for pancakes LOTS of stuff. And a TINY bit goes a long way!

FlapJack-O'Lantern's

Ok not really traditional flapjacks but here in the US the term is often interchanged with pancakes....which is what these are. Pumpkin Apple Pancakes. So tasty and high in Vitamin A!


1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all purpose flour
1 TB baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves
1/4 tsp allspice
2 TB brown sugar
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups milk
2 TB butter, melted
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 medium apple, shredded

Heat a griddle to medium high(325 or so)

Sift together all the dry ingredients in a large bowl, set aside.





Mix together everything but the apple in another bowl making sure the egg is beaten well.
Gently combine the wet into the dry ingredients mixing until just moistened.


Fold in shredded apple.










Spray your griddle lightly and place batter in 1/3 cup (approx, more or less for your size preference) scoops, fashion out a "stem" immediately after pouring.

Bake until the edges are dry and some bubble rise to the surface.

Flip. Bake another few minutes.




Top with some apples fashioned into a face and maple syrup.
Enjoy!