Banana Bread

I made up a banana bread recipe this morning. My lovely assistant has been singing the banana bread in a bunt pan song which sounds more like "banana butt pins".

• 
  
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup butter
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 cup mashed ripe bananas
• 1 egg
• tsp vanilla
• tablespoon cinnamon
• tsp nutmeg
• quarter cup milk
• approx a handful of raisins

Preheat to 350
Start out creaming the butter and sugar. I just toss the banana's in after that and beat them into a lovely fragrant mess. Add the egg, milk and vanilla. then the cinnamon, nutmeg baking soda, powder and salt. Finally the flour and raisins. Bake about 50 minutes until knife test comes out clean.


ok so- yum. seriously. not only does my house smell awesome, Virginia is doing what i call the nomnom dance

cinnamon roll's

I've been attempting to get yeast to work. For me it's been years of weird dinner rolls and broken dreams until this last month. Finding that my wealth of home time and strange confectionery cravings have lead to me to mixing and matching a couple recipes for this cinnamon rolls fun.

Dough:

• 1/4-ounce package yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup scalded milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 egg
• 3 1/2 to 4 cups all-purpose flour

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water and set aside. In a large bowl mix milk, sugar, melted butter, salt and egg. Add 2 cups of flour and mix until smooth. Add yeast mixture. Mix in remaining flour until dough is easy to handle. Knead dough on lightly floured surface for 5 to 10 minutes. Place in well-greased bowl, cover and let rise until doubled in size, usually 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Okay- notes. Scalding milk means boiling it until it gets filmy. What I do is toss my butter in with this to melt. This temp means you need to temper you egg/sugar mixture, which translates into adding spoonfuls of hot milk and butter in slowly so you don't end up with scrambled eggs . Also, As I mentioned before I have had a huge problem getting my yeast doughs to rise. I found that if i set my oven to 175 for fifteen minutes then cut it off, it works perfectly for me. I usually start the oven before i start collecting my ingredients. Also, 90 minutes is perfect for cleaning up the disaster zone which occurs from having a lovely 2 year old assistant.

Filling:

• 1/2 cup melted butter, plus more for pan
• 3/4 cup sugar, plus more for pan
• 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup raisins, walnuts, or pecans, optional

When doubled in size, punch down dough. Roll out on a floured surface into a 15 by 9-inch rectangle. Spread melted butter all over dough. Mix sugar and cinnamon and sprinkle over buttered dough. Sprinkle with walnuts, pecans, or raisins if desired. Beginning at the 15-inch side, role up dough and pinch edge together to seal. Cut into 12 to 15 slices.

Coat the bottom of baking pan with butter and sprinkle with sugar. Place cinnamon roll slices close together in the pan and let rise until dough is doubled, about 45 minutes. Bake for about 30 minutes or until nicely browned.

This part is pretty cut and dry.

Filling

• 2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened, approximately 1/4 cup
• 3 tablespoons milk
• 5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

Cherry Pie

So I've been slacking off a bit on the whole pie making thing. However, since we're coming into berry season out this way pies will be spewing forth.

Also, this week was the first time I've tried using refrigerated premade pie crusts. I actually made a lattice using this and a pizza cutter.

Now, PIETASTISMIC TIME



Cherry Pie

• 5 cups fresh or frozen tart cherries
• 1 to 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/8 tablespoon almond extract
• pie crust
  
• 1 1/2 tablespoons butter, to dot
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, to sprinkle

Preheat oven to 375

cut and pit the cherries. Cook them covered on low-med heat until the juice is rendered. This should take about an hour or so, stir occasionally.
remove from heat
Mix the sugar and cornstarch together then add to cherries
mix thoroughly
add almond extract
pour mixture into prepared bottom crust
put top on pie, place butter on top of filling and put top crust on
if lattice, cut it into extra small pieces and put between connecting crust
sprinkle with sugar
Bake 50 min and allow to cool

my grandma's pound cake

Grandma Tantaquidgeons pound cake


2 sticks of butter
3 c sugar
1c milk
5 eggs
1 tblsp vanilla
3c flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch salt



cream the butter and sugar, add eggs one at a time mixing all before adding the next followed by milk and vanilla.
add flour, baking soda and salt in small portions throughly mixing
bake for an hour
DO NOT OPEN THE OVEN DURING THAT HOUR!
after that check it, if it needs another 15 minutes give it to it.
turn off the oven and let it sit for 15 in the over

dbl chocolate pecan cookies

1 1/2c brown sugar
2 sticks butter-room temp
1/3 c cocoa powder
1 tbls vanilla
2 eggs
1 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
2 c flour
bag choco chunks and 1/2 c pecans


375 for 11 min

cream sugar and butter
add eggs, cocoa and vanilla
then flour, salt and baking powder.
mix in nuts and chips
bake 11 minutes

key lime

So I had a serious case of life attack the past few weeks which i shall be making up for shortly.
this week's addition happened two weeks ago. I made Emril's key lime pie recipe which can be found at http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/key-lime-pie-recipe/index.html
i bought a crust myself.


key lime may possibly be the easiest pie ever. seriously, the most work involved was zesting the limes.

coming up some cookie and pound cake recipes

Be bop a re bop- rhubarb and srawberry pie

Behold the first recipe I created myself. Whoever decided to eat the red stems of a toxic plant that is pretty tart on its own could become such a tasty duo with overly sweet berries.









Rhubarb and Strawberry Pie

preheat to 400

pie crust- bottom and top
1 1/2 c frozen strawberries
1 1/2c rhubarb, sliced
1c sugar
3 tblsp corn starch
dash cinnamon
4 tblsp butter

put your fruit in a bowl with sugar and corn starch. stir until the fruit is coated. sprinkle cinnamon on the bottom crust before adding your fruit. it will be super dry, just make sure everything is coated and all the dry goes on top. put your butter on top and cover with other crust. slice some slits in the top.

bake 15 minutes at 400 then lower to 350 for 45 minutes