Whole Grain Banana Bread

What's better than a nice, warm, homemade loaf of banana bread? A whole grain one! And this one is kid-approved!

This is whole grain bread as we are using two different grains, wheat and oatmeal. Do not use the instant oatmeal packets.

Make sure you use a yogurt that is free of junk. I use Dannon All-Natural Plain yogurt. Be sure and read that label! You will be surprised to find out what is in your yogurt.

You can also add some chopped nuts to the batter to add a yummy health boost. Walnuts are full of healthy Omega Fatty acids!

Mug Brownie Trial and Error

I do love me some Betty Crocker Warm Delights bowls. Mmmmmm..... And the husband loves brownies, but only when they are fresh from the oven. And he wants more than just that little bowl. He eats a few brownies, then I eat the rest of the pan over the next two (if even that) days. We're talking a 9x13 pan here. Not the little one. Nope. That would be just too easy.

So I saw this great idea that you could put brownie mix in a mug and add some water and you could have an instant brownie from the microwave. Well, yeah. That didn't work out so well.

Two of the three mugs there have been in the sink all day soaking trying to get the hardened mass of burnt sugar out of them. One of them still has the fork stuck in it! And the third, well, that was a darned good brownie from the microwave.

German Russian Easter Bread aka heaven!

Sorry, no picture as there are many viruses out there attacking flicker feeds. If you google "russian easter bread" and look at the images (don't click any!) you can see what the glory looks like! Although, i would recommend a thin, light frosting unlike some of those pictures that look like they have a cup (literally) of frosting on them. yikes! A traditional decoration in our family was jelly beans, cut in half and they will stick right in the frosting. This particular recipe is from Janice Hegel.

A few notes: you can use regular water instead of potato water, you can use milk instead of cream and there was no cooking time listed in the recipe. I would say probably at least 30 min maybe? To get the domed shaped loaves, you would use metal coffee cans :) You can also add a few drops of yellow food coloring to achieve a more festive looking loaf.

Mommy, can we make a cake?

Well, of course we can! But, I'm not much in a mood to make a cake, so let's make a quick one. Boy, do I love it when Lily asks to bake. At 3 ½, she's already found her inner Betty Crocker. She even insisted we both wear our aprons. Don't worry. I've also taught her the most important part of baking. Licking the spatula ^_^

So we mixed and stirred and whisked and poured. And then we licked. Of course, we made a mess! But then, we had cake.

buns

I made buns! And I finally figured out how to make my dough smooth and elastic.  Who knew I was using way too much flour? And that the dough will not stick to the table when it starts to get tacky while kneeding? Oh! I love bread. LOVE!

yummy balls of dough

the *best* banana bread ever!

Lily and I baked banana bread tonight. Yum! She, of course, wanted to lick the beaters immediately after I got them out of the drawer.  I have taught her well! ^_^   We adapted a recipe we found over at Food Network from the Two Hot Tamales (if you don't know who they are, then you have not watched enough food tv!).  Here's the link: Banana Bread at Food Network.No pictures except from the other website since the camera is in need of batteries again.  Darn Lily! 

We made two smaller loaves so that I could pop one in the freezer for later.  Here is our yummy goodness:

favorite muffins

i haven't made these in a looooong time, but they are by far the best muffins i make.  and i like love muffins!!

favorite muffins

1-1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 egg

1/3 cup milk (approximate)

1 cup berries

Combine the flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a bowl and mix well.  In a glass measure cup, measure 1/3 cup oil, add the egg and beat well.  Add milk to the mixture in the cup to equal 1 cup.  Add the wet to the dry and mix just until almost combined.  Add in 1 cup of your favorite berries (or anything you like) and mix in carefully.  Don't over mix!

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes.  I always bake mine in paper cups.

cake mix cookies

used this recipe here for cake mix cookies.  i think this is **the** easiest recipe for cookies i have ever tried.  and they are actually really good!  last week i made them with a dark chocolate cake mix.  i had to add an extra egg and an extra 1/4 cup of water, but they were great.  very chocolatey, nice and soft and not a bit cake-like as i had thought.  tonite i am using a yellow cake mix with about 1/2 cup peanut butter and 1/4 cup of water mixed in the recipe also.  then i am putting chocolate chips on top :-) yum nummy!

easiest cake ever! with mixed results

so i got some cake mix on sale today at the store. i like homemade cake a lot better, but sometimes, its just so much easier to use boxed :) and now, i know that its even easier than i thought! i found a recipe where you combine one box of cake mix with one 12-ounce can of soda. and bake it according to the box. that's it. couldn't be easier. (well, you could buy a premade cake, but then you wouldn't get to eat the cake batter, now would you?) i used rainbow chip cake mix and a can of lemon-lime soda. (the recipe called for diet soda, but i don't drink that crap) the batter taste the same, except you don't have to feel bad about eating raw eggs :) we shall see how it comes out of the oven. can't wait!

fresh from the oven!  it cut horribly, but then, i just couldn't wait :)  it was very, very moist.  to the point of being heavy even.  it also didn't rise as much as a regular cake.  upon eating some the next day though, it is a little less heavy in the mouth, but still heavy feeling in the belly.  it does cut much better once it has cooled though! :)  i think i may have to do some experimenting with this recipe....

strawberry shortcut cake

well folks, the strawberry shortcut cake from last nite was not all that spectacular that i had hoped. the white cake portion was pretty good. charles really liked it, even with less sugar :) it had a very, very fine crumb to it. i think i may make the cake again, but use some applesauce instead of some of the sugar and fat. the strawberries and marshmallows added nothing to the cake really. i felt that they almost ruined it. would have been better as a white cake with a seven mintue frosting and sliced berries on top. mmmmmmmm.

baking :-)

so tonite i am baking "strawberry shortcut cake". i made a little boo-boo though, and forgot to cut the cake batter in half, so i have an 8x8 strawberry cake and a heart shaped white cake. the white cake has made it out of the oven at this point because it was smaller. and i can say whole heartedly that it is a yummy cake batter! i did alter the recipe by using less sugar, but thats it! the other cake is looking mighty yummy in my oven too!