Banana Bread

This is Flour Bakery's banana bread recipe from the Food Network. Whenever I have bananas that are getting old I put them in the freezer, then when it is Christmas time I pull them all out and thaw them to use in large batches of mini banana bread loaves to make for neighbor gifts, and this is the recipe I use. When I make the large batches I can fit 4 times the single recipe in my Bosch, so will add those measurements for multiplying the recipe by 4 in red to make it easier for me or anyone else who wants to make a large batch in the future! 

Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (6 2/3 cups or 1 1b. 13.4 oz)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda (4 tsp.)
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (1 Tsp.)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt (2 tsp.)
• 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar (4.5 cups)
• 2 eggs (8 eggs)
• 1/2 cup oil (2 cups)
• 3 1/2 bananas, very ripe, mashed (14 mashed bananas)
• 2 tablespoons creme fraiche or sour cream (1/2 cup)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (4 tsp)
• 2/3 cup walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional- I exclude)

Instructions:

Set oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of a loaf pan with parchment paper. 

Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Beat sugar and eggs with a whisk until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Drizzle in oil. Add mashed bananas, creme fraiche, and vanilla. Fold in dry ingredients and nuts. Pour into a lined loaf pan and bake for about 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Note: I bake mine at 325. I often am baking in mini loaf pans so for shorter time. I just keep an eye on it and haven't tracked how long it takes for those small pans.

Banoffee Pie

This is the banoffee pie I brought to Thanksgiving which was requested to be put on the blog as well. So easy and yet so delicious. My friend Merissa shared the recipe with me, which she found at https://www.bakedbyanintrovert.com/epic-banoffee-pie/#mv-creation-364-jtr

Ingredients

For the crust

• 1 ½ cups graham cracker crumbs 
• ⅓ cup sugar 
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 

For the filling

• 2 (13.4-ounce) cans dulce de leche, - SEE NOTE 1 
• 4 large bananas, sliced 
• 1 tablespoon lemon or orange juice, optional - SEE NOTE 2

For the whipped cream

• 1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream 
• 3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar 
• 1 tablespoon clear piping gel, optional - SEE NOTE 3 
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
• ⅓ cup toffee bits, optional 

Instructions

Make the crust

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. 
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Stir until the crumbs are evenly moistened. Tightly press the crumb mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool completely then refrigerate for 30 minutes. 

Make the filling

1. Using a silicone spatula, carefully spread one can of dulce de leche into the bottom of the prepared crust. 
2. Toss the bananas in lemon or orange juice then arrange a single layer of banana slices over the dulce de leche. 
3. Repeat layering with the remaining can of dulce de leche and top with a single layer of bananas. (You may only need 3 bananas depending on how large they are.) 

Make the whipped cream

1. In a medium bowl, beat the cream, sugar, piping gel, and vanilla together with an electric mixer on medium speed until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture is foamy. 
2. Turn the speed up to medium-high and beat until soft to medium peaks form, about 3-4 minutes. Take care to not overbeat! 
3. Spread the whipped cream over the bananas and refrigerate uncovered for at least 3 hours. Garnish with toffee bits before serving. The pie will keep for up to 4 days stored uncovered in the refrigerator. 

Notes

1. You can find cans of dulce de leche in the Hispanic aisle of the grocery store. Or you can learn how to make it at home.
2. Lemon or orange juice is helpful if you plan to make the pie ahead of time. The juice will prevent the bananas from browning.
3. Piping gel is used to make stabilized whipped cream. The whipped cream will hold up longer without separating which is useful if the pie won't be fully consumed in 1 day.

Make ahead tip

1. The baked crust can be covered tightly and stored in the refrigerator for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator. 
2. The fully assembled pie can be made up to 1 day in advance. Store in the refrigerator uncovered until ready to serve

Chocolate Cherry Blossom Cookies

This is another of my friend Kayla's recipes. She traditionally makes them with her Christmas holiday baking because of the red color, but they would be delicious any time of year. Even my kids that don't like maraschino cherries love these!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. maraschino cherry liquid
• Red food coloring (optional)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 10 oz. jar maraschino cherries
• 3-4 tbsp. sugar
• 36 Hershey's kisses, unwrapped

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.
2. Drain cherries of their liquid, but be sure to reserve about 2 teaspoons of their juice. 
3. Cream butter using a nixer or wooden spoon. Gradually stir in the powdered sugar a little at a tine.
4. Stir in the cherry juice, red food coloring (if you want them to look extra pink or red), and vanilla.
5. Gradually stir in flour a little at a time. Mix until just combined.
6. Chop the cherries, then fold them in.
7. Shape dough into 1 inch balls. Roll in white sugar. Gently flatten (just a little) using the bottom of a glass.
8. Bake 12-15 minutes, or until the sides are just beginning to brown. Remove from oven and immediately press a kiss into the middle of each cookie.

Eggnog Cookies

This recipe was a Christmas staple given to me by my friend Kayla. I loved them and added them to our Christmas cookie plate for neighbors!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 egg yolks
• 1/2 cup eggnog
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp. salt

Eggnog Frosting:

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 4 to 5 tbsp. eggnog
• 1/2 tsp. nutmeg
• 1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Cookie Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Grease cookie sheet and set aside.
3. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until fluffy.
4. Add egg yolks, eggnog and vanilla. Continue beating until creamy.
5. Add flour, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and salt. Beat on medium until well combined. 
6. Can chill dough for 1 hour if needed.
7. Roll heaping tablespoons of the dough into balls and place two inches apart on a cookie sheet. 
8. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes.

Eggnog Frosting:

1. Cream butter until fluffy.
2. Add powdered sugar and beat until combined.
3. Add eggnog, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Beat for 3 minutes until smooth.
4. Frost cooled cookies and sprinkle nutmeg over the frosting if desired.

Note: My friend added 1/2 tsp. rum extract to the cookie dough and 1/2 tsp. to the frosting as well. The original recipe doesn't have it and I am not a fan of rum flavoring so excluded it. If you like rum flavoring, then you could add that extract to both as she does. 

Lemon Sour Cream Pie

This was the pie that I made for Thanksgiving. Someone requested that I put it on the blog, so here we go! Found at https://tastesbetterfromscratch.com/lemon-sour-cream-pie/

Crust:

Either a traditional pie crust, baked and cooled, or a graham cracker pie crust, baked and cooled (I did a graham cracker crust for Thanksgiving)

Lemon Filling:

• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons + 1 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (about 2-3 lemons)
• 3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup softened butter
• zest of one lemon (about 1/2 tbsp.)
• 1 cup sour cream

Whipped cream topping:

• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

Crack eggs in a small bowl. Whisk lightly with a fork and set aside

In a large saucepan combine sugar and cornstarch. Whisk in milk and fresh lemon juice and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is thick and bubbling.

Reduce heat to low and cook for two more minutes. Add a spoonful of the hot mixture into the egg yolks and stir well. Repeat this process with two or three more spoonfuls of the hot mixture added to the egg yolks. (The goal is to temper the egg yolks so they don't cook when added to the hot saucepan.)  Poor egg mixture into the saucepan and stir well. Bring mixture to a gentle boil and cook for two more minutes. Remove from heat.

Add softened butter and lemon zest and stir until butter melts completely. Allow mixture to cool and then stir in sour cream. Add filling to your pie shell.

For the whipped topping:

In a mixing bowl, beat heavy whipping cream with an electric mixer. While beating, add sugar. Continue beating until stiff peaks form. Spread whipped cream over pie filling. Refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours before serving.