simple banana bread

Classic Banana Breadadapted from Elise, who got it from Mrs. Hockmeyer

3 to 4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/3 cup melted butter
1/2 cup sugar (1/4 cup brown, 1/4 cup white)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of roughly chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Stir the butter into the bananas. Add in the sugar, egg, and vanilla extract. Add in the baking soda and the salt and mix. Add the sifted flour last. Stir the batter until just mixed. Toss in the walnuts and then lightly stir.

Pour the batter into a loaf pan and pop into the oven for about 1 hour.

Makes 1 loaf.

egg custard tarts

Egg Custard Tartsadapted from WokkingMum

Pâte Brisée crust (recipe)
5 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 2/3 cup water
5 tbsp sugar

Spray or butter the sides of the muffin tins.

Roll out 5x5 inch thin layers of crust. Line the insides of a muffin tin. Using scissors, remove edges of the crust so that they fit snugly inside the tin.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix together the milk, water, and sugar. Lightly beat the eggs in a separate bowl, and pour the egg into the milk mixture through a strainer. Stir the mixture lightly to melt the sugar and try to avoid making air bubbles.

Pour the egg mixture into the tarts.

Bake the tarts for 30 minutes.

Makes 12 tarts.

*the tarts could be sweeter, said a friend. but, i thought it was perfect.

bleu cheese dressing

Creamy Bleu Cheese Dressing
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup plain yogurt
2 tbsp rice vinegar (what I had on hand)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup of crumbled bleu cheese
honey

Mix all the ingredients together except for the bleu cheese.

Add the bleu cheese into the mix and beat until the cheese is incorporated into the dressing. Drizzle the honey to the dressing until the dressing is sweet enough.

banana strawberry muffins

Banana Strawberry Muffins
adapted from AllRecipes

2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup strawberries, roughly chopped
1/2 cup banana, mashed
1/2 tbsp orange zest
1/4 cup melted butter
1/4 cup applesauce
1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/8 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup walnuts, roughly chopped

Preheat oven to 350F.

Mix and sift together the flour, baking soda, and cinnamon.

In another bowl, mix together the lightly beaten eggs, sugar, banana, orange zest, butter, applesauce.

Mix the wet and dry ingredients, and stir until just moistened.

Pour the mixture into a buttered muffin tin. Bake for 30 minutes, or when the muffins are ready and checked by inserting a knife to the bread.

Let cool.

Makes 12 small muffins.

a crustless cheesy quiche.

Crustless Cheesy Quiche
adapted from SimplyRecipes

1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk
1 zucchini, thinly sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup cottage cheese
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
5 eggs
4 oz cream cheese
6 oz Gruyere cheese
3 tbsp Parmesean cheese

Melt the butter on medium heat and stir in flour until bubbly. Slowly add the milk to the mixture until the sauce thickens. Remove from heat to cool down, about 15 minutes.

Saute the onion and zucchini in a little bit of olive oil until the onion is cooked and translucent. Set aside to let cool.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Combine the cottage cheese, baking powder, and salt.

In a separate bowl, beat the eggs and slowly add cream cheese, cottage cheese mixture, zucchini/onion mixture, and flour/butter mixture. Fold in the Gruyere and Parmesean cheese.

Pour the mixture into a buttered 10" pie pan. Bake for 4o minutes at 350F or until the top is lightly browned.

baking bread.

Simple Breadfrom Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day

2 cups unbleached, all-purpose flour (more for dusting)
1-1/4 cup white whole wheat flour
1-1/2 cups and 3 tbsp lukewarm water
3/4 tbsp or 1 packet yeast
3/4 tbsp salt
Cornmeal

Mix the yeast with the lukewarm water. Add flour and salt to the yeast mixture.

Using a spoon, mix the ingredients together. The dough will be loose. Cover the container (not air tight) and let rest for 2-5 hours. The dough can then be baked or refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

When the dough is ready to be baked, sprinkle a little bit of flour on the dough and cut off the amount of dough with a knife. Turn dough in hand to stretch the surface and to create a rounded top and lumpy bottom. Place the dough on top of some sprinkled cornmeal. Let the dough rest for 40 minutes.

Place a broiler pan on bottom of the oven. In the middle rack, place the baking stone and turn the oven to 450F. Let the stone heat for 20 minutes. Dust the dough with flour and slash top of dough with a knife. Slide the dough onto the stone. Pour 1 cup of hot water into the broiler pan and shut the oven to trap the steam. Bake for about 30 minutes, until well-browned. Cool completely.

Makes about 2 loafs.