Banana Chocolate Chip Bread

This is one of my favorite recipes and gets a ton of compliments. It is probably one of the most requested recipes I have as well. It is pretty easy to make and makes several loafs, so enjoy.

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. salt

4 large eggs at room temperature for 30 minutes

2 1/3 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 cups coarsely mashed very ripe bananas (6 large bananas)

1/4 cup creme fraiche

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter 2 (9X5X3 inch) metal loaf pans, then dust with flour, knocking out excess.

Sift together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt into a bowl.

Beat together eggs, sugar in a bowl of electric mixer at medium-high speed until very thick and pale and mixture forms a ribbon when beater is lifted, about 10 minutes. Reduce speed to low and add oil in a slow stream, mixing then mixing bananas, creme fraiche, and vanilla. REmove bowl from mixer and fold in flour mixture and chocolate chips gently but thoroughly.

Divide batter between loaf pans, spreading evenly, and bake in middle of oven until golden brown and a wooden toothpick or skewer comes out clean, about 1-1 1/4 hours.

Cool loaves in pans on rack for 10 minutes, then turn out onto rack. Turn loaves right side up and cool completely.

BAKING NOTEs- you can use whole wheat flour, but use half all-purpose and whole wheat flour. for a little extra healthy benefit, add 1/4 cup of ground flax seeds to the flour mixture. If you cannot find Creme Fraiche, use sour cream, but most speciality stores will have creme fraiche. I usually find it at Wegmans. (I also freeze the extras, so that I don't have to keep repurchase). I freeze my bananas when they start to over ripen, but crush them first. I mark how many bananas are in each bag so that I know when I go to bake. Do not freeze bananas in skin as they are really difficult to peel and get liquidly when defrosted.

In addition, this recipe can be made into muffins, I believe it is 20 minutes, but it maybe 30, so cross check they are done before removing them from the oven. It is a great breakfast on the go as muffins. Lastly be careful that the entire loaf bakes. I tend to make 3 loaves rather than 2 as I find 2 loaves tend to have a difficult thoroughly cooking in the middle.

World's Best Cinnamon Rolls

(sorry this post is up late; my week has felt topsy-turvy and I lost track of the day)

My Dad has long laid claim to the best cinnamon roll recipe I've ever come across. His cinnamon rolls beat any I've tasted, including the exceptionally popular but somewhat overrated Cinnabon. The secret? Potato. It may seem strange to include mashed potatoes in cinnamon roll dough, but I promise you the finished product bears no resemblance to potato bread. It is light, fluffy, and moist.

Greg Burton's Cinnamon Rolls

Scald 2 cups milk.

Combine in bowl:

1/2 cup shortening (I've never tried this with butter although I don't really like using shortening.)

1 cup sugar

2 tsp. salt

1 cup cold mashed potatoes (you may use instant potatoes; although they don't taste as good on their own, it doesn't make a difference in this recipe.)

Pour scalded milk over potato mixture and beat with mixer.

In another bowl combine:

2 Tbsp dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water

When milk/potato mixture has cooled and yeast is foamy, beat together with mixer. Beat in:

2 eggs

4 cups flour.

Stir in about 3 additional cups of flour, adding 1/2 cup at a time. When dough is still very sticky (keeping it sticky is important) but workable, dump into a greased bowl and turn over once. Cover and let raise in warm area until doubled. Dust counter with flour and divide dough in half. Roll out each half into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick. Spread with butter (my Dad does not skimp. If you're going to indulge, you might as well indulge). Sprinkle with plenty of brown sugar and/or white sugar and cinnamon. If you put enough sugar in that it will caramelize at the bottom of the pan while baking, it's all the better.

Roll dough into a tube and cut 1 inch slices with dental floss or thread. Place on greased jellyroll pan and let raise again until doubled. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or more. Spread glaze on immediately after removing from oven.

Glaze:

(we like the simplicity of this glaze because the roll itself is so rich, but you may substitute any frosting you like.)

6 Tbsp butter

3 to 4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Beat with mixer until smooth.

Squid Dogs (recipe for kids and the kid at heart)

Squid Dogs (recipe from familyfun.com)

hot dogs
dry spaghetti
ketchup

1. Cut hot dogs into 3 or 4 pieces. Thread dry spaghetti through the hot dog (we did 4 spaghetti noodles per hot dog)


2. Boil hot dogs and spaghetti until spaghetti is al dente. Drain.


3.Eat and enjoy. Dip in ketchup if desired.


We had fun making these on one of our snow days with our friends. Great way to get kids involved in cooking.

Moroccan Chicken Stew with Couscous

In honor of Lizbeth, who is trying to eat more vegetables for lent. Depending on how you count tomatoes, you could get all five of those daily veggies with this dish. I should add that I never measure spices, and I'm pretty sure that I use more than what I list here, but you can start with this quantity and adjust to taste.

Moroccan Chicken Stew with Couscous

1.5 cups couscous
3 cups water
2 tsp chicken bouillion granules
1-2 chicken breasts
1 large onion
2-3 carrots
2 tsp minced garlic
1 can diced tomatoes
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp turmeric
1 tsp honey
1 zucchini
1 bell pepper (any color)
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup cooked chickpeas (optional)

1. Bring the water and bouillion to a boil. Remove from heat, stir in couscous, and cover until liquid is absorbed (roughly 5 minutes). When ready to serve, fluff with a fork.
2. Heat a little oil over medium heat in a soup pot. Peel and slice the onion into 1/4 inch rings, adding them to the pot as you slice. Peel, slice, and add the carrots.
3. Dice the chicken and add to the pot. Add the garlic. Cover, raise the heat to high, and cook for two minutes.
4. Dice the zucchini and the bell pepper. Uncover the pot and immediately add in the zucchini and bell pepper, spices, diced tomatoes, and honey. Stir again. Cover and cook until the chicken is fully cooked (roughly 10 minutes), stirring occassionally.
5. Add the raisins and chickpeas (if using). Cook for 1 minute to combine flavors, and serve over a bed of couscous.
   　

Homemade Pasta Sauce

After looking at Elise's recipe, I decided to add one of my favorite homemade tomato sauces for you. I only has 3 ingredients and is super easy and delicious. I can eat it by the spoonful.

2 large cans of whole tomatoes (or your home canned tomatoes)

1 sweet onion, cut in half

1/2 cup of butter

In a large stock pot, place the tomatoes, onion and half the butter. Let simmer on medium temperature for about 1 hour. Then slowly add the rest of the butter, 1 Tablespoon at a time. The longer the sauce sits, the more the flavors absorb. Place last little bit of butter right before serving over fresh pasta.

You can pull out the onion if you wish, but I actually really like the onion with the sauce. Pull apart to serve. If freezing the sauce, remove the onion before freezing.

NOTES: This sauce can be made in about 45 minutes if you bring to a hard boil, but it taste best if simmered over 2-3 hours. Plus tomatoes are better for you the longer they simmer.

Do-it Yourself Pasta

I like pasta, but it is not something I get very excited about. I don't think I have ever ordered it at a restaurant.

However, I love eating fresh home-made pasta. The taste does not compare to the packaged stuff you buy at the store, even the good varieties. The good news is that it is easy to make, takes few ingredients, and you don't have to have any special kitchen equipment.

My three year old likes to help me prepare the pasta; that's how easy it is. Here is a good basic recipe:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 pinch salt
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon butter

(You may substitute water for the milk, but I like the taste of milk in the noodles.)

1.In a large bowl, stir together the flour and salt. Add the beaten egg, milk, and butter. Knead dough until smooth, about 5 minutes. Let rest in a covered bowl for 10 minutes. (I usually complete this step in my KitchenAid so I can let it do all the kneading for me. It makes it much easier.)

2.On a floured surface, roll out to 1/8 or 1/4 inch thickness (it is said that your backside should work up a sweat as you roll it out; don't worry if you find that this is the case for you). Cut into desired lengths and shapes. I don't have any special pasta tools, so I usually just use a pizza cutter. It works just fine.

(here is my pasta, rolled out, cut, and drying a little before I cook it.)

3.Allow to air dry before cooking. A traditional method for this is to suspend a broom handle over the backs of two chairs and hang the noodles on that, but I usually just let them sit on my cutting board. I don't worry if they dry all the way before cooking, as I haven't noticed a difference. If you are storing them, though, you must let them dry all the way or they will stick together. These freeze very well. It is nice to make a large batch and put some away for use later in soups or stews.

4.To cook fresh pasta, in a large pot with boiling salted water cook until al dente. Remember that fresh noodles cook much faster than the packaged, dried kind.

Special tip: It is easy to make ravioli once you have rolled out the pasta dough. Simply cut circles out using a glass or biscuit cutter, put some filling in the middle of the circle, fold in half over the filling, and crimp the edges with a fork. You can fill your ravioli with cheese, meat, or a mixture of cheeses, meats, or vegetables such as spinach.

You may also use spinach or other vegetables to color your pasta. See HERE for some good ideas and recipes. Another option would be to use whole wheat flour in place of some or all of the all-purpose flour.

Chicken Fajitas

Every Wednesday night was “Fajita Night” when I lived with my friend Sarah shortly after finishing my undergrad. I have many fond memories of cooking and eating with her (especially when she’d cook wearing her lab coat, goggles, and a hat made out of her O-Chem molecule kit). While fajitas stopped being a weekly meal after I got married, I was crushed when we moved here and couldn’t find the seasoning packets I used for them at the grocery store. Out of desperation, I started playing with different recipes, and I wound up with this dish, which I love even more. We like our fajitas veggie heavy, but if you are a true carnivore, feel free to increase the chicken and take out a pepper or two.

Chicken Fajitas
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp Cider vinegar
1 Tbsp Soy sauce
1 Tbsp Canola oil
1 tsp Chili powder
1 Clove minced garlic
Juice of ½ lime (or some concentrate)
2 Chicken breasts
1 Onion
3 Bell peppers, any color
Tortillas
Toppings (we like cheese, sour cream, and rice)

1. Combine first 7 ingredients in a large bowl.
2. Cut chicken, onion, and peppers into thin strips and add to bowl, stirring to coat. Marinate for 30 minutes at room temperature, or several hours in the refrigerator.
3. Sauté until chicken has cooked through. Serve on tortillas with your favorite tortilla toppings.