Bananas. Chocolate. Sugar. Not a bad way to start off a Monday morning, eh? After a long weekend of garage sale manual labor and a wedding shower, baking was not on my to-do list for Sunday night. But when I walked in the kitchen, there were those dark brown, almost black bananas staring back at me, just begging me to bake with them. Okay, fine. I’m such a pushover for banana bread.

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You may remember my affirmation a few weeks ago that pre-made mixes are nothing to be ashamed of and I’m happy to say that many of you agreed with me. It was very encouraging.

So I bought another box. (I probably should have bought a case at the rate I’m going…) Same five minute prep, same addition of chocolate chips, but this time I poured the batter into a muffin tin.

Incredible isn’t it? Moist, springy, flavorfully spicy and sweet muffins with unthinkably little effort. And since I’m planning on attempting this for Thanksgiving, I’m ok admitting to a little slacker baking last night.

On a side note, I realize that the plate is completely un-seasonal, but it’s just so much more exciting than my regular plates! Don’t you just love melamine?

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

In case you’ve been living in an arctic cave and haven’t noticed, it’s pumpkin season. Everywhere I look there’s a new recipe for another way to use pumpkin. I attempted to join in the baking craze with some pumpkin brownies last week, but they were quite unsuccessful and my confidence was a bit shot. Even though I had a few cups of pumpkin puree sitting in my fridge, I just couldn’t set myself up for another baking failure.

But as I was elbowing my way through the masses at Trader Joe’s yesterday, I found an enormous display of Pumpkin Bread mixes. It’s not a new display, it’s actually been up for about a month, but I usually scoff past thinking, “Why would anyone buy a mix? Just pick a recipe and do it yourself!” Well, yesterday my bruised ego was mighty attracted to that pumpkin bread mix and the idea of doing very little work to produce something yummy was too appealing to pass up.

I know that for some people the idea of using a mix is no big deal, even commonplace, but I come from a bake-it-from-scratch kind of family who frowns at “break and bake” cookies and for whom the idea of using a mix is - gasp - unthinkable. Now I know why. Once you use the mix, it’s hard to justify working twice as hard for a similar - if not worse - outcome. Granted, I understand that excellent bakers can clearly make a better cake than could ever come from a box, but for a beginner like myself, the mix is a sure-thing.

The directions are simple: fold eggs, oil and water into mix, pour into loaf pan (or muffin tin) and bake. I added chocolate chips for good measure as well and I must say it was a genius call on my part. I had to keep from eating the whole loaf when it came out of the oven. So you can consider this my official stamp of approval on baking mixes. I have a feeling I’ll still make most things from scratch, but when you want something that’s home-baked and you don’t have a ton of time, a mix is certainly acceptable in my book!

This past weekend was my *tear* last weekend in New York. As such, J* and I each picked a day and planned something especially fun as a surprise to each other. On Saturday, he drove us out to the Liberty Science Center in Jersey. With exhibits like “Skyscrapers” and “Eat and Be Eaten,” oh man, that place is too much fun. We played and took advantage of every interactive screen for roughly 6-7 hours. Yep, I am not exaggerating. The only unpleasant thing was the woman walking around with a giant beetle in one exhibit, surprisingly people. I literally screamed and ran across the room as the little kids laughed at me. I don’t like giant bugs thank you!!

On Sunday, I really wanted to enjoy brunch for the first time EVER in Manhattan. (I usually just cook.) At around noonish, we went for brunch at the famous Prune. Unfortunately, the wait was 1 1/2-2 hours, and not having thought to grab a pre-brunch snack, I was too hungry to wait. We wandered over to a cozy little place called, hilariously enough, Le French Diner. Now J* has a definite thing for French food. When we met and he found out I like to cook, he proudly informed me of his skill with Bearnaise sauce.

The interior of Le French diner offers three small tables and a short diner counter. Outside, four additional tables expanded the seating options. The exposed brick walls are covered with random art pieces, kitschy little bobbles, photographs of French patrons, and the like. The smell of sweet butter filled the place. The Brunch looked fantastic but we ultimately decided on other options. J* had a Fillet Mignon of Pork with a mushroom cream sauce, and I had a delicious ham and cheese sandwich on a toasted baguette (oh the baguette was sooo perfect) with a cup of zucchini soup. I loved the color of the creamy zucchini soup. I had a nice cafe au lait to finish. I helped J* lick the plate clean of his dish.

The lunch was rich but hit the spot on a rather rainy day. Now, what do I eat on my last three days in New York???

-Caley, craving a toasty baguette

Remember the trencher? No? Well, it’s not your fault. The stale square of bread preceded wooden and glass tableware and the plates we use today; used in medieval times, it was generally devoured at the end of the meal soaked with all the goodness of the food placed atop it or given to the poor as alms.

Am I the only one who thinks that’s an awesome idea? The bread plate part, not the alms part. Panera’s already got a huge hit on their hands with the bread bowl soups; imagine if we started seeing edible plates at fancy restaurants. People would flip!

What other food traditions of old do you want to see, dear readers? Let me know.

-Jim is feeling historical

I already realize that I most likely aggravate my roommates on a weekly basis with my extended periods of kitchen domination. This week I made Champ, Colcannon, a sort of Southern coleslaw with the leftover cabbage,  and simmered Beef and Guinness stew for a couple hours, filling our small common space with a deliciously malty smell, which may or may not have been appreciated. (Although mentioned in previous posts, Champ is an Irish dish of mashed potatoes, made in several different ways with chives, leeks, etc., but always with a nice big pat of butter melting on the top in which you dip your fork. Colcannon is basically mashed potatoes and cabbage. I like to cook the cabbage in a bit of sausage or bacon fat, but that’s just me being indulgent.)

J* liked the hearty stew, although for the sake of our hungry bellies I cooked it a little faster than I should have. I think the exact reaction was “Wow! You can really taste the Guinness.” It may or may not have been a good choice to actually drink a couple Guinnesses with the stew. Hey, when in Rome… I think I may be over my recent Irish food obsession as of late. It’s really too heavy for proper summer eating. I’m ready to try out this Avocado Mango Salsa.

But I digress from the subject of my post. In my quest for perfect banana bread, my bananas have been ripening and over-ripening on the kitchen counter, surely prompting the thought, “Those are attracting fruit flies. Is she going to do something with those brown bananas or what?” Well, last night I did. I made the most delicious loaf of banana bread….ever. I decided to use less sugar than most recipes call for, a little more vanilla, and a handful of chopped walnuts.

Hopefully the glorious smell of the baking banana bread soothed any frustrations regarding the availability of the kitchen counters on any given night.

Banana Bread

Ingredients

3 extra-ripe bananas
3/4 stick melted butter, roughly
1/2 C-3/4 C. sugar, depending on how sweet you want it
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 C. flour
1/2 C. chopped walnuts

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Mash the bananas and mix in the melted butter in a large bowl. Add the egg, sugar, and vanilla. Add the baking soda and a pinch of salt, and mix. Then, mix in the flour and chopped walnuts. Pour the batter into a greased 4×8 in. loaf pan. Bake for one hour. Cool. Attack and devour.

Caley’s Favorite Banana Bread Recipes