Bananas Meet Bread

The Ultimate Banana Bread Recipe

What you need:
2 Cups all-purpse flour
11/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
dash of salt
dash of ground cinnamon
pinch of ground nutmeg


2 eggs - beaten
1 1/2 Cups mashed ripe bananas (5-6 medium)
1 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup melted butter (OR for a healthy alternative applesauce)
Optional - 1/4 Cup chopped walnuts (My Gramma hates nuts in food, so I never add them.)


Streusel Topping
1/4 Cup packed brown sugar, 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour, 2 1/2 Tablespoons of butter. Used a fork or pastry blender to cut in butter until he mixture is crumbly. You can also stir in 2-3 Tablespoons oats or nuts to the topping.


What You Do:

• Preheat your oven to 350'F - Grease your bread pan - set aside.
• In a large bowl combine dry ingredients (except sugar) and mix well. Make a well in the center. Set aside.
• In a medium bowl combine eggs, banana, sugar, and butter - mix well. Add all at once to the dry ingredients and stir until moistened. Batter will be lumpy.
• Pour into bread pan. Top with streusel mixture.
• Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Let cool 15 minutes then turn out onto wire rack to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap and store over night. (It really does taste better that way.)


EAT! And Enjoy!

For "Granola Crunchers" Everywhere

The Best Granola Recipe In the World

Try it... You'll see :)
{Now G-Free! This is a revision from my 2011 recipe}

What You’ll Need:

  8-9 Cups rolled oats

      1/2 Cup ground flax seed (a coffee or spice grinder works great)

·         1 Cup sunflower seeds
      1/3 Cup pumpkin seeds

·         1 Cup finely chopped almonds

·         1 Cup finely chopped walnuts

·         1 Cup finely chopped pecans

·         1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt (less if you are using salted seeds or nuts)

·         ½ Cup brown sugar

·         ¼ Cup PURE maple syrup

·         ¾ Cup local honey

·         1 Cup coconut oil (or Non GMO canola oil)

·         1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon

·         1 Tablespoon good vanilla

·         2-3 Cups total dried fruit: raisins, cranberries, blueberries, cherries, pineapple, mango, or coconut, etc! I mix it up every time :) {also experiment with different nuts!}

How to Make:

1. Preheat the oven to 325’ F (165’C). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
2.  Combine oats, flax seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts, and pecans in a very large bowl and mix well.
3.  In a medium sauce pan stir together salt, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and pour over dry ingredients, stir to coat and mix well. Spread mixture out evenly on the baking sheets.
4.  Bake in the preheated oven until crispy and toasted, about 20 min. Stir once with a spatula halfway through. Cool, then stir in the dried fruit before storing in an airtight container.

Enjoy!

Fancy French Toast

Fancy French Toast is a new favorite of mine! The original recipe I got from Claire Robinson of 5 Ingredient Fix. Of course I didn't write down the recipe because I was so busy swooning over the television, so I'm winging it a bit. It is so simple yet so delectable! Perfect for making a weekend morning special or perhaps a loved ones birthday memorable. :)

The end result. YUM.

For Fancy French Toast you will need:

• 1 loaf of Brioche - sliced approx. 1 inch thick (My other favorite to use is Italian Sweet Bread with raisins and cranberries - today I'm using Cinnamon Swirl Bread from a local bakery.)
• 4 eggs
• 1/3 Cup of Half & Half
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla
• 1 Cup strawberries - washed with stems removed, and sliced
• 1 Cup blueberries - washed with stems removed
• 1/4 Cup granulated sugar - (I like to use agave nectar)
• About a tablespoon of butter for the pan

To Make:

Slice the bread into 1 inch in thickness.

In a pie plate, or shallow pan of some sort, crack the eggs, and Half & Half and vanilla. Whisk until combined.

In a sauce pan stir together berries and sugar and let sit on low heat, stirring occasionally. This will be a heavenly topping! And the berries do all the work for you!

Dip each slice of bread in the egg mixture - letting it soak it just a bit on each side.

Place each slice on a heated and lightly buttered pan or electric skillet. About 2-3 minutes per side until golden brown.

At this point the berries should be syrupy and succulent! So I like to cut the french toast diagonally and place artfully on a plate, drizzle fruit on top and dust lightly with confectioners sugar. I like to serve this dish with a side of fresh seasonal fruit with cottage cheese, orange juice, and maybe some bacon.



Enjoy! And have a great weekend!