Cooking

Extreme Banana Nut Bread

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Homemade Banana Bread

Here’s an old favorite, good any season of the year. And for those pesky bananas that zip right past their 30 second window of ripeness, it’s a great way to use produce and have a taste of comfort food. This is delicious with a cup of morning coffee or afternoon tea.

Extreme Banana Nut Bread

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar (1 cup granulated white sugar, 1 cup brown sugar)
3 cups mashed overripe bananas (about 5 bananas)
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
2 teaspoons vanilla

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour two 9×5 inch loaf pans. (Or just spray with Pam baking spray). Or, use a muffin pan if you prefer muffins rather than a loaf of bread. Spray muffin cups with Pam, or use cup cake paper liners.

Sift the flour, salt and baking soda into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the butter and sugar until smooth. Stir in the bananas, eggs, vanilla and nuts until well blended. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture, and stir just until blended. Divide the batter evenly between the two loaf pans, or muffin cups.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in the preheated oven; about 20 minutes for muffins if you choose that option, or until a knife inserted into the crown of the loaf or muffin comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the pans for at least 5 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack, and cool completely. Wrap in aluminum foil to keep in the moisture.

Two other tips for free…if you have bananas that are getting too ripe and you don’t have time to make this bread right away, you can freeze the bananas and defrost to use when you’re ready.  Throw the bananas into the freezer unpeeled and whole (the skins will turn black when the fruit freezes, but it doesn’t affect the taste). Or, if you have time to prep, you can peel and slice the bananas and freeze using a freezer bag. Use in the bread recipe or use a few slices at a time in fruit smoothies or milk shakes. When you thaw the bananas to use in the bread recipe, the texture will be almost liquid in consistency, but the thawed fruit works perfectly in the bread. To use the slices in smoothies, don’t thaw, just add to the blender with other smoothie ingredients.

Enjoy!

Pass the pepper

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To foodies out there who love freshly ground black pepper, here’s a fun find:

Trudeau Pepper Mill

This pepper grinder is battery operated. You put whole peppercorns in and simply turn the grinder upside down. No buttons to push or top to twist. Just up-end over the dish you want to season and the grinder does the work.

You can find this online from Amazon or at specialty kitchen stores.

Enjoy!

Growth

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As part of re-balancing my life, I have been doing a lot of soul searching. Disclaimer: This blog is not named “Sheila.” Blogging provides a personal record of this journey, but I’m also writing with the thought that my work may prompt someone reading (all five of you!) to do your own soul searching – if you need to. Maybe this is only useful for me. But regardless, the point is not to be endlessly focused on self. The point is to become a better person, a better everything…and that takes thought and work.

Life is a process of growth and evolution. We move through visible and defined changes, from one birthday to the next, from baby steps to running, from being the child to being the parent, the grownup. But once we arrive at the stage of adulthood, other than physical signs of aging, change can become less visible, less measurable.

So how do I know I am growing, maturing? I’ve heard it said that some people grow up, others just grow old.

I can look back and see many differences in myself, spanning the years. I see changes in style of dress, taste in food, decorating, in personal pleasures. There are some constants. I am always going to love chocolate, home-grown tomatoes, ice cold Coke from the can. I will always need music and books. Faith and family are foundational to me.

There are surface changes. I love rich colors now; in my 20s I chose blues and creams as a home color scheme. Nothing wrong with those colors. But now I choose vibrant shades of berry, greens, black. For many years I loved the country theme and found it cozy and soothing to surround myself with that look. But gradually, I have come to appreciate a more traditional and classic style. I still love the country motif…in other people’s homes. But not in mine.

I love traditional Southern foods…fried okra, butter beans (ok, most of you will know them as Lima beans) black-eyed peas, my grandmother’s cornbread. But over the years I’ve added a lot of other favorites to my food list. I am intrigued with herbs, cheeses with names I can’t pronounce, cooking methods that I haven’t tried before, regional specialties that seem exotic and luscious because I didn’t grow up eating them…I have broadened my food horizons.

I can easily recognize external growth. It is harder to catalog the evolution of my thoughts, my personality. Am I just mellowing, as I hear happens as we age? Am I just worn down by life? My husband says we (he and I) are worn “down to the nub”…we’re just two nubs….not sure exactly what a nub is, but it doesn’t sound particularly attractive. But here’s my question…what change comes from my own effort, and what has occurred due to external forces? I’ll be honest to say that I want to believe positive change has been intentional. I’ll let nature and time have credit for the fine lines around my eyes or the gray hair that I very regularly color blonde.

Bottom line, I’m not sure I can sort it all out. But I know I am more giving, less judgmental than I was in my 20s and 30s. You probably remember that time in your own life. In mine, it was a curious combination of insecurity, bluffing my way, trying to put on an adult act; and viewing life in very concrete terms. I thought I knew a lot then. This is hardly unique to me; I know many people have this realization. But the fact that it is a common occurrence does not lessen the profoundness of it to me.

Sometimes change is so incremental, you don’t know it has occurred until you have the “aha” experience, and realize you’ve rounded a bend. Sometimes change is intentional. And sometimes it is thrust upon us…no option to stay with the status quo, the status quo ends; you have to find your new normal. The challenge is to nurture positive momentum, resist negative movement, and gracefully accept the un-sought, unbidden change that is here to stay. You can’t stand still; but you can focus on moving forward, not losing ground.

Where are you on your journey?

Comfort food, Asian style

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Five Spice Pork Wraps

We have snow on the ground with more expected. The first winter we lived in Ketchikan we had frequent snows. The accumulation wasn’t significant most of the time, but snowfall was a regular occurrence. Last winter we experienced more rain than anything else. This season has been mild until the past few weeks. But now, with March on the calendar and daffodils breaking through the soil, spring is delayed. The forecast for the weekend is more of the same: wind and snow…it will be good to be indoors.

I would typically be thinking of making hearty comfort food to combat the weather. A product of a Southern upbringing, I love barbecue. It is not just for summer cookouts or tailgating, it’s a favorite year round. The traditional tangy/sweet sauce dressing a pulled pork sandwich is a little bit of heaven on a bun for me. But thanks to a recipe from Williams-Sonoma that I tried recently, I have a new twist on barbecue. Pork tenderloin, infused with Asian flavors from ginger, garlic, and hoisin sauce, is the updated version of the classic taste. I’ve made this twice in the past few weeks, and I absolutely need to experience it again. It’s so easy and versatile. The recipe suggests using the pork in a lettuce wrap, but you could also serve this as an entrée with a stir fry of mixed vegetables (zucchini, broccoli, red peppers, snow peas, water chestnuts, onions…whatever you like); or shred the meat for sandwiches.

Asian Barbecue Pork

(with thanks to Williams-Sonoma for the inspiration; the recipe is in their current catalog and on their website as “Five-Spice Pork Wraps.”  http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/five-spice-pork-wraps.html?cm_src=RECIPESEARCH I have adjusted it a bit to suit my taste)

Ingredients

  1. 1 package pork tenderloin (usually two tenderloin pieces are packaged together; be sure to purchase meat that is not pre-seasoned)
  2. 1 or 2 yellow onions, cut in thin wedges
  3. 2 cloves of fresh minced garlic, or 2 tsp crushed garlic
  4. 3 or 4 pieces of pickled jarred ginger
  5. 1/3 cup hoisin sauce
  6. 1/2 cup Litehouse Sesame Ginger Dressing
  7. 1/3 cup soy sauce
  8. 2-3 Tbsp canola oil
  9. 2 Tbsp chili sauce or hot sauce, if desired
  10. Salt, black pepper

Method

  1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle surface of pork with salt and pepper.
  2. Using oven proof cookware, heat oil on medium high setting. Brown pork, onion and garlic until meat is seared on all sides.
  3. Remove pan from heat; add ginger, hoisin sauce, Litehouse dressing, and hot sauce, combining all ingredients to coat pork.
  4. Bake, covered, about 2 hours, or until the meat is very tender and shreds with a fork.

When the meat is tender, shred and pair with stir fried vegetables; serve in a lettuce wrap; or serve on a warmed bun. Garnish with fresh cilantro,  green onions, additional hoisin sauce, Litehouse Sesame Ginger Dressing, or hot sauce if desired.

You can also prepare this dish in a slow cooker rather than the oven if you prefer that method. Follow the same prep steps, but transfer the meat and sauce to a slow cooker after meat is browned. Cook on a low setting, checking tenderness of meat after 4 hours. If meat does not easily shred, continue cooking until meat shreds with a fork.

Here’s another tip for free: I like to make spring rolls. You can find a wide variety of recipes online. But whether you make your own, or buy frozen spring rolls or egg rolls, these are a tasty addition to any Asian-inspired meal, or a delicious little snack or appetizer. I have found a quick and easy dipping sauce that is a perfect partner. Mix to taste, and with proportions based on the number of people you will be serving…no measurements here! For each serving, combine a spoonful or two of apricot jam or orange marmalade with Litehouse Sesame Ginger Dressing and mix well. You can heat the mixture if you prefer the sauce to be warm, or serve cold. This is so simple…why didn’t I think of this before?!

Coconut Cake

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Birthday cake – Coconut Deliciousness

It’s a birthday week at work, and I’m always excited to have a reason to bake something yummy. So I’m taking a coconut cake for the festivities on Wednesday. My usual choice would be chocolate, but that was last week’s flavor. We need variety for the celebration!

I grew up in the South, and have sampled some amazing coconut cakes, a classic of the region. When I was a child, church potlucks were still sometimes referred to as “dinner on the ground,” and there was always an array of desserts weighing down one end of the table spread with food from great Southern cooks. Coconut cake was sure to be present: most communities had (the lucky ones still have) someone whose claim to fame was a treasured version of the white cake with the fluffy frosting.

Although I still love the classic recipe that has a 7-minute boiled icing and looks like a white cake-shaped snow sculpture, I’ve found an easier option that offers more bang for the buck. The secret? One of the best things in the world – sweetened condensed milk. I know it’s sweet…the name gives it away…but it has a decadent smoothness that can take a dessert from good to spectacular. This cake is so delicious, moist, rich…well, you get the idea. Try it, you may have a new favorite. And the great thing is that the recipe makes enough for a crowd, so it’s a perfect choice for dinner on the ground…or wherever you’re going with dessert in hand.

Coconut Cake

1 box white or vanilla cake mix
1 14 oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 21 oz bottle cream of coconut (not coconut milk)
1 8 oz container Cool Whip
1 bag of shredded coconut (found in baking aisle)

Mix and bake cake as package directs, in a 9×13 inch baking dish. When baking is completed, cool cake slightly, leaving in baking pan. Evenly pierce surface of cake with fork or knife (this allows topping to be absorbed by cake).

Mix sweetened condensed milk with half of cream of coconut and pour over surface of cake, letting mixture soak in. Continue to cool cake.

Mix remainder of cream of coconut, Cool Whip, and half of the shredded coconut. Spread over cooled cake (if cake is too warm it will melt the Cool Whip).

Top with remaining shredded coconut. Chill several hours before serving. Refrigerate any remaining cake.

Cream

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Cup of coffee with whipped cream

My name is not Paula Deen. But though I don’t share her flamboyant style, I do appreciate her unembarrassed embrace of butter. I have a similar relationship with cream. Not milk, not half-and-half. Heavy whipping cream. I add it to my coffee every morning, and I’ve progressed from just liking it to needing it. In fact, if I can’t have the real thing, I prefer no coffee at all. No non-dairy creamers for me!

I used to be more inhibited. I used to buy cream for the special occasion recipes, the holiday, once-a-year treats, and guiltily finish off anything left in the carton in a once-a-year coffee splurge. The rest of the time I was much more restrained, and my coffee was just a morning habit. Half-and-half, or even milk, did the job of diluting the robust flavor.

I’m almost a vegetarian, and I have great cholesterol numbers. Maybe that’s why I’m comfortable with my food vice.  A few years ago, I began to buy cream a little more often. I think it was about the time I turned 40. Anyway, cream moved from a once or twice a year place on my grocery list to a weekly item. Now I am never without it, and my morning coffee is rich, satisfying, decadent. It’s not just a habit, it’s my morning comfort and reason for crawling out of the bed at 5:00 AM.

I often wonder who my fellow cream addicts are. I notice there is always a generous supply of cream in the dairy case, and as I only buy one carton a week, there must be others out there regularly supporting the cream component of the dairy world. Thank you, fellow cream lovers! I probably couldn’t carry the industry on my own, even though I’m delighted to do my part.

My husband is a steak lover, and when he drinks coffee, it is without embellishment: serious black coffee, like he learned to drink in medical school. He developed a coffee habit for the caffeine kick. I drink it for the flavor, and although I know it probably sounds sacrilegious to most people, I’ll trade steak for cream any day. If I’m going to have something that impacts my cholesterol, I’ll take it in a liquid form, thank you very much. At dinner, I’ll be the one with veggies on my plate. But I’ll make up for it at breakfast, when I indulge. And I’m over the guilt.

Tuesday night soup

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I love soup in the winter. It’s one of the ultimate comfort foods, and besides the obvious fact that it’s a warm dish in a cold season, I like to make soup because you cannot make a small pot: without major effort, you create multiple meals. I don’t like leftovers usually, but soup is a different story. Soup only improves with a day or two in the fridge.

So my soup of the week is a meatless version of creamy chicken noodle soup. I started with:

  • a pot of boiling water (I used a medium size stock pot)
  • 3 Knorr chicken bouillon cubes
  • 2 finely grated carrots (full size, not baby carrots)
  • 1 stalk of celery, diced
  • sliced fresh mushrooms, about 1/2 lb
  • fresh black pepper, to taste

I cooked the vegetables in the bouillon and water and added approximately half of a 1 lb box of Barilla cut spaghetti pasta. As the pasta cooked, it absorbed much of the broth. I added more water to cover the pasta, two cups of milk and a topping of cheese (any type of cheese that melts well will work with this dish, just use whatever you have on hand, and as much as you want to reach your desired level of cheesiness).

As the soup simmered, the flavors combined and the pasta thickened the broth. Yummy!

Soup is filling, nurturing, and forgiving. You can put together many flavors or a few. If the mixture is too thick, add water, broth, or milk. If it is too thin, you can thicken with a cornstarch slurry, instant potato flakes, pasta, or rice…any starchy component will thicken broth. Add herbs, spices, cheese: you literally can’t go wrong as long as you are tasting as you go, adjusting seasonings, and keeping the broth and other components in a spoonable ratio. Soup is a good vehicle for learning to combine a variety of ingredients to create a cohesive dish. You can start with a basic recipe or concept and follow your own taste and imagination to create something unique. If you already cook, good for you! And if you’re a novice in the kitchen, this is a good place to begin learning basic skills.

Give your creativity free reign and enjoy!

My affair with Williams-Sonoma

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Christmas Panettone

It began as a long distance romance…I can’t recall when I first encountered a Williams-Sonoma catalog, but it was at least in the early 90s…long before I ever went into a  Williams-Sonoma store or before there was a website.

In the early days of my infatuation, the catalogs were smaller and not as elaborate as the current style. As I recall, they were about half the size of the magazine format that the catalog sports now. But even then, each edition was a passport to wonderful culinary products. Understand, I didn’t experience the pleasure of shopping in unique kitchen stores until I was a young adult. There simply was no such establishment in the region where I grew up.

Granted, no matter where one grew up, retail shopping has come a long way. The internet has added opportunities for buying that were unimaginable only a few years ago. When I lived in the Alaskan Arctic, I regularly ordered items from Williams-Sonoma, and they arrived like clockwork, even at the top of the world. Most of my actual purchasing is done online, unless I’m lucky enough to be in the vicinity of a retail store…something that doesn’t happen often enough these days. I got spoiled to the ease of going to their retail locations when we lived in the foothills above Denver. There were multiple Williams-Sonoma stores in the city, and it was always fun to visit at the beginning of a new season to check out the most recent cookware, gadgets, and receipes being showcased.

But I have to say, even though there are benefits to visiting the stores in person, I get more actual enjoyment from a leisurely reading through the catalog. (Maybe this is where some would think I need a life?) But honestly, if you love to cook, how could you resist these pages with the most beautiful cookware, dishes and linens? And for gadget lovers, there are always new and unique items to catch your eye and fancy. What will they think of next? The photography is delicious, there are recipes scattered throughout the pages, lovely staging options for tablescapes (for all my elaborate entertaining) and in some editions, pages and pages of the most delectable foods to order, either for gift giving or for your own use.

I have never had a bad experience with this company. The food items I’ve ordered have been received with rave reviews. I can personally attest to the yumminess of the Panettone,  but most of the food I have ordered has been given as gifts. Their customer service is great and the quality of products as well as food is amazing.

However, back to browsing…if you don’t receive this catalog, go to their website or give them a ring and request it. It’s a wonderful way to find some inspiration for your next family food event or to challenge yourself to try some new culinary adventure. I highly recommend curling up with the latest catalog in the evening, cup of comforting hot tea at your side, and drooling a bit over the pages that make kitchen work seem exciting, even glamorous. Before you know it you’ll be making your wish list and dreaming of new culinary achievements, spurred on by the inspiratrion of beautiful images, lovely products, and enticing recipes.

I’m happy to say that I’ve passed my passion for all things culinary on to my daughter. She had a better outfitted kitchen right out of college than I did until I was thirty. And most importantly, she cooks. (So does my son, but his techniques are a little less traditional, more minimalist. No Williams-Sonoma wish lists for him!)

By the way, you can access a plethora of Williams-Sonoma reciepes on their website and save them to your digital receipe box. The ones I’ve tried have been keepers.

You can link to their site on my blog home page, or here: http://www.williams-sonoma.com/

Favorite things

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Riley photos

 AND

  • Berry wreaths
  • Clear glass vases or jars, especially with something interesting filling them
  • Tiny white Christmas lights, used year round as backlighting
  • Bread fresh from the oven, lots of butter
  • Anything from Pottery Barn
  • Cooking magazines
  • Traveling anywhere with Rob
  • A quirky sense of humor
  • Sentimental anything….music, movies, commercials, cards
  • Quaint towns that make me think “I could live here!”
  • Warmth
  • Soft gingerbread cookies
  • The shared look between lovers that tells each of you that you know the other’s thought
  • The fragrance of home baking – anything from the fall…apples, pumpkin, spices, all those comforting aromas
  • Beautiful beaches
  • Frank Sinatra’s music
  • King crab legs cracked open by my husband and dipped in melted butter…heavenly!
  • Cranberry colored paint on walls with white trim
  • Family photos
  • Cilantro, basil, and rosemary…fresh herbs in salads and soups