cynthia’s banana bread

My grandmother is a reader, and I remember raiding her shelves during long summer afternoons at the lake house.  I also remember (and still experience!) her generosity with her reading: there were/are book-shaped packages at every birthday, Christmas, and sometimes in between.  But I think my greatest discovery was a book my Nana brought as her plane read on one visit sometime in the mid 1990s.  It was the first in Jan Karon’s Mitford series, At Home in Mitford.  I gobbled it up in a day or two and begged for more.  I adored that series (through book 5, at least)!  Looking back I must have been quite the picture: gawky teenager with terrible haircut reads voraciously about an overweight, 60-something priest in small town Carolina.  Those stories made me happy, though.

I hadn’t thought about Father Tim in years, but when I mailed myself all of the books that were under my parents’ stairs, I found a paperback set of the Mitford novels.  They’re on my shelf now, and up for discussion.  I wondered aloud at a recent party if a Mitford cookbook existed, because all I really remember at this remove are fantastic descriptions of food.  And upon checking the interwebs, my book club friends assured me that there was one.  I put it on hold, and dutifully picked it up at the library.  To be honest, I didn’t like the cookbook itself – it was badly organized.  HOWEVER.  This delicious banana bread recipe made the whole exercise worth it.  Oh my word, it’s good!  And in the land of funny coincidences, my Nana’s name is Cynthia.  So!  It’s Cynthia’s recipe, two times over.

Cynthia’s Banana Bread (modified slightly from Jan Karon’s Mitford Cookbook & Kitchen Reader)

INGREDIENTS

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

2 eggs, room temperature

1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt (2%)

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

3 large, ripe bananas, mashed with a fork

2 tablespoons lemon zest (see note)

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup walnuts, chopped

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Coat a 9” loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Place the sugar and butter in the bowl of an electric mixer and cream until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Add the yogurt, lemon juice, bananas and lemon zest and beat well.  Sift the flour, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl.  Add the dry ingredients to the banana mixture in two batches, and stir until just blended.  Add the walnuts and mix again until just incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and bake for 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out fairly clean.  Don’t over bake!  Cool in the pan on a rack for 5 minutes, then invert onto the rack to cool completely.

Note: The Mitford Cookbook introduced instructions for zesting a lemon unlike any that I have ever tried.  Using a vegetable peeler, peel the colored part of the peel and leave the bitter white pith alone.  Once you have a small pile of lemon peels, mince and measure.  There’s your zest! Two tablespoons ended up being the zest of one large lemon when done in this manner.

This. Banana bread.  Happy Easter to ME!  I don’t ever recall wanting to eat banana bread batter by the spoonful before… but this recipe did it.  I won’t ever switch back to anything else, because, YEAH.  Holy yum.

Recommended for: everyone.  It’s delicious.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking!

golden raisin and walnut cookies

I think there are two types of cookie-lovers in the world: those who like raisins, and those who don’t.  My sister does NOT like raisins, so I spent most of my childhood learning to bake things without raisins (my grandfather’s famous Oatmeal Molasses Cookie recipe excepted!) to accommodate her.  Once something becomes a habit, it’s hard to break.  But back to raisins!  I bought a box of the golden variety a while ago for barmbrack, and I’ve been wondering what to do with the rest.  When I found this recipe, I knew it had a good chance of success… and indeed, the cookies are delicious, buttery wonders.

Golden Raisin and Walnut Cookies (from a Bon Appétit recipe)

INGREDIENTS

1 1/3 cups golden raisins

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup (packed) brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups walnuts, chopped

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two baking sheets with baking spray. Soak raisins in enough hot water to cover until soft, about 15 minutes. Drain; set aside. Roast the walnuts in a cake pan for 5-8 minutes in the oven, then cool in separate dish (if desired).

Mix flour, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Beat butter and both sugars in another large bowl until light and fluffy (to do this without a stand mixer, make sure butter is room temperature – malleable – and beat with hand mixer. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla. Add dry ingredients; mix just until blended. Fold in nuts and raisins.

Using palms of hands, roll dough into 3/4-inch balls. Arrange on baking sheets, spacing evenly. Bake until cookies are golden brown, about 12 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks; cool completely.

Note: The recipe says to roll the dough into balls, but I found that this only worked after I'd chilled the dough in the fridge overnight.  When I first made it, the cookie batter was a little too sticky, and the cookies were more of the 'drop from spoon onto pan' variety.  They turn out the same regardless.  Expect thin cookies with crispy edges.  Oh!  And I found I got a more uniform result when I switched racks halfway through.

Recommended for: fans of raisins and nuts, and anyone who likes a buttery cookie to go with their morning (or afternoon, or evening!) coffee.

Interested in other food-related post?  Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking!

apple cranberry bundt cake

I love pie.  I love apple pie.  I love eating it for every meal (thank goodness this only happens over Thanksgiving, or I would have to kiss a balanced diet goodbye!).  What I do not love?  The TIME it takes to make a pie.  I was feeling lazy (as usual), and wondering how I was going to use up the apples I picked when I went out to an orchard 2 weeks ago… and I turned to the internet.  This recipe was originally a loaf.  I turned it into a Bundt loaf?  But that sounds weird, so I’m calling it cake.  It has icing, after all!

Apple Cranberry Bundt Cake (modified from a Taste of Home recipe)

INGREDIENTS

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

4 eggs

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

3 cups chopped, peeled tart apples (in 1/2 inch chunks)

1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Coat a Bundt pan thoroughly with cooking spray and set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.  In a small bowl, whisk eggs and oil together until combined. Stir eggs and oil into the dry ingredients just until moistened (batter will be very thick & heavy). Fold in apples, cranberries and walnuts.

Transfer batter to the prepared Bundt pan and press down into the mold. Bake for 60-65 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely.  

Top with a glaze if desired (I used the same one from the Nutmeg Buttermilk Coookies last week, but with cinnamon instead of nutmeg). 

Note: The dough is very sticky and heavy, and it required 2 utensils to maneuver into the baking pan.  That said, it baked up very nicely and meshes well with the cranberry and apple.  So don’t be discouraged by how heavy it is.  It’ll turn out!

Recommended for: a great way to use up your leftover apples and cranberries, as a delicious and colorful addition to afternoon tea, and as a not-too-sweet fruity dessert for your fall feast.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking!

fudge crackle cookies

I originally posted this recipe in August 2009.  This time around I’ve substituted unsweetened cocoa powder (times two!) for chocolate squares, and managed some nicer photos.

When I was quite little I remember my mother making sugar cookies by the dozen, and sharing them with friends and family.  After a while, she had too many energetic children underfoot to do a big holiday baking spree, and that tradition lapsed.  When I got old enough to start helping with the fudge and Christmas breakfasts, we reinstated some holiday-esque cookie baking, and this recipe has always been a huge hit.  It’s chocolate to the max, and a bit like a brownie in cookie form.  I end up making it almost every year for cookie exchanges or a holiday dessert contribution.

Fudge Crackle Cookies

INGREDIENTS

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup butter

heaping 1/2 cup unsweetened powdered cocoa

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup plus 3 Tablespoons sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup chopped nuts (I typically use walnuts, but pecans or almonds would work well, too)

DIRECTIONS

Mix flour, baking powder and salt in large bowl. Set aside.

In saucepan, stir butter, oil and chocolate over low heat until melted and smooth. When cool, stir in 1 cup sugar, eggs, vanilla and nuts; mix until blended. Add chocolate mixture to flour mixture, stir until blended. Cover and chill 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until firm (or flash cool in freezer for 30 minutes). 

Preheat oven to 300˚F. Roll into 1-inch balls; then roll in extra sugar. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheet, and bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until tops are crackled and slightly firm to touch. Serve immediately, store in an airtight container for up to a week, or freeze.  Yields approximately 24 cookies.

Recommended for: a rich, chocolate-y addition to any holiday cookie exchange, the perfect baked good for the cocoa addict in your life, and for anyone who claims they love brownies above all else (it might just change their minds!).

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads' Weekend Cooking!

cranberry duff

When I held a Canadian Thanksgiving party in October, I stocked up on all the fall food essentials at Costco, where you can’t help but buy in bulk.  That’s how I ended up with a five-pound bag of cranberries.   I made cranberry sauce and Cape Cod October Pie, but still had many cranberries left over.  I stuck them in the freezer, and now I have the impetus to try all those cranberry recipes I’ve stockpiled.  This Cranberry Duff seemed like a good place to start (and for your information, the dictionary defines duff as a ‘stiff pudding’ – but this is more like an upside down cake).

Cranberry Duff (modified from this Martha Stewart recipe)

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup unsalted butter, (1 stick), softened

1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen cranberries

1/3 cup walnuts, chopped

1/3 cup plus 1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking dish using 2 tablespoons butter (reserve rest for recipe). Spread cranberries evenly over bottom of dish, then sprinkle walnuts on top.  Cover with 1/3 cup sugar; set aside.

Melt remaining 6 tablespoons butter in a microwave-safe bowl or in saucepan over the stove; set aside. Place egg and the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in medium-size bowl. Beat with electric mixer on medium-high speed until pale and thick, about 1 minute. Reduce speed to medium-low and gradually beat in flour, then salt. Pour in melted butter in a steady stream, beating until smooth.

Pour (or in my case, ladle) batter into pan to cover cranberries. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour. Let cool 10 minutes. Run a knife around edge to loosen, and invert to unmold onto a serving platter. Serve warm or at room temperature.  Yields 6 servings.

The first thing I should tell you is that this smells divine while baking, and you’ll be tempted to take it out of the oven and eat it early.  Resist!  Golden brown and thoroughly baked is the way to go. The second thing is that if the finished dessert is resisting your attempts to get it out of the baking dish, give up and serve like brownies.  Or, you know... end up with a mess (I may have learned this the hard way).  No matter what it will be delicious, though, so don't worry: happiness guaranteed.

Recommended for: when you’re inspired to bake on a fall day, an unusual take on the upside down cake, and a sweet and tart treat that goes beautifully with an afternoon cup of coffee or tea.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking.

cape cod october pie

Last year I took on the job of making the pies at extended family Thanksgiving.  It went well.  I’m doing it again this year.  The problem with pie-making is that I’ll only expend that kind of energy on a ‘need to’ basis.  But knowing me, I would forget the secrets of pie dough from one year to the next.  So…I decided to host Canadian Thanksgiving this last Monday to keep my hand in.  To make life that much more interesting, I tried a NEW type of pie.  The original recipe was provided by Big A’s mother (Big A is my roommate’s boyfriend), and it says it’s from Miss Ruby’s Cornucopia.  It was a HIT.

Cape Cod October Pie

INGREDIENTS

pastry for a two-crust pie (I used this pie crust recipe)

1 1/2 cups cranberries, coarsely chopped

1 cup peeled, cored and diced apples (I added an additional 1/2 cup)

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 Tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup cranberry juice (I’d leave this out if I made the recipe again)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 Tablespoons butter

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Line a 9-inch pie plate with pastry rolled to 1/8-inch thickness, set aside.

Toss together the cranberries, apples, raisins and walnuts with the sugar, flour, cinnamon, cranberry juice and vanilla in a medium-sized bowl.  Spoon carefully into the unbaked pie shell and dot with butter.  Cut strips from remaining pie crust (which can be rolled a tad thicker than the bottom for ease) and make a lattice over the top of the pie.  Crimp together the edges of lattice and bottom crust.  Sprinkle lightly with sugar if desired.  Bake for 40 minutes, or until fruits are tender and pastry is brown.  Let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

I noted above that I’d leave out the cranberry juice if I made the pie again – and that’s because there was a lot of liquid in the fruit mixture even after baking.  It didn’t seem to affect anyone’s enjoyment – it was gone before I could even get a piece.  I’d say Cape Cod October Pie was a smashing success.  Besides, it’s so pretty!  Although clearly I am not the world's most expert lattice maker.  Whatever.

Recommended for: a flavorful and unusual pie at any party that requires an autumnal crowd-pleaser.

Interested in other food-related posts?  Check out Beth Fish Reads’ Weekend Cooking.