Blueberry Banana Bread

What a perfect combination and what a perfect way to use some great fruit.  I always seem to have bananas in my house, in the fruit basket or in the refrigerator awaiting their fate or even in the freezer all nice and mashed and measured!  Unfortunately I was out of the frozen blueberries that my husband and I picked last summer so I had to resort to store bought, boo!
This bread turned out wonderful.   I loved the addition of the blueberry to the banana bread.  I sent half of this loaf with my husband to share with his coworkers.  They gobbled it up!  I plan on making this again when we go blueberry picking this month.  I think I will make 2 loaves this time.

I found this recipe while scrolling through my Google Reader.  Go on over to Delicious Melscious and check out her other delightful morsels!  Enjoy!

Blueberry Banana Bread

source: Delicious Meliscious
Ingredients:
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups ripe, mashed, bananas
1 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup coconut

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour two 9×5x3-inch loaf pans.

In a medium bowl and with an electric mixer at medium speed, beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring well. Add bananas and coconuts, stirring just until combined. Spoon batter into prepared pans.

Bake for 1 hour, or until a tester inserted into center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes; remove from pans, and allow to cool completely on wire racks.

Lemon-Blueberry Muffins

Last week I was in the mood to bake and muffins were the first thought that came to mind.  I love how simple muffins are to put together and then they just go into the oven.  I love them!  I was also inspired by the blueberries that I spied in my freezer.

I consulted my mini library of cookbooks for a recipe that I liked but finally decided to head to my other trusted friend, Cooking Light.  I loved how moist and fluffy these muffins were.  I was amazed at the amount of power behind the tablespoon of lemon zest.   I didn’t think that it would be enough but it was wonderful.  I froze half of these and my husband and I ate the rest as dessert or breakfast for a few days.

I strongly suggest you make these.  I think these would be great for a brunch.  Enjoy!

‘Source: Cooking Light

Ingredients

• 2  cups  all-purpose flour
• 1/2  cup  sugar
• 1  teaspoon  baking powder
• 1/2  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/2  teaspoon  salt
• 1/8  teaspoon  ground nutmeg
• 1/4  cup  butter
• 1 1/4  cups  low-fat buttermilk
• 1  large egg
• 1  tablespoon  grated lemon rind
• 1  cup  blueberries
• Cooking spray
• 1  tablespoon  fresh lemon juice
• 1/2  cup  powdered sugar

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients (flour through nutmeg) in a medium bowl; cut in butter with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal.

Combine buttermilk, egg, and rind; stir well with a whisk. Add to flour mixture; stir just until moist. Gently fold in blueberries.

Spoon batter into 12 muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until the muffins spring back when lightly touched. Remove muffins from pans immediately, and place on a wire rack to cool.

Combine lemon juice and powdered sugar in a small bowl. Drizzle glaze evenly over cooled muffins.

Note: You can make these muffins up to 2 days ahead and glaze them the morning of the brunch.

Garden Harvest Cake

I’m always in the mood for new bread or cake recipes and when I spotted this one in Cooking Light I knew I would be trying it soon.  It was also a great excuse to use my stoneware loaf pan again!  This cake was so tender and moist.  I loved how sweet it was too.  It smelled just like fall when it was baking. Memories!

I did learn that I should trust the recipe.  When it says that 1 carrot shredded will equal 1/2 of a cup, believe it!  I bought double the amount called for of apple, zucchini and carrots.  So, I ended up doubling the recipe.  I kept one loaf and sent the other with my husband to his work. If you double the recipe I suggest using a food processor to shred the apples, zucchini and carrots.  It will go much faster than by hand (I know from experience)!

Enjoy!

Garden Harvest Cake

source: Cooking Light

Ingredients

• 4.5  ounces  all-purpose flour (1 cup)
• 3/4  cup  sugar
• 2  teaspoons  ground cinnamon
• 1  teaspoon  baking soda
• 1/4  teaspoon  salt
• 1/2  cup  grated peeled Granny Smith apple (about 1 medium)
• 1/2  cup  grated carrot (about 1 medium)
• 1/2  cup  shredded zucchini
• 1/4  cup  chopped walnuts, toasted
• 1/4  cup  canola oil
• 1/4  cup  nonfat buttermilk
• 2  large eggs
• Cooking spray

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Weigh or lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and the next 4 ingredients (through salt) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add grated apple, grated carrot, shredded zucchini, and walnuts to flour mixture; toss well. Combine canola oil, buttermilk, and eggs in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add egg mixture to flour mixture, stirring just until combined. Spoon batter into an 8 x 4–inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove cake from pan. Cool completely on wire rack before slicing.

Banana Peanut Butter Oatmeal Muffins

I’m always on the prowl for new recipes with bananas and I found a good one this time.  When I saw that the title had both banana and peanut butter I knew it was going to be good!  These came together very easily.  I loved the hint of the banana and peanut butter tastes in each bite.  In my opinion these are not a light and fluffy muffin.  One muffin will do just fine for me!  My husband tested a muffin the night I made them and he also agreed that he didn’t need to eat more than one because he was full!  Usually we can eat 2 muffins for breakfast.  Another thing that I loved was that the recipe didn’t use a lot of peanut butter like peanut butter cookies usually do.

Enjoy!

source: Baking Bites

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup mashed banana (about 2 med.)
6 tbsp peanut butter (pref. creamy)
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin.
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, oatmeal, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a medium bowl, whisk together vegetable oil, brown sugar, eggs, mashed banana, peanut butter and buttermilk until very smooth, making sure all egg has been well-incorporated. Pour into flour mixture and stir until no streaks of flour remain.
Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin tin, filling each just about up to the top.
Bake for 16-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly pressed.
Remove muffins from tin and cool on a wire rack.

Makes 12.

Apple Cinnamon Muffins

I found this fabulous recipe while browsing on Baking Bites.  I have made some apple muffins before but they turned out a bit dry in my opinion.  These were just right!  I did have to bake these a lot longer than the recipe calls for.  That’s ovens for you!  My husband and I enjoyed a few of these for breakfast for a few days and then I packaged up the rest and put them in the freezer for future breakfasts.

Enjoy!Yup!  I had to eat that one after I was done with pictures!  Yummy!

source: Baking Bites

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 large egg
2 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1 1/2 cups diced apple

3 tbsp coarse sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 375F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and spices.
In a large bowl, whisk together brown sugar and egg. Whisk in melted butter, vegetable oil and vanilla. Working in two or three additions, alternately stir in flour mixture and buttermilk, ending with an addition of flour and mixing only until no streaks of flour remain visible in the batter. Stir in diced apple.
Divide batter evenly into prepared muffin cups filling each to the top, or slightly over.
In a small bowl, stir together coarse sugar and additional 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon. Sprinkle generously over muffins.
Bake for 15-18 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly pressed.
Cool muffins on a wire rack.

Makes 12.

Banana Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins

Here is another muffin recipe to add to my growing list!  I made these yummy morsels on Friday night.  I was thinking of making them on Saturday morning but it is so hard for me to be patient when I’m hungry.  These smelled delicious in the oven and even better when they came out.  I think that these have just the perfect amount of the three main ingredients.  The banana was wonderful as was the espresso flavoring.  I used a little less of the chocolate chips than were called for but it was the perfect amount for me.  I usually end up bagging up half of the muffins within a few days and putting them in the freezer.  Sadly, these muffins probably won’t make it to the freezer.  I might have two of the last 3 for breakfast tomorrow.

I saw this recipe pop up in my Google Reader on Tracy’s Culinary Adventures and knew that I had to try those muffins the next weekend.  My frozen mashed banana supply is getting a little low!  Check out Tracey’s Culinary Adventures.

Banana Espresso Chocolate Chip Muffins
Source: seen on Tracey’s Culinary Adventures

Originally from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking, by Matt Lewis, Renato Poliafito and Tina Rupp

1 1/2 cups mashed, very ripe bananas (about 4 medium bananas)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup whole milk
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips (I used ~2/3 cup)Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, stir together the bananas, sugars, butter, milk and egg.

In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, instant espresso powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the well and stir until just combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Fill each cup about three-quarters full. Bake in the center of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

Move the muffin pan to a cooling rack, and let cool for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove the muffins from the pan and let them finish cooling on the cooling rack.

Muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

Makes 12 muffins.

Healthy Banana-Blueberry Muffins

Sometimes I think I should change the name of this blog to incorporate all the muffins that I make!  I will admit that I do want a muffin cookbook.  I know they are out there!!  Just go check out Amazon.com like I just did!  Oh goodness!  It is so overwhelming!

I saw this recipe in my new issue of Everyday Food.  I think the idea of both banana and blueberry together is what sold me.  I just so happened to have 3 bananas in my refrigerator who were not so appetizing and I also have several frozen bags of blueberries in my freezer.  Eureka!  I made these muffins for breakfast this weekend.  I did make a few changes as you will see in red below.  Also, the recipe says that it yields a dozen muffins but I ended up with 16.  That was okay with me because I froze about 6 of them for breakfasts later.  My freezer is being taken over by muffins in case you were curious!  Enjoy!

source: Everyday Food magazine

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled) (I used AP flour)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
• 1/4 cup wheat germ (I used AP flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 ripe bananas (about 1 pound)
• 1/3 cup reduced-fat (2 percent) milk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup frozen blueberries

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a bowl, whisk together flours, wheat germ, baking soda, and salt.
2. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars with a mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. In another bowl, mash bananas with a fork (you should have 3/4 cup); stir in milk and vanilla.
3. With mixer on low, alternately add flour mixture and banana mixture to butter mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture; mix just until combined. Fold in frozen blueberries.
4. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 25 to 28 minutes, rotating pan halfway through. Let cool in pan 10 minutes; transfer muffins to a rack to cool 10 minutes more.

Chocolate Cherry Upside-Down Cake

I made this the past weekend and it is quickly becoming one of my favorite desserts. My husband and I went to my mom’s house to celebrate Christmas early with her because we will be celebrating Christmas with my husband’s family. Over the past ten years or so I have been in charge of dessert for Christmas Eve dinner. We always made a special dinner on that night. In the past when my grandparents were alive they would come over to my mom’s house for dinner and our traditional one gift opening that night. My mom usually made her fabulous Lasagna or sometimes a quiche. This year I talked her into the Lasagna!

This year I made this dessert. I have a confession though, I made this last year too but I thought it was so great that I had to make it again! Usually my mom makes a Cherry Pie for Christmas dinner dessert but since I wasn’t sure if there would be one at dessert this year I had to make something with cherries! I love cherries and I also love chocolate cake. As soon as I read this recipe in the Hershey Holiday Recipe cookbook (you know those little magazines tempting you at the cash register in the grocery store), I knew that I had to make it! I also love that this recipe has everyday normal ingredients that you most likely have around your house, even if you don’t have them you will find a use for them after you purchase them.

Enjoy! Happy Holidays!

source: Hershey’s Kitchens

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon cold water
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon almond extract(optional)
• 1 can (21 oz.) cherry pie filling
• 1-2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Heat oven to 350°F. Stir together cornstarch, 1 tablespoon water and almond extract, if desired, until cornstarch is dissolved. Gently stir in pie filling; spread mixture evenly on bottom of ungreased 9-inch square baking pan.

2. Stir together flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt in large bowl. Add 1 cup water, oil, vinegar and vanilla; beat with spoon until batter is smooth and well blended. Pour batter evenly over cherries.

3. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; invert onto serving plate. Serve warm with whipped cream. About 9 servings.

Banana Chiffon Cake

This was the cake that I made for my mom for her birthday earlier this month. She always requests an Angel Food Cake with real whipped cream and crushed peanut on top. This year she decided to go for something a little different, with my encouragement. This was actually my second time making this cake and it turned out just as delicious the second time. This is a perfect cake to make if you have bananas sitting around and aren’t sure what to do with them. If you’ve never made an angel food cake because they make you nervous I suggest you give this cake a whirl! It really is quite easy! The nice thing was that you also are able to use all of the eggs that the recipe calls for. Normally you end up needing more egg whites than yolk but with this recipe you use equal parts egg yolk and egg white. You also need an Angel Food cake pan for this cake.

I found this recipe in my Everyday Food magazine about a year ago but have been unable to find it on Martha Stewart’s website! Argh!! I did find it on someone else’s food blog, here is a link to that blog.

Enjoy!

Banana Chiffon Cake
(from Everyday Food Magazine, Jan/Feb 2007)

found on When Adobo Met Feijoada

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 ripe banana
1/2 cup vegetable oil
7 large eggs, separated
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3/4 cup cold water
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In a medium bowl, mash banana. Add oil, egg yolks, vanilla, and water; mix to combine. Add to flour mixture and whisk until smooth.

In another large bowl, beat egg whites and cream of tartar using an electric mixer until stiff peaks form.

With a rubber spatula, gently fold beaten egg whites into batter just until incorporated. (DO NOT OVER MIX or you will deflate the air bubbles and cake will not be light and airy.)

Pour into an angel-cake or tube pan. Bake until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean, about 50-55 minutes.

Invert pan and let it cool completely; about 1 1/2 hour. Reinvert pan, release cake and place on platter. Dust with confectioners’ sugar before serving.

Apple Walnut Muffins

I should have titled this, “Do you know the muffin man?” I’ve been on a muffin kick lately as you may have noticed. I love how easy they are to put together and they also take such little time to bake. After we’ve had our fill of a particular muffin I freeze the rest in Ziploc baggies, 2 per baggie, that way we can take them out for breakfast when we’re in a hurry or the cereal is gone! These muffins will be great for breakfasts but also for a snack. The muffin in the picture that is torn in half has already been eaten by yours truly!

I still have a big bag of apples sitting out on the deck. Any ideas of what to do with them?? I’ve done applesauce and I think Apple Hand Pies might be next. Send me those ideas!

I found this recipe in my Joy of Cooking cookbook. I’m also on a kick of using my cookbooks instead of printing off recipes! Maybe it’s because my printer is out of ink and I’m too cheap to go and get another cartridge! Those suckers are expensive!! Back to the recipe!

I also got to break in a new tool that I bought at a Pampered Chef party earlier in the month. I was already thinking of buying the tool but all my friend Jodi had to do was show me hers and tell me that she uses it for making muffins and cupcakes and I was sold! She mentioned that she just has to use two scoops and that fills each tin. I will be having an online Pampered Chef party soon. I would send you to the website right now but it’s being extra slow! Here is a picture of the scooper that I bought.

Here is a picture of my muffins

source: Joy of Cooking

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, beaten
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups grated apple
5 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (I used pecans because I’m allergic to walnuts)

Directions:

• Sift the dry ingredients together and then set aside.

• Whisk eggs and sugar together. Stir in apples and let sit for 10 minutes so that the apples release their juices. Stir in the melted butter and nuts.

• Fold into dry ingredients. Divide batter among 12 greased or lined muffin tins.

• Bake at 400 degrees for 14 to 16 minutes, until a testing stick comes out clean. Let cool for a few minutes before removing them from the pans as they are very tender.