Tag Archives: banana

Zesty Banana Orange Bread


I was lucky enough to receive a special delivery of produce from my grandfather yesterday. My mom and dad drove down to my husband and I’s house for a home cooked dinner. I was pleasantly blown away by the two large boxes of goodies from his garden and orchard.

One of the treasures my grandpa gave me was his very last batch of rhubarb for the season, which inspired me to pick my last batch. As pictured below. 


Needless to say with all this beautiful Rhubard I am also making our most requested  jam. Today I am trialing it in the slow cooker. 
This recipe yields 4 mini loaves 

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon of ground pie spice

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cup of very ripe mashed bananas (approximately 3 large)

1 teaspoon of fresh orange zest (1 medium orange)

1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup honey

2 eggs

1 cup chopped rhubarb

Prework & Tools for the job

  • Stoneware Mini bread loaf pan
  • Cooking spray the pan with canola oil spray
  • Preheat oven 350 degrees

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda, pie spice, and baking powder. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl hand whisk together mashed bananas, orange zest, vanilla,& honey. Add one egg at a time and caution not to over mix. Lastly fold in the rhubard. 

3. Place scant 1 cup into each bread vessel. Bake at 350 degrees for 28-30 minutes. Test the bread using toothpick method. 

4. Allow the bread to cool for 5 minutes in pan and then gently remove loaves from pan and allow to cool on wire rack. 

This bread is super moist you will not believe there is no oil or butter. 



Banana Almond Milk Smoothie

 

I needed this smoothie after that Pittsburgh half marathon on Sunday! I was craving a chocolate banana combination and this is what I came up with! It is a super quick and easy recipe. Not to mention a resourceful way to utilize bananas that are too ripe to use but perfect to freeze for smoothies. 

Ingredients:

1 Cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk 

1 teaspoon of unsweetened cocoa

Half a teaspoon of peanut butter extract

Half a teaspoon of vanilla extract

6-8 ice cubes

One frozen banana, sliced

1/2-1 packet of truvia 

Directions:

Place all the ingredients in a high tech blender. Position the blender to smoothie mode, blend & Enjoy! 

Suggested serving one

Banana Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Swiss Buttercream Frosting

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My nephew turned three on the first and wanted a spiderman  mini cake and cupcakes. It seems just like yesterday he turned two and I was preparing a pistachio cake with a rocket-man theme Rice Krispy treats.

The party my sister had planned for him was a brunch and so I didn’t want an over powering sweet frosting first thing in the morning. After some investigative work I developed these treats for the celebration. Honestly these mini cakes taste like fresh homemade banana bread spread with butter.

Yields 16 cupcakes and one mini two tiered 5 inch in diameter cake Or just 42 cupcakes

Batter Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of Bananas (I used 6 frozen bananas & 2 fresh bananas)

2 1/2 cups granulated sugar

1 Cup butter (2 sticks)

4 eggs

1 Cup sour cream

2 tsp. baking soda

3 Cups all-purpose flour

1 TB. pure vanilla extract

 

Directions for the cake and mini cupcakes:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line cupcake tins with cupcake liners and set aside.

2. Mash the bananas and set aside.

3. Cream the butter and sugar together until well mixed.Add one egg at a time and beat well after each addiition.Mix in the sour cream and blend until incorporated.

7. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and baking soda.

8. Add to the creamed mixture and beat well.
9. Add the mashed bananas and pure vanilla extract and mix well.

10. Scoop out batter evenly using a size 16 scoop portion into 16 lined muffin tins. Bake muffins for 18-20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

 

11. Divide remaining batter evenly among the prepared cake pans (spray with baking joy). Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool a few minutes and remove from pans. Let cupcakes and mini cakes cool completely before frosting.

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Swiss Meringue Vanilla Bean Butter Cream Frosting Ingredients: Yields about 10 cups of frosting

10 Large Egg Whites

2 cups plus 4 TB of granulated Sugar

Pinch of Salt

1 TB of pure vanilla extract

 

Frost as you wish.

 

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These are perfect for a brunch like my sister had for my nephew the taste is almost like eating homemade banana bread with a spread of butter.

Enjoy!

 

 

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Happy Birthday Spiderman aka Max!

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