Category: Food

Food

A Delicious Banana Cake Recipe

nschristine3 Comments

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I love this banana cake recipe.  Just so you know, the frosting is what makes this cake.  A great use of bananas! This recipe is taken from http://www.spendwithpennies.com and was written by Holly.

CAKE

1 and 1/3 cup mashed bananas

2 and 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice, divided

1 and 1/2 cups milk

3 cups flour

1/2 tablespoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup butter softened

1 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

FROSTING

8 oz cream cheese

1/3 cup butter softened

3 -3 1/2 powdered sugar

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease and flour 9×13 Cake pan

Place 1 and 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice in measuring cup. Top to 1 and 1/2 cups with milk. Set aside.

Mix together mashed bananas with 1 tablespoon lemon juice. Set aside

Beat together butter, brown sugar, and white sugar until combined.

Add in eggs one at a time and vanilla to mixture. Mix on high until light and fluffy.

Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Alternate flour mixture and milk to egg mixture, stirring until combined. Do not over mix.

Fold in bananas. Pour into pan.

Put into oven and reduce heat to 300 degrees. Bake for 60-70 minutes.  Check with toothpick.

Remove from oven and place in freezer for 45 minutes to make cake extra moist.

Let cool before frosting.

For Frosting: Cream together butter and cream cheese until fluffy.

Add lemon juice.

Add powdered sugar a little at a time until your reach desired consistency.

Put on cooled cake.

Enjoy!

 

Food

Great Zucchini Muffins

nschristine4 Comments

 

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Zucchini Muffins

Receipe taken from Simply Recipes. com

Ingredients:

2 Large Eggs

1 1/3 cup of sugar

2 Teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups packed grated fresh zucchini

3/4 cups unsalted butter, melted

2 3/4 cups all purpose flower

1 Teaspoon baking soda

1 Teaspoon baking powder

1/4 Teaspoon Salt

2 Teaspoons Cinnamon

1 Teaspoon Ginger

1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg

You may wish to add 1 cup Walnuts and 1 cup of raisins or dried cranberries.

 

MAKE:

Mix eggs, sugar, vanilla, then add zucchini and melted butter.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Beat eggs in a large bowl.  Then mix in sugar and vanilla extract.  Then stir in grated zucchini and the melted butter.

Mix the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, ground ginger, nutmeg, and salt.

Combine to make batter. Stir dry ingredients and zucchini mixture. Do not over mix.

Fill muffin pan.  Coat each muffin pan with a little butter.  Use a spoon to distribute the muffin dough equally among the cups, fill the cups completely above the surface of the muffin tin.

Bake at 350 degrees on the middle rack until the muffins are golden brown.  The top of the muffins bounce back when you press on them.  It is about 20-30 minutes. Test with a toothpick.

Food

Springtime Veggies.

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Finally, Spring is here.  We’ve had so much snow I thought I’d never see the sun again!  With the warmer Spring temperatures our gardens start to bloom.  With the growing season starting so too does the farmer’s market season.  What will be in season?  Check out my list below for some great fruit and veggie ideas.  Happy eating!

Apricots

Asparagus

Broccoli

Butter Lettuce

Corn

Green Beans

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Honeydew

Limes

Mango

Oranges

Pea pods

Pea

Pineapples

Rhubarb

Spinach

Strawberries

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Food

10 Cooking Terms to Know

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Al Carbon- In Mexican/Spanish cooking meaning to cook over charcoal or wood coal.

Baking Soda- A chemically based ingredient that generates carbon dioxide and is used with acidic ingredients such as sour cream, or fruit juices to create bubble to make the food rise.

Baking Powder- This is a combination of chemicals that can make carbon dioxide in two different stages.  One stage is when it is a liquid. The other stage is heat.

Butterfly- To cut or split food through the center without cutting it in half.  So it resembles butterfly wings.

Capers- A bud of a bush or shrub that grows in several countries that adds flavor to a dish.

Cafe de Olla- Mexican Style coffee made in a clay pot.

Calamar- In Mexican/Spanish Cooking means squid.

Carne- In Mexican/Spanish cooking meaning meat.

Emulsify- When you combine two liquids that don’t dissolve together.

Maiz- In Mexican/Spanish cooking means corn in a dry state.

 

 

Food

Ten Terms to Know for Cooking

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I wish I could say I love to cook.  Honestly it is the least favorite household chore I do.  I did not grow up in a cooking family.  Our joke was if it didn’t come out of a box and you couldn’t add water our mother didn’t make it. Well, we thought it was funny.  Mom not so much. Even if it was true.

As an adult, I tried to cook a variety of dishes.  Cookbooks were my best friends.  I wish I could say that I have a natural ability to cook, but I don’t. So as I use these cookbooks I also need to understand some of the vocabulary used. Here is a list of ten cooking words that I’ve run across in reading or watching television shows and their meanings.

Albert Sauce: A horseradish sauce with a base of butter, flour and cream.

Alfredo Sauce: A sauce made with heavy cream, butter, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper.

Ceviche: An appetizer from Latin America made of raw fish marinated in citrus juice.

Bearnaise: A sauce made from a reduction of vinegar, wine, tarragon, shallots and finished with egg yolks and butter.

Acai: A dark purple berry from Central and South America that is rich in nutrients.

Cacciatore: Meaning to prepare food “hunter style” with mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, herbs and wine.

Aioli: A garlic mayonaisse

Acini de pepe: Is Italian for peppercorns. Pronounced ah-chee-nee dee-Pay-pay which in cooking can mean tiny rice shaped pasta.

Caffeine: An organic compound found to stimulate the nervous system, release insulin, stimulate heart and kidneys, and dilate the blood vessels.

All Spice: A spice named due to the fact it tastes like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. It is taken from the berry of the evergreen pimiento tree from Jamaica.

Happy Cooking!

 

 

Food

10 Cooking Terms for November.

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I know what you are thinking.  It’s November, the food vocabulary must be about Thanksgiving and turkey! Nah, I’m sure you will be sick of the holiday season by now.  I usually get over it by the time Columbus Day rolls around. I think as I get older the holidays hold less importance for me.  Plus my child is getting older.  Anyway, here are more cooking terms to know.

Genoise- A light, rich cake made with sugar,eggs, butter, flour and vanilla.  It is very similar to a sponge cake.

A La King- A diced food meal (poultry) in a rich cream sauce that has mushrooms, pimento, sherry, and green peppers.

Cut In- A way to distribute evenly a solid fat in flour using a cutting motion using either two knives or a pastry blender.

aioli- a garlic flavored mayonnaise.

Buchede Noel- A term in French for a Christmas Cake (similar to a yule log) that is made from Genoise (see above) and covered in buttercream and formed into a log shape and decorated accordingly.

Dice- Cutting food into 1/4″ pieces or smaller (cubes).

Brandy Alexander- A sweet cocktail usually served after dinner and made with brandy, chocolate liqueur and cream.

Macerate- To soak in a flavored liquid, usually for fruit.

Bonne-Bouche- A French for tasty little bite referring to small snacks.

Arrabbiata- An Italian term translating into “angry”, used for dishes with spicy sauce of tomatoes, pancetta, and chiles.

 

Food

Winter Veggies in Season

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What veggies are in season during the winter months? Here is a list of fruit and veggies you can find more readily available during those cold months.

  1. Kale
  2. Parsnip
  3. Turnip
  4. Spinach
  5. Lettuce
  6. Radish
  7. Brussels Sprouts
  8. Squash
  9. Collard Greens
  10. Dates
  11. Grapefruit
  12. Kiwi
  13. Leeks
  14. Mandarin Oranges
  15. Papaya
  16. Oranges
  17. Pear
  18. Pomegranate
  19. Sweet Potatoes
  20. Tangerines