Skip to main content

Can you smell the banana bread?

That's usually how you know it's done ... when you can smell it. I mean REALLY smell every morsel wafting into the living room. Then it's ready to be pulled out of the oven with my big red mitt! Martha taught me that a cracked crown is the only way banana bread ever comes out of the oven ... a relief since I thought I was doing something terribly wrong. But alas ... everything was just right!



I've enjoyed baking this past year. The 15 pounds around my waist will attest to my explorations in the kitchen. I should be able to use weight as a marketing tool. "If you want to know how well I bake just take a good look at me! These thighs weren't born over night!!"

It's unfortunate, really. Baked goods are so wonderfully scrumptious and comforting and filling and ... well ... a delicious baked treat on the counter makes me feel like a successful wife and a good mom. My husband is happy, my daughter is happy ... and I'm completely satisfied that something I made came out well.

My first banana bread was a disaster and I swore I would never bake again. I was horrified that all those ingredients and all that time I spent produced a loaf of YUCK. So I never baked again. Well .. until Jen Mangialomini ventured into the kitchen with me and helped me make a loaf of chocolate chip banana bread and taught me that reading a recipe SEVERAL times really makes a difference.

I have a habit of reading fast, dumping ingredients, mixing in random order, and expecting a sure thing. I've proven this procedure to produce baked failures time and again.

So no more dumping, mixing, and speed reading for me. My favorite baking book of all time is the Baking Illustrated book. It explains the WHY of the recipe ... and this helped my old theory of "it all ends up in the oven anyway".

Well, the butter is melted, the pecans are toasted, and bananas are waiting to be mashed ... stop over in the morning and enjoy a slice with me. But come early ... it'll go fast!

(I also found the recipe posted here: leitesculinaria.com)

Comments

Quinne said…
Great post, Jacqui! And, well... yum! :)
Anonymous said…
I would love to join you.. for a slice and a cup of joe and some laughter and good conversation.. I miss you
danica said…
Oh man. Now I want a slice of warm bread sooo badly! I'm with you: baking makes me feel like our house is a home... except neither Ryan or I need to be eating any of it. *sigh* Guess I'll just have to wait till my boys are teenagers. I bet they'll appreciate homemade treats!
Anonymous said…
as long as i dont have to join up i can read your things here. . . its fun.

Popular posts from this blog

April Fool's Day Pranks

Oh what joy this day brings. Just thinking about pranks thrills me to tears! I decided to make up a tasty treat for my family along with a few other low-key pranks. Enjoy! April Fool's Day Chocolate Chip Cookies: She wasn't very happy with me when I told her what they were ... she was too keen on these - knew something wasn't quite right and never actually tried one. Did you figure it out?  These are baked taters and black beans!!! Simply delicious if you're expecting garlic, salt, sour cream, and potatoes!  Here's how: 1. Whip up your favorite mashed potato recipe (I used 3 medium potatoes) 2. Mix in a few drops of yellow food coloring (3 drops was enough for this batch) 3. Stir in 1/2 can rinsed black beans 4. Then drop on a cookie sheet in a 350* oven for 30-45 minutes ... until golden on the top. These will taste delicious with a little salsa at dinner time!  By the way: I did make REAL cookies so as not to comp...

What I didn't learn from my mother

I am learning. I am striving. To be more like Him. I am desperate to be more like Him. The alternative? Be more like my mother. I was asked to share a story or two about her on Mother's day many years ago. The request caught me off guard and left me speechless. It wasn't the 300 member congregation that deterred me. It was that fact that I couldn't think of a SINGLE good thing to say. Nothing honoring to utter. We had good times and I certainly had good memories but for many years all I could feel and focus on were the negative, harsh, and hurtful things. So I did what I always do when I have something heavy to work through: I sat down with a trusty pen and blank sheet of paper. I was determined to write something positive. I sat for a while thinking about the things I hated. I was angry and determined to not be like her. And I realized: The things I didn't learn FROM her, I learned BECAUSE of her. There were plenty of things I learned by her good example. F...

Sophisticated No-Bakes

I found this amazing  No Bake oatmeal bar recipe  just before Thanksgiving and my brain adapted it for me before I pulled a single ingredient from the shelf.  Fun how our brains do that.  ;) (Yeah.  I read the recipe wrong from the start. But what I ended up with was just as amazing and I personally feel like royalty when I eat them.)  So. .. Here's my adapted recipe. I like to call them  SOPHISTICATED NO-BAKES . GATHER Square baking dish Parchment paper 2 sauce pans Measuring cups Something to stir with Rubber Spatula Ingredients 1 cup salted butter 1/3 cup light brown sugar 1 tsp vanilla 3 cups quick-oats 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips 3/4 cup chunky peanut butter 1/2 cup dried cranberries 1/2 cup white chocolate chips Let the magic begin! Line square baking pan with wax or parchment paper, set aside. Melt butter on medium heat in large sauce pan. Stir in brown sugar and vanilla. Stir in oats. Turn heat to low and co...