This is a recipe I got from my mom (who probably got it from her mom) and it's the best, most moist banana bread you'll ever have! Make it as a loaf or as muffins (with the crumb topping). Delicious add-ins include walnuts, chocolate chips, or cinnamon chips!
What You Need:
Bread Dough:
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
2-3 over-ripe (brown & squishy) bananas
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. white vinegar
Crumb Topping:
2/3 cup brown sugar
4 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. cold butter
What You Do:
1. Preheat oven to 325°. Spray or grease a 9"x5" loaf pan or 24 muffin cups.
2. Combine vinegar and milk in a small cup. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
4. In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugar, and bananas until mostly smooth. Gradually add the flour mixture to the banana mixture.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
6. Add milk to the banana mixture. (The vinegar will have caused it to turn a little chunky. This is good! It's basically just a cheap way of imitating buttermilk.) Mix well and pour mixture into your pan(s).
7. If you're making the crumb topping, combine first 3 topping ingredients and then cut in the butter using a fork or pastry blander. Sprinkle topping over dough before baking.
8. Bake for about 75 minutes (if in loaf pan) or 20-25 minutes (if in muffin tins).
Yummy Banana Bread
Brownie Peanut Butter Cups
Whoever created this recipe should be sainted. Yup, these little chunks of heaven are THAT good.
What You Need:
3/4 cup white sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tbsp. water
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 large egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup peanut butter chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips plus about 1/3 cup more for garnishing
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
What You Do:
1. Preheat oven to 350°. Spray or grease 12 muffin cups.
2. In a large microwave-safe bowl, combine sugar, butter, and water. Microwave on high for 1 minute or until butter is melted. Stir in 3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips until melted. Stir in egg and vanilla extract. Add flour and baking soda, stirring until blended. Allow to cool to room temperature. Then, stir in 1/2 cup each peanut butter chips and semi-sweet chocolate chips. Spoon batter by heaping tablespoonfuls into muffin cups.
3. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until top is set and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out slightly wet. Place pan on wire rack. Centers of brownies will fall upon cooling. If not, tap centers with the back of a spoon to make a hole.
4. Place peanut butter in a small microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds, then stir. While brownies are still hot, spoon about a tablespoon of peanut butter into the center of each brownie. Top with semi-sweet chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Cool completely in pan. (Or, if you can't wait, eat 'em while they're hot and gooey. YUM!)
Holy Moly Guacamole
I must admit - I don't like guacamole at all. Blech! But...whenever I make this guacamole, everyone RAVES about it. It's adapted from an AllRecipes recipe.
What You Need:
3 avocados - peeled, pitted, and mashed
1/2 lime, juiced
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup diced onion
3 tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
2 roma tomatoes, diced
1-1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1 pinch ground cayenne pepper
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. fresh black pepper
What You Do:
Throw all ingredients in a bowl and mix it up. Refrigerate it for a while and then serve with tortilla chips.
Caramel Popcorn by Micah
Micah had a hankering for caramel popcorn the other night and, since I've never made it before, he found a recipe online and made some. It was SOOOOO yummy - and super easy!
What You Need:
1 bag microwave butter popcorn, popped
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp. light corn syrup
1/4 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract
What You Do:
1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees. Place popcorn in a big ol' bowl.
2. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt butter. Stir in brown sugar, corn syrup, and salt. Keep stirring until it comes to a boil. Once it boils, let it go without stirring 4 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda and vanilla. Pour in a thin stream over popcorn and stir to coat.
3. Line a cookie sheet with foil and pour the popcorn out onto the cookie sheet. Bake in the preheated oven, stirring every 15 minutes, for 1 hour. Remove from the oven and let cool completely a little bit.
Amazing Apple Crisp Sandwich
I call this an "apple crisp sandwich" because the yummy apple center is sandwiched between the crumbly oat mixture. Great ratio of apples-to-topping!
What You Need:
6 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, & sliced
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tbsp. flour
1 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 cup water
2 cups quick-cooking oats
2 cups flour
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup butter, melted
What You Do:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place the sliced apples in a large bowl and sprinkle with the flour, white sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Pour the water over the apples and stir it around a bit.
3. In a separate bowl, combine the oats, 2 cups flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and melted butter. Spread half the oat mixture in the bottom of the baking dish. Place sliced apples on top of the oat mixture. Crumble the remaining mixture on top of the apples.
4. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes.
Caramel Pecan Pie
What You Need:
1 - 9” unbaked pie crust
36 individually-wrapped caramels, unwrapped
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
1-1/2 cups pecan halves
What You Do:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan over low heat, combine caramels, butter, and milk. Cook, stirring frequently until smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt. Gradually mix in the melted caramel mixture. Stir in the pecans. Pour filling into the unbaked pie crust.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes. Allow to cool until filling is firm.
Chocolate-Covered Toffee
My favorite nuts for this recipe are cashews. Pecans are also mighty tasty.
What You Need:
2 cups cold butter
2 cups white sugar
1 lb. unsalted nuts (optional)
1 bag chocolate chips
What You Do:
1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. If using nuts in the recipe, scatter them on the cookie sheet.
2. In a large saucepan, melt cold butter over high heat. Add the sugar and stir constantly. Bring to a boil and continue stirring until mixture bubbles up and then settles down. Never stop stirring! It will take a while (and it'll seem like forever) but will eventually come together and become a nice caramel color. Don’t let it get too dark or it will taste burnt.
3. Remove from heat and immediately pour onto the cookie sheet. Sprinkle chocolate chips on top. When the chocolate is melted, use a small rubber spatula to spread the chocolate. When cooled, break into pieces.
