Banana Walnut Muffin Perfection

Do your bananas talk to you? Mine do. They start by speaking softly and letting me know they are not prime enough for the kids lunchboxes unless I want them to come home uneaten and oozing from their skins after being rejected on site by my children. Then they start to say "time for some baking!". Eventually if my days are busy they end up yelling at me about how I should be more convicted not to waste and let them go beyond use entirely. Finally, I give in and usually that last moment of sparing them for some noble use, they are at peek baking perfection.
Time for quick bread or muffins, but bread gets boring after a while and is not as portable for lunches or snacks. Still, my muffin history has not been a good one.

I love muffins but I don't like the way many recipes come out. Some are too wet and so the tops run, and some are too dry so they don't rise but become little bricks my kids won't eat. I tried this recipe and loved the way they came out. It was thick enough to allow for bigger muffins but not too thick to be dry.

I don't have whole wheat flour right now so I'm still needing to try it out with that but the white flour came out great.

Banana-Nut Bread (or Muffins)

• 1-1/4c. sugar
• 1/4 c. oil
• 1/2 c. butter
• 2 eggs
• 1-1/2 c. bananas, mashed (very over ripe is best)
• 2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1/2 c. chopped walnuts or pecans (I used walnuts and chopped them pretty fine in my chopper)
• 1 t. vanilla extract
  

Blend sugar, oil and butter together; mix in eggs and bananas. Set aside. Combine four, salt and baking soda; add to wet mixture. Stir in nuts and vanilla; pour into greased and floured loaf pan (9"x 5") or into muffin cups (for big muffins fill 3/4 full). Bake at 350 for 30-40 minutes or until knife comes clean.

Summer Squash Strata

(Recipe taken from the Facebook group "Cooking With All Things Trader Joe's")

The recipe is very flexible. The base is a bread layer, typically a French or Italian Loaf, a brioche, or Challah. Even a few slices of wheat, multigrain, or white bread will do. . Play around with the other ingredients as well. Substitute mushrooms and spinach or broccoli florets for the vegetables, use swiss or Parmesan instead of goat cheese, or add slices of your favorite sausage.

Summer Squash Strata

3 medium zucchini or yellow crookneck squash (I used both), sliced into thin disks
1 Challah loaf (1 lb) cut 1-inch cubes or torn into small chunks
8 oz log of Chevre fresh goat cheese, broken into small chunks (or use TJ's Crumbled Goat Cheese)
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
1 medium yellow onion, cut in half and sliced thinly
1/3 cup Julienned Sundried Tomatoes
2 cups whole milk
6 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh basil

1.) Spread the bread cubes in an oiled 9x13-inch baking dish. Scatter half the goat cheese over the bread.
2.) In a skillet over medium heat, saute the onion in 1 Tbsp oil until soft, about 4-5 minutes.
3.) Add the squash and drizzle with 1 Tbsp oil, sauteing for an additional minute.
4.) Spread vegetables on the bread layer, scattering sundried tomatoes and the remaining goat cheese over the top.
5.) Whisk together the milk, eggs, salt, and pepper. Pour this mixture evenly over the top of the ingredients in the baking dish. Press down gently just a little, allowing the bread to soak up the mixture.
6.) Let the dish sit 10 minutes while you preheat oven to 350 degrees.
7.) Bake uncovered for 40-45 minutes. You will know when it's done because it will puff up quite a bit. Remove and let rest for 5-10 minutes (it will deflate back down). Sprinkle with fresh basil and serve.

My (veggie mama's) alkaline adjustments:

soy milk instead of whole

use sprouted wheat bread instead of italian or french

Serve with large spinach salad

Serves 8

Note: I will be using Feta instead of Goat Cheese for cost. Goat cheese is actually a lower acid cheese though and would be a smart choice. Feta is better also and cheaper.

Got Chorizo?

Feels good to be back on this blog, it's been a while! Life has been full since school began.

This week I made two dishes with Mexican Chorizo. I've used it before and always love the depth of flavor it gives a dish but this week I went on inspiration alone. No googling for the recipe, just what I thought would work and it was yummy.

Mexican Chili (Large Family size)

5 Cups Dry Pinto Beans Cooked (with broth)

2 lbs. Beef Chorizo (Food For Less Beef Version made there but you could use prepackaged I suppose)

2 Cans Stewed Tomatoes w/ Chilies

1/2 bag frozen Trader Joe's Sweet Corn (or use a whole bag if you like)

1 Chopped Onion

2 Tbs. Chili Powder

1 Tbs. Garlic Powder

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cook Chorizo in a skillet and add to stew pot or large Crock Pot. Add all other ingredients cook till corn and onions are tender. For Crock Pot you can leave on warm for the day or afternoon. It depends on how hot your pot gets but don't put it on high or it will burn. The dish is all ready pretty much ready except for the veggies and the spices working through and getting "happy".

Mexican Egg Bake

1 tube pork chorizo

1 can green chilies

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

12 eggs

1/2 cup milk

1 tsp salt

3 flour (or 4-5 corn) tortillas cut in cubes (I use a Pampered Chef Pizza cutter to do strips and then turn the strips to make cubes)

Cook chorizo in skillet. Scoop into 13X9 baking dish leaving as much of the chorizo fat in the pan still. Saute the tortilla cubes in chorizo fat till coated a bit and a little crispy. Scatter on top of cooked chorizo in baking dish.

In a large bowl beat eggs, add salt, chilies, and cheese one at a time. Pour over chorizo and tortillas and bake for 30- 40 min. at 350 or until egg is cooked. Overcooking will dry it so watch out!