BANANA BREAD

You can make one of these if you have...

Two of these.  A fun afternoon surprise when the boys  get home from school.

TO GET STARTED:

Turn on the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease (rub the insides of your pan with shortening) an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan or walk on the wild side...use a bundt pan!

NOW FOR THE DRY INGREDIENTS:

In a medium-sized bowl, add 1 cup of brown rice flour and...

1/6 c. potato flour (I fill a 1/3 cup half way)...

and then a 1/6 cup of tapioca flour (i top off the potato flour in the 1/3 cup with tapioca flour).

Add 1 tablespoon flax seed meal.  It adds a nutty flavor, omega fatty acids (excellent for optimal brain function) and flax see meal lends moistness much like adding vegetable oil.  

1 teaspoon of baking soda and...

1 teaspoon of baking powder.  

Whisk it all together and set aside for later.

Cream together 5 1/3 tablespoon of butter and 2/3 cup of sugar until...

it looks like this. 

Mix in the dry ingredients, gradually.  It will look like this when all's said and done.

Add two eggs lightly beaten, 1/4 cup of milk and 1 teaspoon of cider vinegar.

Beat it until it looks like this.

Peel the bananas and...

 

SQUISH them up!

With your hands...I've always loved to get my hands dirty.

It's better than stress balls.

Voila!  Mashed bananas.  

Dump the mashed bananas into the bread mixture.  Now we have to fold the bananas into the mixture.  This is a different technique than stirring.  Watch:

FOLDING IN:

With a rubber spatula, cut a line through the dough...  

curve to the left and around the left side of the bowl...

When you arrive at the top of the bowl, use the spatula to fold the batter under itself, then, with your left hand (unless of course, you are left handed in which case you would have the spatula in the left hand, bowl in right) rotate the bowl a quarter turn.  Are we all thoroughly confused now?  I know I am.  Experiment with the technique.

Keep folding until the banana mush is fully incorporated into the mixture.

 Help the batter into your pan with the spatula and bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 32 minutes.

 A toothpick or skewer inserted will come out clean with maybe a couple of crumb cling-ons.

 Unmold carefully and dust with powdered sugar.  I think next time I would serve this with some cream cheese whipped with just enough sugar to give it the right amount of sweet. 

RECIPE: GLUTEN-FREE BANANA BREAD
makes 1 loaf or bundt

• 2            ripe banana, mashed
• 1 c.         brown rice flour
• 1/3 c.     split by 1/2 potato flour and 1/2 tapioca flour
• 1 T.        flax seed meal
• 1 t.         baking soda
• 1 t.         baking powder    
• 5 1/3 T. butter
• 2/3 c.     sugar
• 2             eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 c.     milk
• 1 t.         cider vinegar

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Generously grease an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf pan or 6 cup pan.
2. Whisk together dry ingredients.  Set aside.
3. Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
4. Gradually mix in dry ingredients to sugar-butter mixture.
5. Mix in the lightly beaten egg, milk and vinegar.
6. Fold in mashed bananas.
7. Pour mixture into prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 32 minutes.

                                     

POMEGRANATE CRACKER STACKER

The Horseman, my middle guy, notified me that we would be adding a new category to the Good Food fairy blog site: The Boy's Recipes. I said, "Aye aye, Sir!"  So this is the first submission put forth by the youngest member of our bunch...

who occasionally likes to be called Soda.  (And yes, that is the horseman lying in the background. *No children were hurt in the course of the Buzz Lightyear stunts)  

Soda said that this culinary creation is called a pomegranate cracker stacker. In the grand tradition of the lunchable ham and cheese stacker. It's easy to make, says Soda.

 

"First, you put a pomegranate seed on a cracker," says Soda. 

"Then you put the cracker on top."

Well, you heard it here first folks!  A pomegranate cracker stacker.  Presented by Soda, a regular renaissance man.  When he's not out training as a star wars buzz lightyear, he's in the kitchen whipping up new recipes.  Enjoy!

TORTA di MELE

Are there times in the year, when you experience the sensation of something excitingly beautiful--say the blue light of a wintery dusk, the sight of dry golden grasses in late September,  the first press of  hot sun on your arms in May, a perfect breeze through the kitchen window after being over a hot stove--and it transports you to another place?  For me, I'm Lady of the manor on gray, drizzly days and I'm back in my childhood home on cool Sunday's in the fall.  But in the Spring / Summer transition...I miss my future villa in the Italian countryside.  Who doesn't?  So this cake helps me to be there, in my villa, baking in the late morning after going to pick veg from my extensive Tuscan garden overlooking a valley, it's river and the walls of Siena to the south.  The moist, pudding-like texture turns out wonderfully as well with gluten-free flours.  Below, I've posted both versions of the recipe--gluten-free and All Purpose flour.

You need five apples.  I'm using the galas and senshus the boys and I picked at Riley's Farm.

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and butter and flour an 11 inch cake pan.  I used this stoneware pie dish I found, because in my villa, I don't have a lot of cake pans to choose from.

The apples should probably get a rinse off.

Then a  photo op...

 

Pretty little apples!

Alright, back to work...

Peel and core the apples.  NOTE: the boys have carried off my apple corer to some fate worse than death out in the swamp.  

Quarter your cored apples.  I will improvise with a paring knife...

Slice the apple quarters into thin slivers. Apples are prepped so set aside.

In a mixing bowl add 1 1/4 c. sugar -- not flour, but sugar.

2 eggs...

And whisk it together.

Add a 1/2 c. of brown rice flour.  A teaspoon of tapioca flour and a teaspoon of potato flour. (or 1/2 c. of  all-purpose flour for you non-gluten-free peeps) and whisk.  Then add the milk, butter and vanilla.  whisk thoroughly.

Stir in the baking powder quickly and fold in the apples with a rubber spatula.

Pour mixture into the prepared cake pan.

Place the cake on the floor of your oven or the lowest rack for 10 minutes.

Move it to the center rack and bake for 30-40 minutes if using gluten-free flours or for 50 minutes if using A.P. flour.

When the toothpick, or skewer in this case, comes out clean, it's ready.

 

Aaaaaahhhhhhhh!  The Knight and I eat this for breakfast, afternoon snack, pre-dinner and after dinner.  Then go for our three mile jog. (I made the last part up)

RECIPE: GLUTEN-FREE FARMHOUSE APPLE CAKE
(from The Four Seasons of Italian Cooking)
makes 11 inch cake

• 5           apples
• 2           large eggs
• 1 1/4 c. sugar
• 1/2    c. brown rice flour
• 1 t.         tapioca flour
• 1 t.         potato flour
• 1/2 c.     whole milk (I've used 2 percent or almond milk)
• 7 T.        butter, melted (or non-dairy substitute)
• 1 t.         vanilla extract
• 2 t.         baking powder

METHOD:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.   Butter and flour an 11 inch cake pan.
2. Peel, core and quarter apples.  Slice crosswise into thin slivers.  Set aside.
3. Whisk eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl until sugar is dissolved.  Stir in either the GF flour blend or your all purpose flour.  Then whisk in the milk, butter and vanilla until well combined.  Quickly stir in baking powder and fold in the apples with a rubber spatula.
4. Pour the mixture into prepared cake dish and bake on the flour or lowest rack in the oven for 10 minutes.   Transfer the cake to the center rack and bake 30 to 40 minutes for GF cake or 50 minutes for AP flour cake.  When the cake is golden brown and a small paring knife or skewer comes out clean after poking it in the middle, remove to a cooling rack to cool. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream or ice cream.

RECIPE: WHIPPED CREAM

• 3/4 c.   heavy cream
• 2 T.      granulated sugar
• 1 t.       vanilla

METHOD

1. Add cream sugar and vanilla into a a chilled bowl.  Mix with beater until soft peaks form.