Banana Nut Muffins

Banana Nut Muffins

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup mashed bananas
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degree F.  Grease a 12-cup muffin pan.  Sift flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl: make a well in center.
2. Mix milk, egg, oil, banana and walnuts in a small bowl.  Pour mixture into well.
3. Mix batter just until moistened, do not over mix.
4. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.  Bake until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean or until muffins are golden brown. About 15 minutes

My muffin pans must be smaller because I got 18 muffins.
I used pecans instead of the walnuts.

Variation
Blueberries or raisins may be substituted for the mashed banana.

Next time I'm going to add some mini chocolate chips too.

Not a real sweet muffin but we liked them.
They freeze well too.

Happy Eating

Irish Soda Bread

Traditional Irish Soda Bread

Got the recipe off a bookmark that was given out at the

library on St. Patrick's Day.

Ingredients

• 4 cups (16 oz) of all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 4 oz buttermilk

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Lightly grease and flour a cake pan.
3. In large bowl sieve and combine dry ingredients.
4. Add buttermilk to form a sticky dough.
5. Place on floured surface and lightly knead (too much allows the gas to escape.)
6. Shape into a round flat shape in a round cake pan and cu a cross in the top of the dough.     
   
7. Cover the pan with another pan and bake for 30 minutes (this simulates the bastible pot).   
   
8. Remove cover an bake or an additional 15 minutes.  The bottom of the bread will have a hollow sound when tapped to sow it is done.
9. Cover the bread in a tea towel and light sprinkle water on the cloth to keep the bread moist.

It sure is good.
Tastes great toasted.
Happy eating.

Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

These are surprisingly good!

Recipe from blogger friend Lisa's blog.

Chickpea Chocolate Chip Cookies

Gluten Free

Ingredients:

• 1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Mix all ingredients except for the chips together till smooth.  Recipe calls for mixing in a food processor but I don't have one.  So I mashed the chickpeas first with a fork and then used my mixer.
2. Fold in chocolate chips (I used a cup)
3. Bake on a greased cookie sheet for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
4. Cool on rack

Makes about 2 dozen
A soft chewy cookie.  🍪

Saltine Cracker Toffee

Saltine Cracker Toffee

Ingredients

• 40 saltine crackers or enough to line your pan
• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups milk chocolate or semisweet chips (I used semisweet)

Directions - preheat oven to 400 degrees

1.  Line cookie sheet (I used jelly roll pan) with aluminum foil.
   Lay crackers out in a single layer.

2.  In sauce pan combine sugar and butter.
    Stir and bring to a boil.
    Boil 3 minutes, stirring constantly, it will thicken and turn darker.
    Immediately pour over saltine and spread to cover crackers completely.
    It is sticky so don't bear down too hard, spread lightly.

 3.  Bake 6 - 7 minutes, keep an eye on it, it can burn.

 4.  Remove from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over top.

    Let stand for a minute and then spread the melted chocolate.
    Wait 1 - 2 minutes, then you can top with sprinkles or chopped nuts if desired.

 
5.  Cool completely and break into pieces.
    Putting pan in refrigerator for an hour will firm it up quickly.
    Freezes well.

Very good and easy too.
Hope you like it!

Got the recipe from my friend Pam.
Thanks Pam!!  🙂

Philly Gift Cake

Philly Gift Cake

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 cup butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
• 4 eggs
• 1 3/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 cup maraschino cherries

Directions:

1. Combine first 4 ingredients.  
2. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each.
3. Add flour and baking powder
4. With 1/4 cup of the flour toss with the cherries.  Fold into batter.
5. Pour into greased pan and bake in a 325 degree oven.

Baking times
10" tube pan - 1 hour 20 minutes
5 mini loaf pans, 5 3/4 x 3 1/4  - 45 to 50 minutes.

I like to use the mini loaf pans and give the cakes away as gifts.

Instead of maraschino cherries, I use red and green candied cherries.
I baked the mini loaf pans 43 minutes.

Icing for Cakes - Combine 1 1/2 cup icing sugar and 2 tablespoons milk.  Drizzle over cake and garnish with cherries.

I prefer to use Royal Icing because it hardens.

This is an old recipe and back then when coffee and shortening came in metal cans you could also bake this cake in them.

(3) l lb coffee cans - 1 hour
(4) l lb shortening cans - 1 hour

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate Chip Cookies

These chocolate chip cookies are a bit different in that they are made with 

Rice Krispies in them.

Though they are good both Ken and I like the Chocolate Chippers

that I usually make better.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar.

2 sticks butter, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar

Add and beat well:

1 egg

1 tablespoon milk

1 tablespoon vanilla

In a separate bowl, sift dry ingredients:

3 1/2 cups flour

3 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

Stir flour mixture, alternating with oil, into wet ingredients:

1 cup vegetable oil

Add remaining ingredients until blended:

1 cup oats

1 cup Rice Krispies

12 oz chocolate chips

Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. ( I use Pampered Chef sm scoop)

Bake 12 - 15 minutes (I only had to bake for 10 minutes)

Let cool on a wire rack.

Freezes well

Happy Eating 🍪 

Sugar Cookies (my favorite)

These are my favorite Sugar Cookies

 Ingredients:

• 2 sticks salted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/4 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 cups flour

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cream butter and sugar in mixing bowl.
2. Add egg, vanilla, and baking powder, mix until incorporated.
3. Add flour, one cup at a time, mixing on low in between additions until it is barely stirred in.
4. After the third cup mix a little longer but stop as the dough begins to form and leave the sides of the bowl.  It will NOT be all incorporated into a neat dough ball. 
5. Gather up the dough in the bowl into a ball with your hands.
6. Roll out the dough and cut out shapes.
7. Bake 10 minutes.
8. Cool on racks.  Decorate when completely cooled or eat them plain.

I find the dough rolls out easily.

I like to ice them with Royal Icing because the icing dries hard.

Got the recipe from Blogger Friend Karen, but sorry to say she no longer blogs.

Happy Eating.