The Saturday before Mother’s Day I made banana bread out of necessity. I had, yet again, ignored the bananas. It’s something I’ve done frequently in the past month. I can never figure out quite what it is. For months we eat bananas, running out long before our next planned shopping trip and then, we simply don’t. They sit there, first with just a few brown sugar spots, and then the number increases until the yellow is all but gone. Then there is banana bread.

Like many things in life, we go through seasons with eating. I happen to be in a ginger season, and with the excess of bananas at my disposal, it was only a matter of time before the two met and married. The ginger’s brightness compliments the banana bread’s dense and moist texture, giving you something unexpected but not overpowering, perfect for this season of spring that we’re in: cold and rainy, yet with hints of sunshine and warmth.

Ginger root. Peel and mince a good 4″ section of it.

In a mixer, add the minced ginger to sugar and some softened butter. Cream. Kind of. Really, there’s not a ton of butter in this to cream. Don’t worry, though. The egg will help us along.

Add one egg. Cream again.

A baking (or cooking) session wouldn’t be complete unless one of the kids heard me and appeared, eager to measure, mix and mess.

I’m kind of a freak when it comes to baking. Everything gets loaded and washed as I use it. Ingredients are put away immediately, whenever possible. I hate clutter in the kitchen. I think it comes from working in restaurants and as a baker when I was younger. Or maybe it’s because my grandma functioned in a similar way.

Whatever it is, I have to stifle “it” when the kids are in there with me, which is nearly every time I look in the direction of the kitchen. I take a deep breath and accept that the flour will spill over the top of the bowl, there will be egg shells to pick out of the batter before turning it on and sometimes, when I have my back turned, a sweet 3-year-old will eagerly turn the mixer on full speed while the bowl is still in the lower position and the blade is covered in egg slime. And it will all be okay.

In fact, it will be better. So my baby girl? She mixed all the dry ingredients and spooned them in the bowl for me.

And well, kind of down the side of the bowl and on the counter too. We just swept it up and dumped it right back in.


I considered leaving the nut option out of this particular banana bread, but I decided that I like pecans enough to leave them in. I’m glad I did. You? That is up to you and your nut preferences.

Pour into a greased and floured loaf pan (bottom only).

So, I read once that running a knife through your quick bread will help it to get just one even crack. It appears to work. I’ve run several tests. I’m satisfied.

And this is what you get after about an hour in the oven.

I decided I’d take a picture of this on Mother’s Day. I cut off a few slices, snapped my shots and went about the business of gardening and baking. My sisters and mom stopped by, started hacking slices off it and handing them out like candy, and it was all but gone within minutes. I had to steal half a piece out of my baby sister’s hands. Not to worry, though. I have 3 bananas that are ready to meet the same fate.

Note: The best things come from family. This recipe is one I adapted from my sister-in-law’s banana bread recipe, one that I’ve made several times and have to ask her for each and every time I make it.

A few weeks ago I purchased blood oranges. They aren’t all that common here in Minnesota, so I wanted to take advantage of the rare sighting. Then came the process of determining what I was going to make with them. Eventually, I settled on blood orange and chocolate chip muffins with a citrus glaze, but the process of getting there was a bit more convoluted.

I asked for a recommendation on recipes, and boy did I get it. Maria from Two Peas in Their Pod sent me the recipe for her Pink Grapefruit Yogurt Cake. Yum. I instantly decided I’d add chocolate chips and set about rounding up the ingredients. But when I finally went to make it, I was missing a few things, specifically, more than a cup of white flour. Pathetic? Yes.

In my defense, I’d been baking all day at that point and had already made 4 loaves of banana bread, which accounted for most of that. So, I improvised, keeping the Greek yogurt, turning them into muffins by adding whole wheat flour and some flax to the mix and adjusting the rest of the ingredients. And then to get my cake fix, I ended up with grapefruit while I was restocking my flour. It was delicious, and my muffins? Devoured.

Start with the Greek yogurt. I can’t get enough of this stuff. Incidentally, eating it on its own, I like mine with fruit. Or granola. Or fruit and granola.

Zest the blush right off of your blood oranges. You know, if your blood oranges have it. Mine had a lot of it, but not all have such a red hue to the rind.

Why is it brown? Brown sugar, which I didn’t photograph. Oops.

Juice two of the three oranges. The third one has other plans.

Eggs get added to the mix.

And a small amount of milk in my measuring cup that I went all the way to Sonoma to buy, even though the Target less than a mile away has them. (I can’t walk into Sign of the Bear without buying something. I also got my kids forks that look like trucks.)

Add some melted butter to the mix.

As for dry ingredients, I went with the all-purpose I had available (1 cup) to 3/4 cup of whole wheat. I also added some ground flax. It adds a certain nuttiness to the mix. Baking powder, soda and salt joined in too.

Whisk together the dry ingredients before adding them to the wet ingredients.

Add in the chocolate chips and stir just until combined. Be careful not to over-mix your muffins.

A large scoop is a good size for muffins, but you can just fill them 2/3 of the way full. Incidentally, without a scoop, I’m terrible at filling the muffin cups. I always put in much more batter than is necessary.


And then they’re ready for the oven. 20 to 25 minutes at 350° F is about right.

For the glaze (optional), use the juice of the remaining blood orange.

Slowly add powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.

I used just over 1/2 cup for mine.

Dip warm muffins into the glaze.

Ole said I should keep this post until Valentine’s Day. Um. No.

They look pretty pink from the juice at first, but it only takes a short while for the glaze to settle, and then the pink fades quite a bit.

The result is a moist muffin with a punch of citrus and teeny bits of chocolate because, honestly, breakfast is always better when chocolate is involved. We’ve been eating ours this week and loving them.

And I didn’t get more than four pictures shot when a small hand suddenly snatched my muffin right off the plate. I didn’t even hear him come into the room.

He most definitely approved.

In other news, I was recently included on Babble’s Top 50 Mom Food Blogs. Honored. Delighted. Humbled. Take a look at the full list of truly amazing women, and if you feel so inclined, you can “like” me and let them know you approve. I wouldn’t be there without all of you, so thank you.

I’ve been drooling watching everyone talk about their spring artichokes. Alas, here in MN there are none, and the fresh ones there are tend to be exceedingly pricey. In an attempt to put off my cravings until some California artichokes land in my lap, I made a pizza. One with artichokes of the marinated and canned variety. There happens to be a bit of prosciutto on there too, but that’s just an extra bonus.

First, let’s start with the dough. What is a good pizza without a good dough? I decided that for these, rather than using my generic pizza dough that I use for everything from baked pizzas to grilled pizzas to calzones, I’d switch it up and make a flatbread with a bit more personality and sass to it.

Start with warm water. Too hot will kill the yeast, but too cold won’t get it growing. Aim for somewhere near 110 degrees F.

Sprinkle the yeast across the surface of the water as evenly as you can and wait. Hint: It helps if your water is in the bowl rather than in a measuring cup or other container so that you have more surface area to sprinkle onto.

Wait 5 minutes for the yeast to start looking a bit frothy on the surface of the water and then stir in the dry particles.

Add in oil.

Herbs.

And salt.

Then slowly stir in the flour only a 1/2 cup at a time.


Until it starts to look like dough.

Once all the flour has been added, grease a sheet pan and flop the dough out onto it to rise. Cover and stash in a warm place for one hour.

When the dough is nice and puffy, split it into three. Here you can decide how many pizzas you’re going to make. Save the extra dough for a different night by stashing it in the fridge or the freezer. Take one-third of the dough and place it on a well-floured surface, and give it a bit of a kneading. We aren’t looking to fully knead the dough here, just make it a bit softer and easier to work with, so about 15-20 “kneads” should be sufficient.

Sprinkle your surface with cornmeal to prevent the dough from sticking, and roll it out into a circle.


Brush with olive oil and bake for 10 minutes.


Now come the toppings. Start by layering on thinly sliced prosciutto.

Next add canned artichoke hearts, drizzling about two tablespoons of their marinade over the pizza.

Where there are artichokes, the basil will follow.

Top with fresh mozzarella rounds and you’re ready to bake.

It took me about 15 minutes to get the pizza to where I wanted it: crisp crust on the bottom, slightly browned cheese on top.

And if it’s nice enough, bring your pizza outside and sit in the grass or on the back steps and enjoy the fresh air.

Our garden is overflowing with zucchini, and after eating it 5 out of the 7 nights last week with dinner sauteed, added in sauces and cut into cold spears, it’s time to bake. Lucky for me, one of my favorite quick breads is zucchini bread. This one is complete with orange zest and a light orange glaze and packed with walnuts.

A few weeks ago, our neighbors Doug and Sarah graciously fed our lone pet, a rescued goldfish, while we were up in the woods getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. They have also given us access to their raspberries, which my children could not be more thankful for, and this is only the beginning of things I need to properly thank them for.

Sarah calls zucchini the “ding dong ditch” vegetable because you get so many from a single plant that you start leaving them on random doorsteps. While I didn’t leave this on the doorstep and run away, it was tempting. I have more than enough. It’s a good thing I’m a fan of zucchini or I’d be in a tough place right now with 3 enormous zucchinis in my fridge. They’re enormous because I also didn’t manage to tell anyone to pick said zucchinis while we were in the woods, and I’m not one to waste. So I made 10 loaves. Then I dropped them off with people I needed to thank for one thing or another or another. Apparently, I have many people I need to thank, apologize to or buy their love through their stomachs. Whatever the case, it was a good reason to use up some the bounty of zucchini growing in the garden.

I use my food processor for the shredding of the zucchini. There is little physical labor involved in the process, which isn’t exactly my goal. It’s just a fact. (I went on a bike ride pulling Kola Nut behind me tonight. That is where the physical labor came in. Kid is heavy.) I am not afraid of physical labor. I have four kids, and they create physical labor like you would not believe. It’s a good thing I love them too.


There is a rhyme and a reason for adding ingredients in the correct order in most baked recipes. For example, I was always tempted to skip the “mix all dry ingredients together and mix into wet ingredients until all are combined” or whatever it says. What a pain. Get another bowl dirty just to mix a teaspoon of salt and 3 cups of flour? However, the whisking, sifting and stirring together ensures all the salt is evenly distributed, and the process of adding the flour activates the gluten and, if your recipe has it, the baking powder. Timing actually IS important.


I waited until Round 2 before making adding my pecans, after all the non-nut versions were baked, wrapped and moved to a different location. Why? Allergies. I have friends with tree nut allergies. Therefore, I wrapped the nut-less varieties up tightly, tucked them all in and said goodnight to them before I added in the pecans to the next group. You could try a walnut or two if that’s what you fancy.


Fill your pans and stick them in the oven. Just remember to set a timer, and whatever you do, do NOT sit on the couch and think you’re going to magically remember to get them out of the oven in the middle of whatever movie your husband has on. You will forget. At least I did, but it was okay. I killed nothing.


While your bread is cooling, mix a bit of powdered sugar and OJ together and spread it on there.


And then spread on some more until the whole top is covered. Let it set while the bread cools before packaging. I like to wrap them tightly to make sure the bread doesn’t dry out.

For more ideas on how to get rid of your zucchini, visit Tammy’s Recipes In-Season Recipe Swap.

For many years now I have been searching for a good cornbread.  Cornbread to accompany a smoky rack of ribs or a peppery beef brisket, cornbread to provide a distraction from the protein heavy creations I keep brining in from the patio.

Long ago, when my stomach could tolerate a trip to the local Boston Market, I was a fan of their cornbread.  A local BBQ chain also puts together a decent corn muffin, but for various reasons, I no longer patronize either of these two places.  Does this mean that I am to be deprived of a well balanced corn loaf?  Well, up until last year that was exactly what that meant.

Sure I tried plenty of recipes, I searched the internet, tried the packets (just add water – more like “just don’t bother”), but none were up to snuff.  Most were too dry and crumbly, others were too complex (including the suggestion of adding some yellow cake mix) and didn’t deliver.  It really shouldn’t be that hard, should it?

As it turns out, the answer was staring me right in the face.  In a desperate moment I had a revelation.  Why not try the recipe on the back of the corn meal can?   Hmm…I guess the folks over at Quaker might know a few things about cornbread.  I mean, they do manufacture the main ingredient by the ton.  Sure, why not.  So try it I did, and the result?  The best thus far.  But of course I couldn’t leave well enough alone, so after a little tinkering, I have what I believe is the best cornbread I can make.

The secret was to spice it up a bit.  Cornbread can be fairly boring.  Usually I end up putting butter and honey on it to liven up the party, so I thought, why not add the honey before hand?  That turned out to be a winner.  After I had poured the batter into the muffin pan I would go back and top each one with an interesting pattern of honey.  While the bread baked, the honey would sink down into the middle and then wait there until it was eaten.  This eliminated the need to add honey at the table, and reduced the mess with the kids considerably.

That was a good start, but I wasn’t finished yet.  Lately Shaina has been adding finely chopped, fresh jalapenos to her tasty guacamole which is amazing, and a few weeks ago, while preparing a few sides for a BBQ feast, the wheels started turning.  Cornbread, honey, and jalapenos.  Why not?  I diced up three fresh peppers and added them to a batch of Quaker endorsed cornbread.  The results were unprecedented.  Sweet corn flavor, a strong honey note, a little something to chew on, and a slow burn perfectly balanced by the sweetness of the honey.   And as a bonus, the honey sinks into the muffin and around the edges and gives the whole thing a crispy exterior that locks in the flavor.

So how does one go about making these?  Well I’ve already given you enough, but if I have to spell it out, I will.

You will need:

1-¼ cup all-purpose flour

¾ cup Quaker Corn Meal

¼ cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp salt

1 cup milk

¼ cup vegetable oil

2 egg whites beaten (do not use whole eggs, it will make the batter too heavy)

3 fresh jalapenos diced

1 tsp honey per muffin (I use buckwheat honey)

Mix the dry ingredients first, add everything else except the honey.  Then portion the batter out into muffin cups.  I like to use a mini loaf pan because I like my servings to be a little bigger and I think they dry out less in the oven – but feel free to use anything you like.  This works well in a skillet in the oven too.  For this sesson I ended up making a pan of regular sized muffins without the jalapenos for the kids and then made a second batch of mini loaves with the hot peppers for the more daring among us.

Now comes the creative part.  Adding the honey.  I like to draw out pictures for the kids, my most popular designs are butterflies, flowers, clovers and peace signs which incidentally all look the same (indiscernible) after 20 minutes in the oven.  Just give each portion a good steady squeeze as you move it around the surface.  If you’re feeling adventurous, let the kids make their own patterns.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 400 degrees.  I like to time these so that they are done about five minutes before we are ready to eat.  They are the best fresh and warm although they hold their own for a week stored in an airtight container. 

Recently I found out that leftover muffins can be perfectly regenerated in a toaster oven set at 400 degrees for 5-10 minutes, although you can cheat and just microwave them too.

I know what some of you are thinking – not everyone likes jalapenos – and you’re right, but trust me, they aren’t that hot, but there’s nothing wrong with reducing the number of peppers or leaving them out entirely.  As long as you keep the honey they will still be grade A.  So give it a try at your next hog roast but do yourself a favor and make a double batch because these muffins don’t last long.

Start by combining warm water, yeast and sugar in a stand mixer with a dough hook. By “warm” water, I think it feels like my kids’ bathwater. Warm, not hot at all. It should be about 110ºF. Mix together for two or so minutes until it gets cloudy.

That’s my yeast in that plastic container over there. You can buy instant yeast in one-pound bricks for around $3.00 and refrigerate it for up to six months. It’s much cheaper to do it this way if you do any baking, even if it’s not that often. Those little packages off the shelf run you a pretty penny. Besides, you really should bake more… I’m sure I could recommend more than a few wonderful recipes from fellow bloggers.

Flaxseed for texture (you could leave this out if you wanted), flour, kosher salt, rosemary.

Add it all to the mixer and let it mix on medium low setting until all incorporated, and then at a higher speed until the dough starts to look like a ball and pull away from the sides of the mixer and stick to the dough hook in the center.

I put a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a bowl to prevent stinking, dump my bread in there and cover it.

I put my dough in the oven to rise. I usually turn my oven on for a few minutes so it’s slightly warmer in there and then shut it off right away again. Then I place my bowl in and shut the oven door and walk away for an hour and a half.

When the dough has doubled in size, remove it from the oven, give it a punch and flip it out on top of a floured surface.

Knead the dough a few times so it is easier to work with and covered in flour. Then roll it out into a long, thin strip.

Layer toppings on the bottom half only. Ham, Swiss cheese, mustard and cream style horseradish all made it on there. If we had any, banana peppers would have been good too.

Before you look at the next picture, please understand that this is a terrible example of braiding, but it’s what you get when you have exactly 15 minutes to change, eat, finish the braid and get out the door and down the street to “mom’s night” at preschool. So, be really sloppy when you do this too. Or at least have time to roll the dough right and fix your mistake. OR just flop the long part on top and cut a few slits in it to vent it. This would have been (1) faster, (2) easier and (3) looked better because I completely messed it up.

Then slide it on your baking sheet. I used a flexible cutting board to help it over to a baking stone. If you don’t have a stone, you should consider putting a layer of a cornmeal down before placing your bread on top. This will help prevent sticking to the sheet. A tablespoon or so should do. Then stick this back in the oven and let it rise again for one hour.


(This is where Ole takes over and I go to mom’s night at preschool.) After your bread rises, preheat the oven to 400ºF. While the oven preheats, beat one egg yolk and one tablespoon of water. Brush the top of the loaf with the egg mixture and place in the oven.

After 45 minutes in the oven, it’s time to eat. There is life after ham dinner.

Life happens to be wonderful with soup and a salad.

One of my favorite things about quick breads is the ability to just dump ingredients into a mixer and turn it on. First the butter and sugar, then the eggs and sour cream and bananas. Ignore that there are four eggs in the bowl. I doubled the recipe because I had four sad bananas.


Be sure to let a kid or two help and spill flour on the counter. Then laugh when they lick it with their tiny fingers.


It’s a party in there.


And when the party’s over, fill up one of these. You could do muffins too, but I prefer the personal loaves. It’s like my own special banana bread.


And you can fill a loaf pan too. This recipe will actually make 2 loaves or 18 regular-sized muffins.


Take them out when the tops start browning. I take muffins and mini loaves out before they get very dark because they continue baking in the pan and I don’t want to end up with dry banana bread.


I held the pan up by the window to get the sink light because the compact fluorescent blue on the overhead was not flattering to the banana bread, and there was no natural light to be had by the time they came out of the oven.


See how the large one is darker? Not much, just an even brown across the top.


Store wrapped in plastic wrap or in an air-tight container.