Banana Beer Bread

I have an inability to finish all the bananas before they get brown and mushy because I seem to misjudge how many bananas I eat ("Seven?  That's a good number of bananas").  I wanted to do banana bread, but with a new twist, so I searched for banana beer bread.

And... of course it  exists!  I found a great recipe over at Life, The Universe, and Everything Delicious.  This blog has a ton of amazing-looking food with lots of recipes.  Go visit it!  (I did make 2 changes: used white flour and added a pinch of pumpkin pie spice.)

 The recipe calls for 2 bananas and 1/4 cup of beer.  I used Pacifico and it worked wonderfully!  Not as beer-y as true beer bread, but there is a nice hint of it.

And here's how it looks inside.  Super moist!  That's the great thing about banana bread. 

Four Varieties of Donut Holes

Last week I broke down and finally ordered a cake pop maker.  I chose this one, the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker CP-12.  It came with some lollipop sticks, a metal fork to pick up the cake balls, and a cake ball holder.  Bonus!  It's purple.

The first day I made a batch of donut holes from the little recipe book.  They were ok, but called for apple cider and I just used some instant stuff. 

Today, I decided to try a different recipe, so typed "donut holes" into Pinterest and chose the first result.  It led me to Blogilates and proclaimed this to be somewhat healthy.

Here are my results!

The recipe said it would make 36, but it actually made 50!  I had two types of coating and two types of batter.  On the left you can see the chocolate donut holes, which I created by adding a couple tablespoons to the batter.  Half are coated with powdered sugar and half are coated with cinnamon sugar.

It was super easy!  See my set-up below.

After the first batch had finished baking, I moved them to the white cooling rack and added another batch's worth of batter into the cake pop maker.  While the second batch cooked, I rolled the donut holes in powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar.

It takes about 5 minutes for each batch of one dozen to cook, which is the perfect amount of time to coat the last batch.  After two batches, I added the cocoa powder to the batter and mixed it up.  Doing it this way means one less dirty bowl.  Yay for laziness efficiency!

The result is four different types of donut holes that are great for snacking or a light dessert.  If you can stop eating them, that is! 

Things I Learned:

• The recipe was way too thick, so I added 1/3-1/2 extra liquids.
• Unless you have a perfect 1 tablespoon measuring tool, there's going to be some that are small and some that spill over.  Tear off the extra bits and call them mini cookies!  Or just munch on them while you finish making the donut holes.
• Coatings stick better if the donut holes are still quite warm.  Work fast or get a friend to help.  My first batch had way better coatings because it was a 2-person team.
• Chocolate chips in the middle are possible, but you have to have superhuman speed to get them all in so the donut holes are still cooking at the same time.
• Put a little less batter in the first holes you fill because they will have started to expand and make a mess by the time you finish filling the rest. 

First Fondant Cake From Scratch (Sorta)!

Ok, this cake was a long time in the making.  I went to Cakemix a month ago and decorated my first ever fondant cake.  Then I decided to make my own fondant with marshmallows and powdered sugar.  I didn't really know what kind of cake to make, but finally found someone to make one for!

 

Ta-da!  I definitely learned a couple things with this cake.  Like, you always need more powdered sugar to keep the fondant you're rolling out from sticking.  And, add more powdered sugar, gosh-darn-it!  

 

Did you know that cutting a hole in a ziplock bag to use as a frosting bag doesn't have results as good as using actual frosting tips?  Yeah, I probably should have known.  But I really wanted something that I could just throw away and not have to handwash.  Next time, I will definitely splurge for the frosting bags!

It turned out way better than I expected for my first try, so I'm happy!  I'm definitely going to be making more 2-lay 6" cakes in the future and decorating them with fondant. (Especially since the batch of fondant I made has at least another cake's worth!)

Marshmallow Fondant

I recently made my first fondant-covered cake and have been itching to try again.  At first I was going to buy some fondant, but then I learned that you can make your own from marshmallows.  I saw the recipe over at The Chaplains Wife and just had to try it.

Well, the first attempt was horrific!  I only had a cup or so of marshmallows and decided to just wing the recipe.  BAD IDEA.  I ended up with green marshmallow goo all over my hands because I thought I was at the point of kneading it before there was enough powdered sugar.  I wanted to get a picture of it, but didn't want to risk my technology being forever marshmallow-ed.

Luckily, when I actually got around to using all the correct amounts, the fondant turned out!  I don't have a cake to decorate, but it keeps for 3-6 months.  One batch makes about 3 pounds of fondant, which is a good amount.

Fondant all wrapped up.  No food coloring yet!

 Be warned... the clean-up can be pretty overwhelming.  I made sure to soak the bowls as soon as I finished the fondant.  Also, do listen to the recipe when it says to grease the bowl and your hands with Crisco. That may have been my mistake in the first try.

Oh, no, look at those messy bowls!

Soon, I'll be posting a picture of my first at-home fondant-covered cake!  I just need an occasion...

Tortillas!

Yesterday, I made my second batch of tortillas ever.

Before making them, I thought it would be a long, difficult process.  But it's super easy!  You basically make the dough, roll it into balls, wait, then roll them out into circles and cook on a skillet.

The recipe made 18 8" tortillas, which you can see cooling below.

Tortillas cooling on the counter.

Today I tried one with peanut butter and honey and it was delicious!  Next time, though, I will add less salt to the dough and possibly a little less oil.  You can definitely taste the salt, but it isn't completely overpowering.  As for the oil, after 45 minutes of letting the dough rest, little bits had seeped out. 

Tortilla with peanut butter and honey.

I got the recipe from Pinterest:

Source: amandascookin.com via Anne on Pinterest

Italian Savory Bread

I love being in the kitchen and love baking, but making cookies and other sweets all the time isn't super healthy.  I satisfy my baking needs by making bread, which I can tell myself is sorta healthy.

Today I tried a new recipe and did something new... added seasonings!  The base recipe is from The Rickett Chronicles (thank you Pinterest!).

Two loaves of my Italian Savory Bread.  Top is crunchy and the rest is nice and soft!

 

Here is my altered recipe that I also doubled because why not?
Italian Savory Bread

• 2 cups warm water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 5 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 3 cups white flour
• 1 Tbsp salt
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning

1. Mix warm water, sugar, and yeast together, then let sit for about 5 minutes to make sure it is foaming up.  Yay for proofing!
2. Add oil and salt.
3. Mix in the seasonings.
4. Add 3 cups flour, then stir in remaining until you can't stir anymore.  Turn out onto floured surface and knead for 10 minutes so that the dough is smooth and elastic, and no longer sticky.
5. Put in oiled bowl and allow it to rise for 1 hour.
6. Punch down, then form loaves, rolls, or whatever you're making.
7. Allow them to rise for 45 minutes.
8. Bake in 350F oven until golden brown (20 minutes).