Sour Cream Banana Bread

"Bananas are more like flowers....you can't mess around with them."

~Richard Benson

What can I say?  After all the decadence of the holidays, it was time for something simple. This was the first recipe I penned...way back in 1987.  Following the debut of the blog in July, it was also one of the first recipes requested.  The post requires a photo, so I had to whip up a loaf.  It was then that I noted a couple things awry with the recipe.  The loaves came out flat on top.  I wanted them to have a pretty mounded top. The bread was always so moist and delicious that I hadn't cared before.  All other banana breads I'd tried were either tough or dry, leading me to develop my own version.  This one proved really tender, so moist and not overly sweet.  It makes a great toast, too....crispy on the outside and all warm cake on the inside.  Spread with butter and paired with a tall glass of cold milk, and you've got something to crave.  I just needed to tweak the recipe a bit.  

Finally...a mounded loaf

During the 6 month tweaking time; a revelation....freezing the ripe bananas.  Now and then I caught a glimpse of black bananas in the freezer at a friend's house.  I was skeptical.  But what with the economy, and my layoff etc., I've become more mindful of waste, so I started freezing my uneaten bananas when they started to get ripe.  Yes, they turn black and look gross, BUT, when they thaw out, you just pop open the end and let the thawed banana (they are not black inside) fall into a bowl.  No need to mash.  Just stir and measure and they are perfect for banana bread, in fact, I think they make the bread even better!  

Sour Cream Banana Bread
(Makes two 9x5x3 inch loaves)


1/2 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 2/3 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tablespoon, plus 2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup sour cream
2 cups mashed ripe bananas (7-8 bananas) (or thawed, previously frozen bananas, stirred) 


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt butter.  While butter is melting, grease two 9x5x3 inch loaf pans.  In a large bowl, mix butter and oil with sugar.  Stir in eggs, mashed bananas and vanilla, mixing well.   Stir in sour cream.   In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Add to the wet ingredients and stir just until moistened.  Divide batter evenly between the two pans.  Bake for 50-60 minutes at 350 degrees.  In my oven, the loaves took the full 60 minutes.  Do not remove until you test the loaves by inserting a wooden skewer into the middle of the loaf.  If it comes out clean, the bread is done.  Cool loaves on a rack for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of pan and turn out.

Winter Borscht

"Everything I do, I do on the principle of Russian borscht. You can throw everything into it; beets, carrots, cabbage, onions, everything you want. What's important is the result, the taste of the borscht."

~Yevgeny Yevtushenko, Russian poet

Okay, stop making that face! Have you ever actually HAD borscht?  I admit, I hadn't…until last night.  Eastern European cooking is not prevalent in this region.  In fact, I’ve never even seen it on a restaurant menu.  Recently, I purchased The Essential New York Times Cookbook, and have been reading it cover to cover.

I stalled at Soups when I saw Winter Borscht and Amanda Hesser declared it “One of her favorite recipes in the book.”  That was the clincher.  I had to try it.  Besides, we are in the heart of winter here in New England.  Perfect days for dishes that simmer for hours.  

My backyard 1/12/11

The house, dwarfed by the snow

View from the kitchen window as I write this post

Regular borscht is often served cold.  This version is meant to be hot, hence the name.  A pretty straight forward recipe with a couple exceptions.  The beef shins posed a problem for me.  When I asked my butcher if he had any, he laughed and then called another butcher over, who also proceeded to laugh.  

"She wants to know if we sell "shin."  "Oh yeah, be sure to invite us over for  that."

No lie.  I ended up purchasing beef shank, which is close enough and it worked great.  You cook it until it is fall-off-the-bone tender and tastes like pot roast.  A nice savory contrast to the sweet beet.  The recipe wasn’t difficult, but takes some prep work.  I had to shred the beets and cabbage on a box grater, which was messy and left my hands stained.  If you have a food processor, it would be much easier.  The finished soup, though different than anything I've made before, was delicious, with a very subtle sweet and sour undercurrent and gorgeously crimson in color.

Winter Borscht

2 pounds beef shin

6 cups water

1 small onion, cut in half

2 medium carrots, peeled.  1 quartered, 1 grated

3 medium red beets, scrubbed well

6 tablespoons tomato paste

4 medium garlic cloves, smashed

1/2 pound red cabbage, shredded

2 medium tomatoes, cored and coarsely chopped (I used a 15 ounce can of diced tomatoes)

1 bay leaf

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 tablespoons, plus 2 teaspoons sugar

1 pound firm potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2 inch cubes and cooked in boiling salted water until tender (I used unpeeled red potatoes)

2 teaspoons kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

1/3 cup chopped fresh dill

Sour cream for garnish (optional)

1. Cover the beef with the water in a large saucepan.  Stir in the onion and quartered carrot and bring to a boil, skimming off any foam and fat that rises to the surface.  Lower heat and simmer gently for 1 1/2 hours.

2. Strain the broth through a fine-mesh sieve; there should be about 5 cups.  Reserve the meat.

3. Return the beef and liquid to the pan and bring to a boil.  Add the beets and return to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer 20-30 minutes, or until the tip of a knife easily pierces the beets.

4. Remove the beets and allow to cool slightly, then peel them and coarsely grate.  Return the grated beets to the soup.

5. Dissolve the tomato paste in 1/2 cup of the soup, and stir back into the pan.  Stir in garlic, grated carrot, cabbage, tomatoes, bay leaf, vinegar, and sugar and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours.

6. Remove the meat from the pan.  Discard the bones and slice (or shred) the meat then stir into the soup along with the cooked cubed potatoes, salt and pepper to taste, and the dill.  Return to a boil for two minutes.

7. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of fresh dill.

My Favorite Brownies

"Anything is good if it's made of chocolate"

~ Jo Brand

I hesitated to post this, despite my love of the recipe, because I know that if you google “brownies” you will probably find 100,000 recipes for them.  

I love chocolate and every couple of weeks get the urge for a good brownie.  This has been a life-long condition.  I don’t like box mix brownies, and never have, not even as a kid.  They taste artificial to me.  I guess this makes me a brownie-snob.  Yikes!  I hate to be that way, but it’s true.  On the upside, it has driven me, from my teen years, to try many, MANY, home-made brownie recipes on my quest for the perfect brownie, which to me is thick, moist, chocolately, tender and very slightly chewy.  I’ve tried recipes from almost all of my cookbook collection, including famous “gourmet” recipes from the likes of Katherine Hepburn and The Barefoot Contessa.  I’ve tried recipes from chocolate companies, friends, co-workers and internet searches. 

It was The Food Network that came through for me;  Tyler Florence, specifically;  His Amaretto Brownie recipe was the best I’d ever tried.  Then one day I went to make them and didn’t have amaretto, so I   substituted coffee.  This knocked the recipe out of the park.   Brownie perfection.  I look no further. My grandmother always frosted her brownies with a vanilla buttercream (mint is good too) and topped with a glossy coating of bittersweet chocolate.  That’s the way I prefer these, but they are great plain, too. 


My Favorite Brownies


2 sticks butter
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate or good 85% cacao chocolate
1 1/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
pinch salt
4 large eggs
2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons strong coffee or espresso (or Kahlua)
1 teaspoon vanilla


Frosting:


1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioner's sugar
1 tablespoon milk


Chocolate coating:


3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted


Preheat oven to  350 degrees.  Line a 9 x 9 inch pan (or 7 x10) with parchment paper (or tin foil), making sure it hangs over the edges. Grease paper with butter.  Melt butter and chocolate over a double boiler and stir gently until smooth and shiny.  Remove from heat and cool until it is almost room temperature.


Sift together flour, baking powder and salt into a small bowl and set aside.  In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar and coffee until combined, stir in chocolate.    Gradually add flour mixture, stirring just until combined.


Spoon batter into prepared pan and bake for 40 - 45 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the pan.  When done, cool for 20 minutes.  Invert onto a cutting board and remove paper. Replace back into pan.


Make frosting:


While you are making frosting, melt the 3 ounces of bittersweet chocolate.


In a medium bowl, beat butter.  Slowly add confectioner's sugar.  Add milk by teaspoons-full, beating as you go and add just enough to make frosting spreading consistency.


Spread brownies with frosting.  When chocolate is melted, let it cool slightly, then drizzle over frosted brownies and carefully spread with a knife.

Sausage Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms

"Laws are like sausages. It's better not to see how they are made."

~Otto Von Bismarck (1815-1898)

This is something that I've been wanting to make for years.  I like stuffed mushrooms so much that I often order the appetizer as an entrée.  This dish takes care of that craving, and then some!  The recipe came mainly from Emeril Lagasse, with some tweaking by me.  But whatever you do, if you have any left over, DON'T let the dog eat the scraps.  TRUST ME HERE.   

No, he's not drinking the water...

These made a great light dinner.  The portobello mushroom caps were quite large, so one per person was enough.  I rounded out the meal with some steamed asparagus and crusty bread.  Tons of flavor without the rich decadence that much of the foods of this season hold.

Sausage Stuffed Portobello Mushrooms


4 large portobello mushrooms (4 or 5 inches in diameter) stems removed, and minced, 1/2 cup reserved
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound hot Italian sausage
1/3 cup minced fresh onion
1/4 cup finely chopped bell pepper (red or green)
1/4 cup finely chopped celery
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup plain bread crumbs
1/2  cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon Emeril's Essence Creole Seasoning (optional)
1 egg, lightly beaten


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Using your hands, rub 1/2 tablespoon olive oil into each mushroom...on the outside of the cap.
Squeeze sausage from the casings and place in a skillet.  Cook the sausage in a medium skillet until browned, about 4 minutes, using a spatula to break up the meat as you go.  Add the onion, bell pepper, celery, and mushroom stems and cook until softened, about 3 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Remove from heat.


Transfer sausage-vegetable mixture to a bowl.  Add 1/4 cup of the bread crumbs, 1/4 cup of the parmesan, the parsley, the Essence and the egg.  Stir until well combined.


Divide the filling among the caps, about 1/2 cup each mushroom.  Place the filled mushrooms on a baking sheet.  Combine the remaining bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.  Divide the bread crumb mixture evenly among the tops of the mushrooms.  Bake about 20 - 25 minutes until the tops are golden brown and the mushrooms are tender.

Cheddar Cookies (AKA The World's Best Cheezits!)

"If I had to give up cheese or chocolate, I'd give up chocolate in a heartbeat."

~Amanda Peet

This post is for my friend Kate, who tweets as @CoastalKate and was looking for a finger food for a holiday office party.  It was just the kick in the pants I needed to try this recipe which has been tucked in my Christmas cookbook for, well, who knows how long.  It is handwritten, and says "Cheddar Cookies AKA June's Secret Cocktail  Cookies" at the top.  I have no idea who June is, don't know a June and cannot remember when I wrote this down or where I obtained it.  Many apologies to June, but apparently it was no longer a secret, since I must have gotten it somewhere!  I thought of them for Kate, but would never recommend a recipe with actually trying it, so I made them today.  Oh, fortunate me! (munch, munch, munch)

Let me just say....THEY ARE AMAZING!  If you like sharp cheddar, then I think it is virtually impossible to dislike these cookies....which, by the way, are light, flaky, crisp and cheesy with just the perfect amount of heat.  Kind of like the cheese straws you sometimes find in gourmet baskets, but better.  They are traditionally served at cocktail parties and would be great at a holiday party, as they are simply elegant.  I tucked some in the box of treats I'm mailing off tomorrow to Curtis for final exam snacks.  He loves Cheezits, so c'mon, why not?  These are some serious home-made cheezits!  For these you will want to buy a nice sharp cheddar, I used Vermont Sharp white cheddar, grated it myself and they were perfect.  I find that when I grate the cheese myself, it melts much better than the pre-grated stuff in the bags.

Cheddar Cookies


1/2 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup flour
2 cups grated sharp cheddar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt


Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  In a large bowl, cream the butter with an electric mixer.  Add the flour, cayenne pepper and salt and mix in.  It will look crumbly.  Mix with your hands, just a little, until it starts to clump, then mix in the cheddar with your hands.  Roll into balls (about 2 teaspoons of dough) and place on cookie sheet.  Find a glass with a flat bottom and use it to flatten the balls.  Dip bottom of glass in flour, and press all the dough balls down, periodically flouring the bottom of the glass, so the cookies won't stick.


Bake for 15 minutes.  Makes 30 cookies.  Serve at room temperature and store in an airtight container.

Bourbon Pecan Pound Cake, Three Ways

"Too much of anything is bad, but too much of good whiskey is barely enough."

~Mark Twain

There were lots of things my mother traditionally baked in the weeks before Christmas, and one of them is Bourbon Pound Cake.  I was always intrigued by this off-limits cake that was wrapped up and secreted away to be tended and aged.  I would sneak peeks at it, and it smelled sooo good!  A great treat at Christmas that was worth the wait, even though us kids were only allowed a thin slice.

"Oh holy cow....., this bourbon cake is AWE-some!"
(sung to the tune of "Oh Holy Night")

There are some things to note that are important to your success with this.  Always have your butter, cream cheese and eggs at room temperature before you begin.  If you neglect this step, your cake will lose height (in other words - be a brick).

Pass the pound cake

It is also important to beat the butter and cream cheese together for the full 7 minutes.  There is no other leavening agent in the cake other than the air you beat into the butter and egg whites, so skimping on these steps will really alter the results, trust me!

This versatile recipe can be done three ways; pecan, pineapple-pecan-cherry and coconut-pecan.  The pineapple-pecan-cherry one tastes like pineapple upside-down cake, and is so good.  I've dubbed it Christmas Cake.  It's not your grandma's fruitcake.  If you're not keen on spirits, you can substitute milk for the bourbon and still have a really delicious pound cake that you won't have to wait weeks for.  I made the coconut-pecan one like this for my daughter, and it was great.  A completely different animal, but delicious.  Also, it can be doubled and baked in a tube pan (that's the way my mother always did).  If you do that, make sure you up the baking time to about 1 1/2 hours.  The cake keeps beautifully over the 2-4 weeks that you store it and it also is a great cake to ship to a loved one.  It's sturdy, keeps well, stays moist and just gets better over the course of the month!

Bourbon Pecan Pound Cake

1 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted

1/2 teaspoon salt

12 tablespoons butter (one and a half sticks), softened
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, separated, at room temperature
1/3 cup bourbon
1 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup toasted pecans, chopped


Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Grease a large loaf pan and set aside.


Sift some cake flour onto a plate.  Carefully measure 1and 1/2 cups into a bowl, add 1/2 teaspoon salt, then re-sift that and set aside.


In a large bowl, beat butter and cream cheese with electric mixer for 7 minutes.  SEVEN MINUTES. Scraping down sides of bowl occasionally.  Gradually add sugar, beating constantly, until light and fluffy.

In a small bowl, whisk the 4 egg yolks with the bourbon and almond extract.  With the beaters running, slowly add bourbon mixture to the sugar/butter mixture, pouring a thin stream and beating constantly.  When the eggs are all in, scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat 2 more minutes.

In a medium bowl, beat the 4 egg whites until they are glossy and hold stiff peaks.


Sift 1/3 of the flour/salt mixture over the butter/egg mixture.  Gently fold in the flour until it is evenly distributed, but not completely mixed in.  Add half the beaten egg whites and fold in.  

Sift on another 1/3 of flour mixture and fold in, followed by the rest of the beaten egg whites and fold them in.  Sift on the last of the flour mixture and the chopped toasted pecans and fold into batter until it is completely mixed.  It is important to add the pecans (or any add-ins) now, because the coating of flour prevents them from sinking to the bottom while it bakes.


Pour batter into prepared pan and level the top.  Bake until golden brown and a long wooden pick comes out clean, 45-60 minutes, depending on your oven.  Mine needed the full 60 minutes.

Allow to cool for 15 minutes before turning out.  When almost cool, brush loaf (or cake) with bourbon, being careful not to soak it, because you don't want it to end up soggy.  Wrap loaf in bourbon dampened cheesecloth, then with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate overnight, then unwrap and again brush loaf heavil with bourbon,  re-wrap loaf with cheesecloth and plastic wrap then wrap with foil and store for 2 weeks (but will keep as many as 4) in a cool, dry place.


Bourbon Pineapple Pecan Cherry Pound Cake (aka Christmas Cake):
During the last step of recipe, when you would add the chopped pecans, also add 3/4 cup drained crushed pineapple and 3/4 cup chopped maraschino cherries.


Bourbon Coconut Pecan Pound Cake:
During last step of recipe, add 1 cup coconut along with the 3/4 cup chopped toasted pecans.

Beaumond Bread

"Cheese has always been a food that both sophisticated and simple humans love."

~M.F.K. Fisher, How to Cook a Wolf (1942)

"Wow"  "Oh wow"  Those were the only words I heard for the five minutes this bread was on the table before we inhaled it.  The inspiration for the recipe came from one I found in a cookbook called Old Fashioned Country Christmas.  The page has been dog-eared for 10 years.  Why does it take me so long to try these things?  It was easy, too.  If you like Swiss cheese, you WANT to try this.  Now it will probably be making a weekly appearance here until we get sick of it.  This could be an appetizer, paired with soup or salad for a light meal, or a fun snack anytime.  

I bought a 9 ounce loaf of French bread, but the amount of spread the recipe makes is enough for a 12-15 ounce loaf.  One last thing; a couple teaspoons of minced fresh rosemary added to the butter mixture or sprinkled on top before baking is a nice twist.

Beaumond Bread

1 loaf French bread (9 to 15 ounces)

8 to 12 ounces of Swiss cheese slices

3 tablespoons minced onion

1/2 teaspoon beaumond seasoning*

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 teaspoon dry mustard

2 t. lemon juice

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, mix together the butter, onion, beaumond seasoning, dry mustard lemon juice and Parmesan cheese. *If you cannot find beaumond seasoning at your local market, you can make it yourself by combining equal parts onion powder and celery salt.

Place French bread on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or tin foil.  Without cutting all the way through, make diagonal cuts in the French bread all the way across and then back the opposite way.

 Stuff the cuts with Swiss cheese.

Spread butter mixture all over the top.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown.  Have everyone pull the bread apart.