When Bananas Turn Black

Black bananas. 

Many people see them as gross, inedible, slimy... No, no, no, no, no. Black bananas are a blessing. A fantastic treat waiting to happen. Because without black bananas, there would be no banana nut bread. Okay, there might be, but it wouldn't be the same with those hard chunks of ripe banana.

I turned in my tenth book on Friday, which means I've been feeling that deadline crunch for the past two weeks (maybe more like a month), so most other things in life have found themselves relegated to the back burner. Until now. And since hubby didn't eat his bananas, we all get to indulge in this delicious banana nut bread. And you can, too.

Here's what you'll need:

•  1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2-3 ripe bananas
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• a generous 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 cups chopped pecans

Butter standard size loaf pan and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium size bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder) and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix until blended. 

Peel and place bananas in a small bowl and mash with spoon just until lumpy.

With your mixer on low, if using an electric or stand mixer, blend in your mashed bananas, sour cream and vanilla until barely combined. 

Add dry ingredients and mix on low until incorporated, then do the same with the pecans.

Spoon into buttered baking pan.

Bake in 350 degree oven 50-60 minutes, until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing.

Allow to cool before serving.

I love biting into those chunks of banana, paired with the crunch of the pecans. This banana nut bread is a palate pleasing treat.

So the boys are back. 

 Studying each other.

 Circling each other.

Most mornings and late afternoons, this is what things look like behind our house.

But having the bucks in the mix is the exception, not the norm. Usually, we have anywhere from one to twelve does and fawns, but they usually run off when the bucks come around, so this was nice to see. Everyone getting along, simply hanging out for a little bite to eat. 

And next week is Thanksgiving. Time has suddenly gotten away from me. Now I need to rein everything in and start planning. It's a busy month ahead. All the food, festivities and fun of the holiday season will soon be in full swing and I can't wait.

What about you? Are you ready for the holidays or are you dreading them? If you're dreading, perhaps it's time to refocus. Christmas is the biggest birthday celebration of the year. However, some of the best parties are quiet and subdued, keeping the focus on the One who's being celebrated. Think of all Jesus has done for you. Where would you be without Him? Now that, my friend, is worth celebrating. 

Three time Carol Award finalist Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she's not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more a mindyobenhaus.com.

Food, Comforting Food

Mindy here, and as Harvey raged around us early last week, dumping 23 inches of rain on us here at our camphouse, all I wanted to do was cook. Bake. And since we never lost power, I was able to do just that. But it couldn’t be just any food. We needed comfort food. Homemade chicken noodle soup, beef stew…

Fresh baked bread…

So what do you suppose happened when I realized I had three over-ripe bananas on the counter? 

Yep.

Usually when I make banana nut bread, I use the recipe in my Betty Crocker Cookbook. But since that’s in storage, I had to find another recipe. Now you all know how much I love cakes with sour cream in them, how moist and delicious they are… So you can imagine how excited I was when I came across a banana nut bread recipe that used sour cream.

Score!

Here’s what you’ll need for this delicious version of a classic.

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1 ½ cups flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. salt

3 overly-ripe bananas, mashed, but still lumpy

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

½ cup sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¾ cups chopped pecans

Preheat you oven to 350 degrees.

Butter and flour regular size loaf pan and set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk to flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

Set aside.

In a second large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs, one at a time.

Stir in the mashed bananas, sour cream and vanilla and mix until combined.

Add the dry ingredients and mix until moistened,

Then fold in pecans and pour batter into prepared pan.

Set that atop a baking sheet.

Place tray in the oven so that the top of the loaf is in the center of the oven.

Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack.

Once cool, or maybe just a little warm, slice and enjoy.

 You can see not only the pecans, but those pieces of banana.

Once again, the sour cream did not disappoint. This has to be my favorite ingredient for adding moistness to baked goods. I love this new recipe and have already decided it will be my go-to from now on. Lord willing, we won’t have any more hurricanes, though.

Hurricane Harvey impacted many people. By now, I’m sure you’ve all seen pictures and video of the devastation in Houston, but I can’t help sharing another perspective. Although we personally emerged from Harvey’s wrath virtually unscathed, many in our small rural community are still suffering from the floods that showed no mercy.

At one point, our little town was cut off to the west, north and south, leaving only one way in and out of town.

Grocery stores and other businesses were forced to close because of the rapidly rising river and delivery trucks were unable to get in to restock the shelves. Mail delivery ceased for a few days because the post office was cut off by flood waters.

And, oh, how they rose, swallowing whatever lay in their path.

Wildlife found themselves trapped.

The scene that really broke my heart was after the rain had stopped. We had ventured away from the camphouse, through the pasture and past the flooded gate area onto the main road that took us down to the interstate. And there, just on the other side of the highway, not more than a quarter mile from our camphouse, was a rescue in process.

While we sat high and dry, just down the road the quiet little hamlet that usually goes unnoticed was completely under water.

Making us realize just how truly blessed we were.

Now we join with others to aid in the recovery process. Praying, delivering food to friends who’ve been displaced, donating cleaning supplies and whatever else is needed in the relief effort. In big cities and small towns alike, the outpouring of support has been overwhelming. People lending a hand to their neighbors. People they may have never met before.

Why?

Because we are Texans and we are Texas strong.

Mindy Obenhaus lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband, the youngest of her five children and two dogs. She's passionate about touching readers with Biblical truths in an entertaining, and sometimes adventurous, manner. When she’s not writing, she enjoys cooking and spending time with her grandchildren. Learn more at www.MindyObenhaus.com 

Banana Bread Two Ways

Just over a year ago, I shared the beginning of my Trim Healthy Mama journey with you here: Muffin in a Mug

Mindy jumped on board with me, and since then we've both shared a few THM recipes here at the cafe. Mindy has epitomized the TRIM part of THM with the healthy weight she has lost, but today it's time to give an update on my own THM journey.

In my post last January, I talked about how I've been dissatisfied with other diet plans because I wanted to concentrate on HEALTHY - if TRIM happened, that would be fine. But at this point in my life (the other side of that famous "hill" we're supposed to dread being "over"), health matters.

So, the update? I have not lost vast amounts of weight, quickly or otherwise. I do weigh less than I did, but not a lot.

But I can talk forever about the health benefits I'm enjoying! I won't list them all here, but we've all heard about (or experienced) the downsides of an aging body. What I'm thrilled about is that I've been saying goodbye to most of those achy, energy-zapping, discouraging downsides. And my doctor is happy, too :)

I could say it's all because of THM, but really, it's because THM helped me educate myself about the nutrition I need to regain the health I had lost and to keep myself healthy.

There's the update! Perhaps someday I'll put "Trim" back in my eating plan, but I'm happy with "Healthy" for now!

So to celebrate, I'm sharing two banana bread recipes with you. The first one is our family's tried and true favorite, and the second is a low-fat, no added sugar THM banana bread. You could try making both and see which one you like best!

This recipe is from the Better Homes and Garden cookbook I received as a wedding shower gift back in the dark ages...okay, only thirty-three years ago :) It's my family's favorite, hands down. I've changed it a bit, but that's what happens over the course of thirty-plus years, isn't it?

Banana Nut Bread

ingredients:

2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons milk
1 cup mashed, ripe bananas (about 2 medium)

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 cup chopped nuts

In a mixing bowl, cream sugar and butter with an electric mixer. Add the eggs and milk, and beat until smooth. Add the bananas and mix until well blended. Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Mix on low speed until all the ingredients are wet, and then on high speed for about 30 seconds. Fold in the chopped nuts.

Pour into a greased loaf pan and bake at 350° for about 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and let cool completely (if you can keep away from it that long!)

That recipe is delicious, and tastes just like banana bread should taste - sweet with a hint of banana.

This next recipe is a Trim Healthy Mama E recipe - which means that it is not only low fat and has a reasonable amount of complex carbohydrates, but it also has no added sugar and no white flour.

It's also a gluten-free recipe, if you're looking for that.

But - don't expect this banana bread to taste like the earlier recipe. That's the thing about using different ingredients. Yes, I call this banana bread, but it's different. Like grilled chicken breast is different from the rotisserie chicken you pick up at the grocery store - they're the same, but different, and both are good!

Oat Flour Banana Bread
original recipe by Fay Cadwallader

ingredients:

3 ripe bananas
1/2 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
1/4 cup 0% fat plain Greek yogurt
3 egg whites (1/2 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla

2 cups oat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Mash the bananas, then mix the wet ingredients together in an electric mixer. Add the dry ingredients, mix on low until combined, and then on high for 30 second.

Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

A couple things to notice about these two recipes - 

The first one has no salt added. That isn't a typo! If I use unsalted butter, though, I throw in a pinch of salt.

The second one has no added sweetener. That isn't a typo, either! The applesauce and bananas are sweet enough for this bread.

Oat Flour -

I bought a bag of oat flour at E&S Sales the last time we were in Shipshewana, Indiana, but you don't need to buy it. Just whirl rolled oats in your blender until they turn into fine powder. Oat flour!

Oat flour is so different from wheat flour when you use it for baking. It's much heavier than wheat flour, so your baked goods come out much denser. Chewier. And if you take your loaf out of the oven too soon, the center is the consistency of oatmeal. (Ask me how I know!)

The final word - 

I like both of these recipes, but because I'm eating fewer carbs and less sugar with Trim Healthy Mama, I make the oat flour recipe for me and the Better Homes and Garden recipe for family and friends.

Are you brave enough to try both? Let me know what you think!

And if you're interested in more information about Trim Healthy Mama, you can visit their website.

Deadlines, Revisits and The End

I don't know about y'all but I'm loving these revisits. Not because they're easy, but because it's like a Best-of. The Who's Who of some of our favorite recipes. So while Jan and I succumb to deadline mania, you get to reap the rewards.

What do you do when your bananas look like this? 

Well, in my house, it calls for a batch of banana nut bread. Over the years I've tried lots of different recipes. Some good, some not so good. The recipe I'm going to share with you today is one of the best I've tried. Of course, it's courtesy of Martha Stewart, so what would you expect.

You're going to need:

• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups flour (Martha says unbleached all-purpose; I used the better-for-bread variety)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan or four smaller pans (I opted for the smaller pans).

With an electric mixer (perhaps one named Edna), cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs and beat well.

Sift the dry ingredients together and combine with the butter mixture.

Blend well. Add the bananas, sour cream (the ingredient I think makes this recipe stand out), and vanilla. Stir well. (I used my electric mixer on the lowest speed)

Stir in the nuts.

Pour into prepared pan(s).

For one large pan, the instructions are to back for one hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. For my four small loaves, I found 40 minutes to be just right.

Turn baked loaves onto rack to cool.

I love keeping these little guys in the freezer so they're ready whenever I need them. Sometimes, I'll put them in a cellophane bag with a pretty ribbon and give them as gifts.

Of course, they also go perfect with cup of tea. I'm having a little one-on-one with some Cream Earl Green. He's so smooth, you know.



Tea's on, gang. Who's ready to join me?

Okay, even deadlines can't keep me from my tea. It's the fuel I need to keep my brain cells firing.
So I've got a Nov. 1st deadline. Yesterday I typed THE END on my rough draft. 
Okay, so my rough isn't that rough. Now it's on to the polishing. A little spit, some elbow grease and, Lord willing, that puppy will come out shining like a diamond. Or at least a CZ. 
And while THE END isn't really the end, there's something about getting the story out of your head and onto the page. Wouldn't you agree?
Now I can fix whatever's wrong. But the story is complete.
Of course, it's just a matter of time before the next characters come knocking.
And so goes the life of a writer.

Goin' Bananas

What do you do when your bananas look like this?

Well, in my house, it calls for a batch of banana nut bread. Over the years I've tried lots of different recipes. Some good, some not so good. The recipe I'm going to share with you today is one of the best I've tried. Of course, it's courtesy of Martha Stewart, so what would you expect.

 

You're going to need:

• 1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups flour (Martha says unbleached all-purpose; I used the better-for-bread variety)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan or four smaller pans (I opted for the smaller pans).

 

With an electric mixer (perhaps one named Edna), cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

 

Add the eggs and beat well.

Sift the dry ingredients together and combine with the butter mixture.

Blend well. Add the bananas, sour cream (the ingredient I think makes this recipe stand out), and vanilla. Stir well. (I used my electric mixer on the lowest speed)

Stir in the nuts.

Pour into prepared pan(s).

For one large pan, the instructions are to back for one hour, until a cake tester comes out clean. For my four small loaves, I found 40 minutes to be just right.

 

Turn baked loaves onto rack to cool.

I love keeping these little guys in the freezer so they're ready whenever I need them. Sometimes, I'll put them in a cellophane bag with a pretty ribbon and give them as gifts.

 

Of course, they also go perfect with cup of tea. I'm having a little one-on-one with some Cream Earl Green. He's so smooth, you know.



 

Tea's on, gang. Who's ready to join me?