Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

For the last day and a half I have been mulling over what I should create with the last couple bananas that I needed to use.  Tonight while looking over recipes searching for an idea, I came across Chocolate Chip Banana Bread!  After all, what makes everything better?? Chocolate!!  So with such inspiration I decide to attempt the Chocolate Chip Banana Bread!!

The recipe I adapted was from Allrecipes.com. Found here!!

You will need:
2 cups - Flour
1 teaspoon - Baking Powder
1 teaspoon - Baking Soda
1 teaspoon - Salt

3 - Ripe Bananas (Approximately 2 cups of banana purée)
1 Tablespoon - Milk
1 teaspoon - Cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon - Nutmeg
1 teaspoon - Vanilla

1/2 cup - Butter
1/2 cup - Sugar
1/2 cup - Brown Sugar
2 - Eggs

1 1/2 cup - Chocolate Chips


To start you will need to mash the bananas and combine them with the spices.  You can mash your bananas however you desire.  For the sake of time today, I placed the peeled bananas into the bowl of the KitchenAid mixer and mashed them one at a time.  Once all bananas were broken up I mixed them on high until they were well combined. 

Then add in each of the spices, vanilla, and milk stirring well until fully combined.  Place the mixture in a two cup measuring cup and set aside.

 

Combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar and mix until light and fluffy. 

Add in eggs one at a time making sure to fully combine before adding the next. 

Add the banana mixture and stir until fully combined.  

Combing the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a measuring cup.  Slowly add the flour mixture to the batter.  Mix until just combined. 

Stir in chocolate chips.

Place the batter into greased bread pans.  I spilt my batter between two pans because I did not want a super thick bread. 

Bake the bread in a 325 degrees oven.  The baking time will vary depending on the thickness of your bread.  Start checking your bread after 45 minutes  until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  I used a butter knife to get to the bottom of the bread pan.  My smaller loaf took about 50 minutes while my larger loaf took about 57 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack, slice, and enjoy!!

Strawberry Stars Cupcake

Anyone who knows me is aware of the fact that I love the 4th of July.  From the barbeques, to the beach, to the glow bracelets, to the fireworks, I love it all.  So in an effort to commemorate my favorite holiday I have created the Strawberry Stars Cupcake!  Simply put it is a vanilla cake with a fresh strawberry butter cream and a candy star decoration.

 

 

The vanilla cake recipe I found n Addapinch.com located here.

You will need:
1 cup- Butter
1/2 cup - Vegetable Shorting
3 cups - Granulated Sugar
5 - Eggs at Room Temperature
3 cups - All Purpose Flour
2 teaspoons - Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon - Salt
1/2 cup - Whole Milk at Room Temperature
1/2 cups - Buttermilk at Room Temperature
2 teaspoons - Vanilla Extract

Start by creaming together the butter and the shorting with a mixer until they are fluffy and the color begins to lighten. 

Gradually add in the sugar one cup at a time to the butter mixture.  Make sure to fully incorporate the sugar before adding the next cup. 

After all of the sugar is fully incorporated, add in the eggs in the same fashion.  Make sure that each egg is fully mixed in before adding the next  You can stop and scrape the sides of the mixing bowl as needed to ensure that the batter is mixing well. 

Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate container.  Combine the whole milk, the butter milk, and the vanilla in another separate container.  Gradually add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternating the dry ingredients with the milk mixture.  Be sure to start and end with dry ingredients.

 

 

Due to creating a holiday cupcake, I stirred in a packet of blue Wilton Color Burst Batter Bits. 

Your batter is now ready to be poured into a cupcake pan lined with cupcake papers.  You can lightly spray your cupcake liners with Pam if you desire as it will prevent the cupcake from sticking too much to the paper.

Bake the cupcakes at the 350 degree oven for about 14 minutes.  Test the cupcakes with a toothpick and remove when only a few crumbs stick to the tooth pick. 

To be honest, I was unsatisfied with the way the batter did not rise to form a puffy top to the cupcake.  I have never used the Wilton Batter Bits before, so this could be the problem. 

I did attempt a couple different methods to get the cakes to rise more in each of my baking batches, however they all had the same problem.  Therefore, if you are going to make this recipe, I would use it for a project where you need flat top cupcakes or a layer cake where you need flat halves!

 
While your cupcakes are cooling, you can begin preparing your strawberries for the buttercream.  You will need about a cup and a half of strawberry puree.  For the puree, I cut about 3/4 pound of fresh strawberries in half and placed them in a small food processer. 

In two batches, I pulsed the strawberries until they were runny.  I then transferred them to a small saucepan where I cooked all of the puree together in order to release the moisture. 

Cook the strawberries until they are at least half the size of the original puree.  I wanted a deeper flavor so I reduced my strawberries until they were about 1/3 the size of the original puree.  The puree will be more of a paste consistency.  Transfer the strawberry paste to a small container and chill in the refrigerator.  The strawberries need to be completely cool in order to make the buttercream.

The strawberry buttercream recipe I located on Allrecipes.com found here.

You will need:
1 cup - Butter, Softened
3 cups - Powdered Sugar
1 teaspoon - Vanilla Extract
Your Strawberry Paste

Begin by beating the butter for a couple of minutes until it is creamy and the color begins to lighten.  Add in 1 cup of powdered sugar and mix until just combined.  Add in the strawberry paste and the remaining powdered sugar alternating a couple of scoops of strawberries and 1 cup of powdered sugar. 

Mix until fully combined.     

For the candy decorations, melt Wilton Candy Melts in Red, White, and Blue as directed on the package. 

Create small stars on parchment paper.  I purchased small squeeze bottles for the candy but you could use a Ziplock bag and snip a small corner off the bag as well. 

Place the candy in the refrigerator for a few minutes.  Once the candy hardens, it will release from the parchment paper and can be used to decorate the cupcakes.

Frost your cupcakes and decorate as desired.  For this cupcake I piped the frosting on using Wilton tip 199. 

Due to the length of this post, I will cover piping frosting in a future entry!

Enjoy!  Now I have to go find people to eat the mountain of cupcakes in my kitchen!!

 

 

 



 

Peanut Butter Pretzel Bars

Today is my 4th anniversary to my husband!  After I had made the Spartan cupcakes for the baby shower at work, a coworker told me that I should make cupcakes for my husband.  I looked at her and said, "No."  I then explained that if I was going to make him a treat, cupcakes would not be his first choice.  Later that day I happened upon this recipe on the Very Best Baking website which I attempted for him today.  The original recipe is found here!!

This recipe is super simple and great for the summer because there is no baking involved.  Here are the 5 ingredients that you will need: Butter, Peanut Butter, Powdered Sugar, Chocolate Chips, and Pretzels!

3/4 cup - Butter
2 cups - Peanut Butter divided into 1 1/4 cup and 3/4 cup sections
2 cups - Powdered Sugar
2 cups - Chocolate Chips (I used semi sweet) divided into 1/2 cup and 1 1/2 cups sections
4 cups - Crushed Pretzels divided into 3 cups and 1 cup sections

I started with crushing the pretzels.  The recipe called for broken mini pretzels, but I had a package of pretzel rods on hand that I had picked up at a discounted price because their best by date was later this month.  To break up the pretzels, I cracked them into thirds and put them in a gallon size Ziplock bag.  I then used a rolling pin to break the pretzels apart.  I did mine in two batches to get 4 cups to speed up the process and make it easier on the Ziplock bag. 

I began the mixing by beating the butter until it became creamy and fluffy. 

I then mixed in 1 1/4 cups of peanut butter a quarter cup at a time.

I then added in the powdered sugar 1/3 cup at a time mixing well after every addition.  Once all of the sugar was added, I mixed on high for a minute or two to ensure that the ingredients were thoroughly combined.  

Next I stirred in 3 cups of the pretzels and 1/2 cup of the chocolate chips.

I then transferred the mixture to a 9x9 square pan that I lined with tinfoil and sprayed with Pam.  The recipe said to use a 9x13 pan, but I wanted a thicker bar so I went with the 9x9.

To prepare the top layer, I melted 3/4 cup of peanut butter and 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl. 

I must have used a few extra chocolate chips in the base layer because I was a few short for the second layer.  To compensate, I broke up three squares of dark chocolate that I had on hand and threw them in the mixture. 

I melted the mixture for 45 seconds on 70 percent power.  Mine was not completely melted after the first round, so I microwaved a second time for 15 seconds at 70 percent power. 

After the chocolate and peanut butter were melted together, I stirred in the pretzel crumbs because I did not want the top to look too messy. 

I then spread the second layer on top of the first and placed the remaining pretzel pieces on top.  

Finally, I popped the pan into the freezer to give the dish a jumpstart on setting.  Once finished, I will remove the tinfoil and cut into squares!!  

 

The Spartan Themed Cupcake

For my first recipe post, I will go back to my most recent cupcake creation.  Since I am creating the blog post cupcake, I only have pictures of the finished product.  I'll have to work on that for future additions to the blog. 

Anyway, I was asked to make a Spartan themed cupcake for a Michigan State themed baby shower for one of my coworkers.  I mulled around a number of ideas before I settled on a Triple Chocolate Cake with a Marshmallow Buttercream and a candy decoration. 

The cake was simply a Betty Crocker Triple Chocolate Fudge cake mix with a few additions.  I have found that of the cake mixes available, Betty Crocker is my favorite.  This is probably because it is the brand that I use the most and I have nearly perfected the recipe to get just the perfect cake.  Although, I will use others if I am in a pinch and they are on sale!

Back to the additions!  The two staples of any cake mix that I make are milk and pudding.  I always use milk in place of water and I throw in a box of pudding (sugar free if possible!)  I typically use 1 box of pudding for each box of cake mix.  Simply mix the pudding powder with the cake mix prior to adding the other ingredients.  Beat your cake mix together and add a little extra milk if necessary to get the desired consistency.  I typically add milk in a couple tablespoons at a time to ensure that I do not get too much. 

Pour the cake mix into a cupcake pan lined with any desired liners.  I always put a shot of Pam into the bottom of the liners before adding the cake mix as it prevents that cupcake from sticking to the paper when baked.  Bake the cupcakes as directed on the box, but start checking to see if the cakes are done 2 minutes before the minimum time listed on the box.  Take the cupcakes out of the oven when just a couple crumbs stick to a toothpick when inserted into the largest cupcake of the batch.  Cool your cakes on a wire rack if you have one or just the counter top would be fine if not.  I have found that the average cake mix makes about 18 decent size cupcakes. 

Proceed to the frosting once the cupcakes have cooled.

For this cake I used a Marshmallow Buttercream and I adapted a recipe I found on Allrecipes.com. Found Here! For this frosting you will need:

1 - 7 ounce jar of Marshmallow Cream
1 cup - Butter softened
1.5 cups - Powdered Sugar
0.5 teaspoon - Almond Extract

Begin by whipping the butter with a mixer until it is fluffy and the color beings to lighten.  Typically this takes around 5 minutes depending on the softness of the butter when you begin.  Add in the marshmallow cream and beat on high until fully combined scraping the bowl periodically.  Reduce the speed of the mixer and add in the powdered sugar.  I did about a half a cup at a time to reduce any chance of lumps.  I also added in about a total of 2 cups of powered sugar because I needed a little more frosting for the number of cupcakes I needed to make.  Keep in mind that adding in more powdered sugar will make the frosting a little sweeter.  Once all of the powered sugar is mixed in, increase the speed of the mixer and whip the frosting for a few more minutes until the buttercream begins to get fluffy.  Add in the almond extract and mix to fully combine.  I used almond extract in this recipe because I did not have clear vanilla extract on hand and I wanted a bright white frosting to contrast the green candy decoration. You can now frost your cupcakes as desired. 

For the candy decoration, I made a green "S" out of Wilton candy melts.  Melt the candy as described on the package.  This was my first attempt at using candy melts, so I melted mine into a gallon sized Ziplock bag and I snipped the corner of the bag when I was ready to begin crafting my letters.  I drew "S" shapes on to a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.  Once I had 15 or so on the sheet I popped them into the refrigerator for a few minutes.  When the candy hardens, it releases from the paper.  I then placed the letters into a Ziplock bag for storage.  I popped the bag back into the refrigerator because I had issues with the candy softening due to the heat from the oven in the kitchen and the hot temperature outside.

After your letters are created and the cupcakes are frosted, the letters can be placed on to your cupcakes!  Whala, your masterpiece is complete!!
    

 

The Beginning

A couple of days ago I was asked if I had a website because someone was interested in looking at my recipes for my creations that I often post pictures of on Facebook.  I have been thinking about it since, and initially I told myself that I did not have enough recipes to start a food blog.  Today, I decided that everyone has to start somewhere!  So, here I am posting my first blog.  I pray that somewhere in between the butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla you will find a recipe or two that will allow you to create something to enjoy.