Banana Bread

Today I got to spend the day with my boyfriend and we made not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 banana bread loaves!

Deliciousssss!! Here's the recipe, enjoy!

For the purists.

Ingredients
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup butter, soft
3 bananas (ripe)
2 eggs
1 tsp soda, dissolved in 1 Tbsp cold water
2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg



Instructions
Heat oven to 350
Combine and mix all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.
Place batter in a greased bread pan (bottom only) or in muffin tins.
Bake 40 to 50 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.
Cool for 10 minutes then remove from pan. Complete cooling on a wire rack
Makes one good sized loaf

Blueberry Pancakes

This morning I felt a little in debt to my boyfriend. This is because he is SO good to me. He takes me out to dinner, brings me my favourite Starbucks when he comes over, drives me EVERYWHERE, and most of all, puts up with me when I'm emotional.

So, as a thank you, I made him some blueberry pancakes!

Here are some pics and the recipe !

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 1/4 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 tablespoon butter, melted
• 1/2 cup frozen blueberries, thawed

Directions

1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt, baking powder and sugar. In a small bowl, beat together egg and milk. Stir milk and egg into flour mixture. Mix in the butter and fold in the blueberries. Set aside for 1 hour.
2. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 146 | Total Fat: 2.9g | Cholesterol: 41mg

Croque Monsieur

So my brother was feeling under the weather today and he asked me if I could make him a Croque Monsieur, to which I gladly obliged.

One glitch, we had no bread...
BUT HEY, I'm resourceful! So I used English muffins instead, a thoroughly European treat to say the least.

Heres some photos, and the original recipe which I made slight alterations to due to quantity ( I only wanted one) and lack of ingredients (no bread).

Such a good treat!

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups hot milk
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• Pinch nutmeg
• 12 ounces Gruyere, grated (5 cups)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
• 16 slices white sandwich bread, crusts removed
• Dijon mustard
• 8 ounces baked Virginia ham, sliced but not paper thin

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan and add the flour all at once, stirring with a wooden spoon for 2 minutes. Slowly pour the hot milk into the butter–flour mixture and cook, whisking constantly, until the sauce is thickened. Off the heat add the salt, pepper, nutmeg, 1/2 cup grated Gruyere, and the Parmesan and set aside.

To toast the bread, place the slices on 2 baking sheets and bake for 5 minutes. Turn each slice and bake for another 2 minutes, until toasted.

Lightly brush half the toasted breads with mustard, add a slice of ham to each, and sprinkle with half the remaining Gruyere. Top with another piece of toasted bread. Slather the tops with the cheesesauce, sprinkle with the remaining Gruyere, and bake the sandwiches for 5 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil for 3 to 5 minutes, or until the topping is bubbly and lightly browned. Serve hot.

Crêpes Pour un Copain (Crêpes Suzette)

So a few days back, I decided I would make crepes for my boyfriend and his family.

As I mentioned before, crepes are my specialty and these ones turned out pretty good!

Here's a picture: 

Assembly:

Recipe:

Peanut Butter Cookies

So today I got bored.

And when I get bored I don't watch TV, or read, no.

I do something WAY better.

I bake. 

I tackled the quintessential favourite, peanut butter cookies.

Here's the recipe:

Ingredients

• 2 cups peanut butter
• 2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 pinch salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a medium bowl, stir peanut butter and sugar together until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the baking soda, salt, and vanilla. Roll dough into 1 inch balls and place them 2 inches apart onto the prepared cookie sheets. Press a criss-cross into the top using the back of a fork.
3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Nutritional Information 

Amount Per Serving  Calories: 132 | Total Fat: 7.5g | Cholesterol: 12mg