Banana Blueberry Bread and Tsu #Mondayblogs #recipe

 This weekend as I stared at the bananas on the counter I knew banana bread was going to be the weekend bread of choice...but I just can't seem to keep to the basic recipe and found myself adding blueberries to the batter.

The smell as it was baking filled my kitchen with sweet aromas, I knew this was going to be a winner.

Even the kids who turn up their noses when they see chunks of fruit in my bread grabbed a slice as soon as it was cool enough to cut.

Success!

Banana Blueberry Bread

2 Cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powde
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1 Cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 Cup melted butter
1 1/2 Cup mashed bananas
4 oz. blueberries

Cinnamon sugar for topping

Preheat oven to 350. Grease bottom and sides of standard loaf pan.
Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix eggs and melted butter in a small bowl and then add to the dry mixture and combine. Mash up the bananas with a fork in the small bowl, add to the wet mixture. Fold in blueberries. Sprinkle the top with a cinnamon sugar mixture. Bake 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool in pan 15 minutes, then release from pan on baking rack and continue cooling.
Enjoy.

* * * * * *

As 2014 winds down and I had finally thought I had a pretty good handle on the social media outlets that work for me...enter Tsu.

With a Facebook-like interface there is a fairly small learning curve, and with all the coming rules on Facebook that will only make it even more difficult for me to interact with fans and friends - this new venture just might pick up some steam. Already many of the authors I know and follow on Facebook are there. Will it take off? That's anyone's guess and although I don't relish the idea of adding another social media time suck to my already crowded day...I think I'm going to wade into the Tsu waters and see where it goes.

If you pop on over...look me up!

Apple Cranberry Pecan Bread and thoughts for the week

 Wow...I can't believe it's been so long since I blogged! I admit I've thought about coming back and getting into the blogging routine more than a few times, but like many bloggers out there - I found myself at a loss for words.

I know, shocking, right?

So, maybe the idea of being at a loss for words is bit extreme. But deciding on the direction of a blog can be downright stressful some days and I found I simply kept putting it on the back burner.

And while it was on the back burner, I did some thinking.

1. I really don't want to write a daily blog, I don't even want to commit to blogging three times a week...I've got a family, a job and I write books, do I honestly have to blog that often?

NO.

The new plan is to blog once a week - every Monday. If a bonus blog gets tossed in every once a while I can live with that, I hope you can too!

2. I love to bake, I love to shop...yup, I love my shoes and pocketbooks and makeup!

The truth is, I write about love, relationships and woman just like me...except sometimes they travel through time and even in my wildest dreams, I never really expect that to happen to me. :)

So, from now on, this blog is going to be about the things that I love. Recipes, shoes, makeup and probably blogs about my pets (because I DO have quite a few of those!)
 

I hope you'll join me here on Mondays!

APPLE, CRANBERRY, PECAN BREAD

1 loaf
preheat oven to 350 degrees
grease the bread pan, both bottom and sides

2 1/4 Cups flour
1 Cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, well beaten
1 Cup orange juice
1/4 Cup butter, melted
1/4 Cup warm water
1/2 large apple, chopped
1 Cup fresh or grozen whole cranberries, chopped
1 Cup pecans, chopped

Sift four, sugar baking powder, baking soda and salt together. Combine egg, orange juice, melted butter and water in a small bowl. Add to dry ingredients and combine until moistened. Fold in apple, cranberries and pecans. Pour batter into creased pan. Bake 1 hour until toothpick comes out clean. Cool. Remove from pans. Enjoy!

See you next week!

Easter Sunday in the Kitchen - Pesto Stuffed Eggs

Happy Easter!

Every year we follow tradition and as part of our Easter celebration we color eggs.

While Easter is a Christian religious holiday, using the egg as part of the holiday celebration has its roots in the pagan festivals of spring as the egg represents an emergence of new life. From the Christian perspective, the egg represents the emergence of Jesus from the tomb and his resurrection.

The coloring or dying of Easter eggs can be traced back to at least the 13th century, when eggs were forbidden during the lenten season and people dyed or decorated eggs to mark the end of their penance.

When I was young, the Easter Bunny hid the real eggs...so with three kids and usually about 24 hard-boiled eggs, the hunt didn't last too long.

When my kids were small plastic eggs populated the stores and I hopped on board and bought about a 100! Our Easter egg hunts went on for quite a while as the Easter Bunny had to be pretty darn creative to hide 100 eggs around the house...sometimes we found those elusive well-hidden eggs days later!

Even though the kids have grown up and we don't hide eggs any more, we still color eggs. Then we spend the next week (at least!) eating them. Here's a great recipe to put some of those hard-boiled eggs to good use:

PESTO STUFFED EGGS

8 hard-boiled eggs, halved

1/3 cup basil leaves

1/4 cup mayonnaise

2 Tablespoons butter or margarine, softened

2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese

2 teaspoons pine nuts

1 small clove of garlic

3 Tablespoons warm water

Pine nuts and basil leaves for garnish

Place the eggs yolks, basil, mayonnaise, butter, Parmesan cheese, pine nuts and garlic in a food processor or a blender. Process mixture until smooth. With the machine on, add the warm water. Taste for seasoning, add salt if needed. Using a pastry bag or spoon, fill egg white halves. Garnish as desired with pine nuts and basil leaves.

Enjoy!

Sunday in the Kitchen - Focaccia Bread

I hope everyone had a great week!

Me?  I've been stuck in my writing cave trying to hammer out the last two chapters of my current WIP. (I even missed blogging on Thursday...oh my!)

Today I'm sharing an easy recipe for one of the favorite snacks in my house whether we're watching TV or just have a few friends over.

Easy Focaccia Bread

1 Package (10 oz) refrigerated pizza crust (the kind that comes rolled up in a can) OR you can use your own crust.

2 garlic cloves, pressed

2 Cups (8 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
Grated Romano Cheese
Dried oregano leaves or Italian seasoning
2 Firm plum tomatoes, sliced thin
1 small onion, sliced thin (optional)

Preheat the oven to 375. Roll out the dough. Sprinkle with the garlic. Sprinkle some Romano Cheese over the crust. Cover with half the mozzarella cheese and some of the oregano (or your Italian seasoning.) Top with the thinly spliced tomatoes and onions. Cover with remaining cheese and oregano. Sprinkle some romano cheese on the top.
Bake approximately 20-25 minutes or until golden and bubbly.
Cut into squares.
Enjoy!

Sunday in the Kitchen: Pizza! (and more snow)

The tradition in our house is for the birthday child to pick the dinner of their choice...for my daughter, that usually mean homemade pizza.

One thing I've learned over the years of making dough, is that having a good mixer is not only a time saver, but an arm saver too - because mixing pizza dough by hand is HARD.

Here is my very basic but awesome pizza dough recipe (and honestly, it's not mine, it's from my mother-in-law.) Click to tweet this!

This recipe makes one thick crust or two thin crusts.

Pizza Dough

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 pkg yeast (or 2 tsp of the active dry yeast if you buy in bulk like I do!)
a pinch of sugar (add to yeast and dissolve in 1/2 cup very warm water)
1/4 cup oil
1/2 to 1 cup additional warm water.
a few shakes of dried Italian seasoning (optional)

Dissolve the yeast in warm water with the pinch of sugar and let stand about 5 minutes while it foams.

Put the flour in the mixer, add the salt and seasoning, turn on low using the dough hook. Pour in the yeast water. While mixing add the oil.

Slowly continue to add the additional warm water until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball.

Remove from the dough hook and place in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a clean towel and set to rise. (I put it in the oven on a top rack, with a pan of hot water underneath and leave it for several hours.)

When ready to make the pizza, remove the dough from the bowl and with sprinkle lightly with flour, and knead.

Lightly oil the pizza pan (I also sprinkle a little cornmeal on the pan)

Roll the dough and poke with a few fork holes.

Pre-cook the crust in a 375 degree oven until puffed and lightly golden.

Remove from oven and spread on your sauce and cheese.

Put back in the oven for approximately 15-20 minutes, depending on how well done you like your cheese.

Enjoy!

And just for giggles...here's a few more pictures of the blizzard of 2013!

My son's car is under there somewhere!

Looks beautiful.

Would look even more beautiful if there wasn't so damn much of it!









Wishing you safe travels wherever your road leads!

* Because I love my readers and am grateful you choose to spend some time with me each week, all comments from Feb. 1 to Feb 28 are automatically entered into my monthly drawing for a 3 pack of mini travel-sized handmade soaps. Details and the scents for the month can be found on the "contest rules" page.

Sunday in the Kitchen: Dip Day

What I'm reading this week: 

A Little Bit Cupid by Jennifer Shirk

Recently on the iPod: 

Honey Bee by Blake Shelton

Today is SuperBowl Sunday. Whether you're a football or not, it's a big food day here in the US.

Which in this family means DIP!

Today for your dipping pleasure, I'm sharing a few of the favorites around the Dennis house.

Since none of the NY teams are in the game this year, I don't have a horse in the race, so I'm just going to be hoping for an exciting game with good sportsmanship and of course some kick-ass commercials (which is really the only thing I watch anyway!)

Creamy Blue Cheese Dip

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened

4 oz. blue cheese, crumbles (about 1 cup)

2 Tbs butter, softened (NO SUBSTITUTIONS!)

1/4 cup sour cream

1 small garlic clove, mashed to a paste

2 Tbs heavy or whipping cream

Combine the cream cheese, blue cheese, butter, sour cream and garlic in a food processor until smooth. Blend in the cream. Transfer to a serving bowl and cover and chill at least 2 hours.

Sesame-White Bean Dip

1 can (19 oz) white kidney or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed

1/4 cup tahini (sesame paste)

2 Tbs fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1 Tbs sesame seeds, toasted (optional)

Combine the beans, tahini, lemon juice, salt and pepper in the food processor. With the machine on, add the oil in a steady stream until smooth. Fold in the green onions. (can be made ahead and refrigerate up to 24 hours) Sprinkle with sesame seeds before serving with toasted pita chips and fresh vegetables.

Kickin Guacamole

1 ripe avocade, peeled and pit removed

1/2 cup seeded and chopped tomato

2 Tbs chopped green onion

2 Tbs chopped fresh cilantro

1 Tbs fresh lime juice

2 tsp seeded and minced japapeno chile

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 to 1/2 hot pepper sauce (according to your taste!)

Mash the avocado with a fork in a medium blow. Stir in the tomato, green onion, cilantro, lime juice, jalapeno, salt and hot pepper sauce. Serve immediately with chips or oven baked tortilla chips.

Have a great day in the kitchen!

  

Tweet a Quote!

  Today for your dipping pleasure, I'm sharing a few of the favorites around the Dennis house. ~ Click to Tweet!

 

 *All today's dip's were from the Ladies Home Journal 100 Great Appetizer and Snack Recipes.

** All comments on any post in February are entered into the monthly contest found on the sidebar! Details on the Contest page.

Sunday in the Kitchen: Bloody Mary and the Reality Award

In celebration of my birthday, the hubby and I will be going to one of my favorite restaurants for their wonderful brunch. Although this is the first time I'm going to enjoy this brunch since I've had to change to a dairy-free diet, I know they have so many dishes to choose from there is NO chance I'll leave hungry.

And they make a great Bloody Mary.

When I'm serving brunch at home, here's my Bloody Mary recipe - it serves 4.

Bloody Mary

3 1/4 Cups no salt added tomato juice (I like a tomato veggie blend like Knudsen's)
2 Tbsp lime juice
2 Tsp worcestershire sauce
1 Tsp prepared horseradish
1/2 Tsp celery salt
1/2 Tsp hot sauce

1/2 Cup vodka

Combine the ingredients in a shaker, shake well and chill (or add ice if you desire)
Garnish each glass with a celery stalk or a lime curl.

Enjoy (and always drink responsibly!)

* * * * * *

I've been given a blog award!

Thanks to Donna Coe-Velleman for the honor of nominating my blog for the Reality Award.

Now, according to the rules of the award, I need to share 7 facts you might not know about me... (and probably don't care to know, but rules are rules)

1. I hate coconut, but love Pina Coladas and coconut shrimp.

2. I won't watch medical dramas or horror movies.

3. I love to sit on the beach, but won't go in the water.

4. I take such hot showers, when I get out I resemble a lobster.

5. If I could leave my flannel sheets on all the bed all year, I would (but hubby protests and make me take them off by April.)

6. My dream vacation would be to spend a night in a haunted old castle. (The older the better!)

7. I hate to wear shoes. I love to buy them...hate to wear them. I'm usually found barefoot or in slippers at home.

And now the rules say I must nominate other worthy bloggers because they inspire me with their ideas, their creativity and their positive words!

Bethanne Strasser at http://bethannestrasser.blogspot.com/

Jennifer Shirk at http://jennifershirk.blogspot.com/

Robin Delaney at http://robindelany.blogspot.com/

Sutton Fox at http://suttonfox.blogspot.com/

Julie Jarnagin at http://juliejwrites.blogspot.com/

And because every award comes with a few rules, here's the rules of the Reality Award:

1. Thank the blogger who gave you the award.

2. Post the award on your blog.

3. Share 7 little-known facts about you.

4. Nominate 5 bloggers to bestow the award upon.

5. Contact them and let them know to come pick up their award at your blog!

Have a wonderful day, my friends.

Happy Scribbling

Sunday in the Kitchen: Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Loaf

There's just something about chocolate and peanut butter than makes me want to lick my lips and say, "YUM."

Last night I made this little loaf cake because we were expecting a few people over after dinner and I wanted to make something that wasn't too gooey, but I still wanted something with chocolate in it (okay, I always want something with chocolate in it!)

And let me tell you it smelled soooo good in the oven too! I'm happy to say it was big hit with everyone - not too sweet, but just enough chocolate to keep those with a sweet-tooth happy.

So, as I promised on twitter when I popped this loaf in the oven, here's the recipe.

Enjoy your Sunday with a little lovin' from the oven!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Loaf

1 1/2 Cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 Cup creamy peanut butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

A handful of chocolate chips for garnish at the end

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray one standard loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Sift flour, baking power, baking soda and salt into a large bowl.

3. In another large bowl, beat peanut butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and butter with an electric mixer at medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Beat in milk and vanilla. Gradually add in flour mixture. Beat on low until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Pour into prepared pan. Bake 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool pan on wire rack for five minutes. Remove from pan. Place a handful of chocolate chips on top of loaf and allow to melt as the loaf continues to cool on wire rack. When the chips are melted (should only take a few minutes) spread the chocolate across the top of the cake with the back of a knife. Cool the cake completely on the wire racks.

Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Greetings (and a pie!)

We can only be said to be alive in those moments when our hearts are conscious of our treasures.  ~Thornton Wilder

Happy Thanksgiving!

I wish you all a day filled with family and friends, good food and memories that will last a lifetime.

This year, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, I am reminded just how quickly life changes around us. So many of my fellow Long Islanders lost everything in a few short hours. I know I complained about being without electricity for 9 days and yes, I complained about standing in the cold with hubby to fill gas cans for our generator - but we were lucky, we HAVE a generator! This year as we sit around the table with our loved ones near and an abundance of food on our table, I know how lucky and blessed we are.

I wish you all those same blessings for this holiday and for the year ahead.

And if you want a little chocolate for your dessert table (and who doesn't?) Here's the Chocolate Pecan Pie I'll be serving up this year.

Chocolate Pecan Pie

1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped

1 cup chocolate chips

2 large eggs

1/2 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted

Pie crust - either homemade or prepared

Heat oven to 350.

Bake pie crust 3 to 4 minutes.

Sprinkle pecans and chocolate chips over bottom of crust.

In a medium bowl, using a mixer at medium speed, beat eggs, corn syrup and sugar until smooth. Beat in the melted butter until blended. Pour the mixture into the crust.

Bake 60 minutes or until filling is firm. Cool on wire rack for at least 10 minutes before serving. Can also be served at room temperature.

Enjoy.

*Graphic by Little Birdie Blessings.

This, That and a bowl of soup

Wow, the last ten days have been crazy here in the north east. In my little corner of Long Island we were without power for 8 days. Gas is ridiculously hard to come by, lines stretch for blocks with people looking to either fill up their cars to get to work or to fill gas cans to run the generators keeping their families warm in the cold temps.

And in the midst of people clearing away trees, searching out hot meals and equally hot showers - the country voted.

I've witnessed extension cords tethering generators from house to house, neighbor to neighbor. I've witnessed screaming at the pumps as people filled huge SUVs full of gas while people waited for a precious 5 gallons for their generator to keep their family warm. And through it all, the hate of the campaign flowed alive and well on facebook and twitter to push political agendas. Yup, people are interesting.

What did I do during my time without electricity?

I enjoyed some down time with my family. Yes, there was lots of grumbling and complaining, but we are lucky to have a generator and an engineer husband who can hotwire anything!

I had my logo updated to coordinate with my website! Since I could get online every now and then on my smartphone, I enlisted the designing talents of Amy from BrandLand. She took my logo and gave it a fresh feel with colors to match my website and added my tagline. I love it and hope you do too!

The morning the storm started I made soup! Because soup is a comfort food for me and I have this dream that one day my family will embrace the magic elixir like I do. Yes, I know...I'm a dreamer.

Squash & Carrot Soup

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 large onion - chopped

2 large carrots - chopped

1 1/2 lbs. squash (I've used butternut and acorn, both with good results) - cut into chunks

6 cups water or low-sodium broth (I've used chicken and vegetable broths, both with good results)

Salt & pepper

Rosemary

Thinly sliced scallions - optional as a garnish

Heat the oil in a large pot, add onion, salt & pepper. Stir frequently and cook about 6 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add carrots and squash. Cover and cook about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add water or broth and a few sprigs of rosemary and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the veggies are tender (about 15 minutes.)

Either blend the soup in small batches or just mash the squash and carrots inside the pot. Add a little cornstarch to thicken if desired. Continue to cook and serve hot with scallions on top if desired.

Great with toasted rye bread for dipping too!

What is your go to comfort food in a storm?