Banana Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

I had a few bananas hanging around and remembered this cookie recipe passed on by a friend. They are super delicious!

1 cup flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
3 cups oats (quick cook)
3/4 cup shortening
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup mashed banana (I used 3 bananas)
2 cups chocolate chips (I used about 1/2 a cup less)

Mix flour, salt, cinnamon, baking soda and oats in a bowl and set aside. Cream together the shortening, brown sugar and white sugar. Add the egg, vanilla and bananas until well mixed. Add dry ingredients and mix well. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls (I used generous spoonfuls) onto a cookie sheet (not sure if it needs to be greased - I used a non-stick baking sheet mat) and bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes. Cool on cooling rack.

I am...

enjoying a mix of leftovers I found in the fridge for lunch -- leftover pasta from the other night, some grape tomatoes from a veggie platter, fresh garlic, basil, kosher salt and pepper all tossed together in a little olive oil and warmed on the stove. YUM!

What did you have for lunch today?

Too Much Chocolate Cake

My friend Sheba had a friend make her son's cake for his first birthday. It was super yummy so I asked for the recipe. I tried it out for Steve's birthday cake and it was just as delicious as I remembered it! It's super easy to make too. Instead of adding all the oil, I added 3/4 cup of applesauce and 1/4 cup of oil as a healthier alternative. I also didn't add chocolate chips as you might have noticed in the picture. A tub and a half of Chocolate Duncan Hines Icing and some sprinkles finished the cake off perfectly!

Too Much Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package devil's food cake mix
• 1 (5.9 ounce) package instant chocolate pudding mix
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup warm water
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, mix together the cake and pudding mixes, sour cream, oil, beaten eggs and water. Stir in the chocolate chips and pour batter into a well greased 12 cup bundt pan.
3. Bake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until top is springy to the touch and a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool cake thoroughly in pan at least an hour and a half before inverting onto a plate If desired, dust the cake with powdered sugar.

Monkey Bread

I've been going through my countless photos trying to organize what pictures to put in this year's Blurb book. I came across a picture of the Monkey Bread I made just after Christmas last year. It is so ooey gooey good and really easy to make! The recipe doesn't call for it but I sprinkle on some chopped candied cherries and chopped pecans before putting it in the oven.

1 package Pillsbury Country Biscuits
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup butter
2 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons brown sugar (or 1/6 cup)

Take the package of biscuits (10 per roll) and cut each biscuit into 6 pieces. In a dish, mix together cinnamon and sugar. Roll biscuit pieces into the mixture to coat. Drop sugar-coated pieces into a well buttered loaf pan (don't squish roll pieces when placing them in the pan).

Put 1/6 cup (or 2 tbsp and 2 tsp) of the left-over sugar/cinnamon mix and the packed brown sugar and 1/3 cup of butter into a small saucepan. Bring this mixture just to a boil; remove from heat immediately. Carefully drizzle over the roll pieces.

Bake at 350°F for 30 minutes.

Cool slightly in an upright position, then tip pan over onto a plate to remove monkey pull-apart bread.

Enjoy!

The Secret's In The Soup

I remember summers going up to Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario to visit my relatives. My dad would often take my brother and I to his parents house for lunch while my mom ran some errands with her mom.

My dad's mom was a great cook. Perogies, fish fries, blueberry pies, yum! She also made wonderful Minestrone soup. When I was about 11 years old and started getting interested in cooking, I asked my grandmother if she could show me her soup recipe. She went to the cupboard, brought out a pot, spoon, measuring cup, noodles and a can of Habitant Minestrone soup. What? A can of soup? You mean all this time I thought this soup was some wonderful concoction she created with homemade broth and vegetables from her own garden (which she had been known to do).

So, what was the secret that made this soup different than all the other canned soups out there? She added extra noodles, barley and a touch of cornstarch to make the soup a bit thicker! What a smart Grandma.

Sadly, my Grandma pasted away last September but I always think of her when I'm cooking. She is one of the people who inspired me to Paulatize my food creations like Lipton Chicken Noodle soup for example. My kids kept saying that they wished their soup had more noodles. No problem! I bought a package of noodles the same shape as the ones in the Lipton Soup package. Now when I make the soup I add 1/3 cup of the noodles to the pot at the same time I add the package of soup. More noodles for everyone!

Broccoli With Garlic Butter And Cashews

Today is my mom's 65th birthday. Happy Birthday, Mom! We celebrated yesterday with a yummy meal of red wine, lamb, Miami ribs, rice, grilled zucchini and one of our favourite side dishes, Broccoli With Garlic Butter And Cashews.

Broccoli With Garlic Butter And Cashews

1 1/2 lbs fresh broccoli, cut into pieces
1/3 cup butter
1 tablespoon brown sugar
3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped salted cashews

Place the broccoli into a large pot with about one inch of water in the bottom. Bring to a boil, and cook for six minutes, or until tender but still crisp. Drain, and arrange broccoli on a serving dish.



While the broccoli is cooking, melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat.


Mix in the brown sugar,


soy sauce,


vinegar,


pepper and garlic.


Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Mix in the cashews, and pour the sauce over the broccoli. Serve immediately.



Bon Appetit!

Caramel Skor Bar Apple Dip

One of my favourite quick dessert recipes...

Caramel Skor Bar Dip

1 container cream cheese (softened)
1 container caramel sauce (the dip kind you find in the produce section)
4-5 Skor bars
Apples, cut-up (mix both green and red apples for colour. I prefer the green)

Spread a layer of cream cheese into a serving dish. Spread a layer of the caramel sauce on top. Break the Skor bars into pieces and sprinkle on top.

Use the apples to scoop up the sweet goodness.

Enjoy!