Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread

I live in an apartment with four people. Four people that are addicted to eating a banana every morning. Ok, it's really probably more like 2 addicts and 2 people who feel like they have to eat a banana rightnoworelsetheywon'tgetonebecausetheywillallbegonetomorrow. So everyone eats a lot of bananas.

I do most of our grocery shopping (at Wegman's with a sidekick of course) and since our (fabulooouuus) 4th roommate has moved in, I have started to feel increasingly silly about the numbers of bananas that we bring to the checkout. We're buy ever growing bunches, some green, some yellow of course, just to get us through the week. Trust me we're not lacking potassium and it's really a wonder that any of us can poop (I feel like talking about poop on a cooking blog is kinda like a party foul, but I just did it anyway... oops).


Of course marathon banana eating this isn't really conducive to baking. Because I love banana bread banana's are the only piece of produce (that I can think of right now) that I want to go bad. And we just can't keep them on the shelves.


When we do get an over ripe banana it's never more than one. I think one of the best tips I've received is to freeze them. This way, I can save up until I have enough for bread.


This is all relevant, of course, to this bread. You only need 2 bananas. Cash in early.  Go. Me.

The other bonus about this bread is that I've adapted a Weight Watchers recipe. So if you feel lighter after eating it... that's why.


PS I can never spell Zucchini. EVER.

Buddies!

Soundtrack: Boogie.

Oatmeal Zucchini Banana Bread

Adapted from Weight Watchers

1 1/4 c ap flour
1/2 c unpacked brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp cardamom

1 cup(s) uncooked old fashioned oats
3 tsp canola oil
1 large egg, beaten
2 large egg whites, beaten
2 large bananas, just a bit too ripe 

1 small zucchini, about the size of a banana

1/2 c walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, mash bananas with a fork and set aside. Puree the zucchini in a blender or small food processor until the dice is very small. Squeeze handfuls of the zucchini bits over a colander to remove all excess  water, then add to the bananas and set aside. 

In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients and spices. Add oil and eggs; mix thoroughly. Fold in bananas, zucchini and walnuts and stir until mixed well using as few strokes as possible.

Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. Pour batter into pan and bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, 45 to 55 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes. Flip out and move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Pumpkin Cake with Walnut Crunch Topping

Dear Diary...

... I might have made a huge mistake. Might.

I volunteered to host a dinner at my house. You know... not just any dinner. Christmas Eve dinner.

See, because here's the thing. It's exciting to me. I'm honestly, genuinely, really excited about it. I've planned about 6 desserts so far. I picked out 4 appetizers. And unfortunately due to the fact that I've only got 5 confirmed guests, I think I'm going to have to scale back a bit. 

The part that I'm not fully sure I'm excited about is the actual dinner itself. I don't have a great relationship with things that roast in the oven. I want to work on this relationship. It's an important relationship. But it's still new and fragile and I just don't think I'm ready to out that relationship to the world yet. It's closeted behind my oven door. I love Italian food and a small part of me really wants to recreate my childhood with a Feast of Seven Fishes, but the more influential part of me, the part which understands my bank account, says no. 

The thing is, I really want to put something in the oven. I want to set it and forget it, so to speak. I don't want to spend the whole night sauteing or boiling or grilling or whatever. So like.. gimme some ideas. Please?

And I'll share this cake! I found the original recipe at The Noshery and I instantly fell in love. It's yummy. It's nutty. It's crunchy and sweet. It's pumpkin and sugar and  butter and delicious spices! And share some holiday secret recipes with me pleeeeaaseeee.

Soundtrack:


  Your Floor Is Now A Tree by AIMES

Pumpkin Cake with Walnut Crunch Topping
Adapted from The Noshery

3/4 c of brown sugar

2 sticks unsalted butter, divided
3/4 c chopped walnuts
1 2/3 c ap flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice

1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 c sugar
1 tsp vanilla

2 large eggs
1 c pumpkin puree
1/2 c warm (110 degrees) milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Place brown sugar in a 9 in round cake pan and spread around. In a small saucepan, melt 1 stick of butter over medium heat. Pour butter over sugar into cake pan and stir with a fork to combine until sugar is dissolved. (Reserve pan to the side for later use.) Press the walnuts into the cake pan, spreading into an even layer. Spray exposed sides of pan with cooking spray and set aside.

Sift the ap flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, salt, baking powder, and baking soda into a medium bowl and set aside. 

Melt the remaining stick of butter in small saucepan over medium heat. Beat the remaining stick of butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs, milk and pumpkin together in a large bowl until combine, about 2-3 minutes. Add flour mixture to wet mixture, stirring with a spatula and scraping down sides until just combined.

Pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes in the pan before inverting the cake onto a cooling wrack and cooling completely.

Pumpkin Pie Granola

You know what sucks about store bought granolas? They're usually pretty expensive and they're usually pretty unhealthy. Oil, sugar, chocolate, etc.. all delicious things, but not when you inadvertently load your breakfast down with them. When I eat dessert, I like to be eating dessert. (And I love to be eating dessert.)

Tasty!

So, the solution? Make your own. It's less expensive (although the cost will be more up front depending on what's hanging around in your pantry, but once you have the basics you can make it on the cheap.). You know what your getting into. It looks more rustic; I think it's prettier. You can control your ingredients. You like walnuts? You like almonds? Add 'em! Can't stand sunflower seeds? Forget 'em! (Although, I think you're nuts if you can't stand sunflower seeds. Add yourself to your granola.)

It will seem awkward at first, but like anything once you get the hang of it you can pretty much play around with the proportions of your add ins. It's easy once you do it a few times.

Not convinced yet? Homemade granola also makes a great holiday or hostess gift. On the cheap. I think putting a little love into something is way more valuable anyway. (Just a side note, booze is also a wonderful holiday/hostess gift. Booze and granola is even better. Hmmm homemade gift basket idea?)

Packaging is everything!

 Try this one below. It's healthiest version I've ever come up with, but it tastes delicious. It's not super sweet, but nothing you're eating in the AM should be. I like a crunchy granola, which this is. I used steel cut oats, because I just bought them and I'm a little obsessed at this very moment, real pumpkin, walnuts and a variety of seeds (pumpkin seeds, of course) and no oil.  Then, try this Ginger Spice Granola.

Soundtrack:

Tycho by Tycho

Pumpkin Pie Granola


1 c steel cut oats
1/2 c quick cook oats
1/2 c walnuts, chopped
1/4 c pumpkin seeds
1/4 c sunflower seeds
1/4 tsp kosher salt
3/4 c pureed pumpkin
2 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp agave syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 c raisins (optional)


Preheat oven to 300.


In a large bowl, combine steel cut oats, quick cook oats, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and kosher salt. Stir until mixed well. Set aside.


In a small saucepan, heat pumpkin, maple syrup, agave syrup, and vanilla over low heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds. Add cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, and allspice and stir to blend.


Add pumpkin mixture to bowl of oats, nuts and seeds and stir to coat.


Spread out granola mixture on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 35-40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.


Once granola is toasted, allow to cool. Then add raisins and toss to combine. Store in an airtight container.

Reflect-y bowl

Oh hey, random can of pumpkin... 

Quinoa with Sauteed Asparagus, Walnuts & Apples in a Pumpkin-Goat Cheese Sauce

That's right. I did that. I titled this blog post with a list of pretty much EVERY ingredient in my dinner. Try and say that 5 times fast! I just couldn't pick my favorite parts. I can't play favorites. I love you all equally. (I'm talking to ingredients there, but those of you sitting on the other side of the computer, I love you too.)

Before we get run down to the meat of this (or lack thereof), let's talk quinoa for a moment.

Ok, ok, not the most photogenic thing I've ever made...
Haven't you ever heard the expression "You can't judge a quinoa by it's closeup?"

This is the first time I've ever made quinoa. It's the ultimate in trendy health superfoods. And yes, I claim to be a cook and a consumer that focuses my efforts on being healthy (what healthy means to me). I've eaten the stuff only twice. Ever. (I know you're all so very scandalized, but please, pick up those jaws.) So, what gives?

When quinoa stepped out on the scene a few years ago, I gotta say I wasn't so concerned about healthy cooking. Quinoa just seemed trendy and superfluous. To be honest, I didn't give a sheeeet! And so I just never used it. Couscous, yum! Bulgar wheat, why not?! Brown rice, sure! The more I didn't try quinoa, the less I cared about it to be honest. I get lots of protein from chicken and tofu and beans and red meat! I get my vitamins! I've lived this long without it!

And then there was this. And of course, the less dramatic source article here. And not to be all Debbie-downer, but DAMN MAN. To sum it up, the entrance of quinoa into the global market has made the plant inaccessible to some Bolivians who depend on it for their main source of food. Yet at the same time, sales of quinoa abroad have changed the lives of many Bolivians for the better and drastically improved the Bolivian economy. What a conundrum. Fortunately, the ill effects of quinoa's entrance to the global market are being combated by aid programs, but its just such a glaring example of how we can exploit things without a second thought or realization. I obviously don't think there is anything wrong with eating quinoa, but the butterfly effect here is wild. Sometimes it's just important to reflect on our impact on the world, I guess.

There is no denying the health benefits of quinoa and there's no denying the ease of preparation we get in the US from packaged quinoa. It can be used as a healthier alternative to pasta (as seen here) or rice. But I'm sure I'm preaching to the choir here and I should just tell you about my dish! Creamy, tangy and lightly pumpkin-y , this sauce balances nicely with the sauteed asparagus, sweet apples and nutty walnuts. It's not the most attractive to look at, but it's so quick and easy and the flavors are all there!

Soundtrack: Saw these guys open for Little Dragon last night. Good things. Good things.


  Tycho by Tycho

Quinoa with Sauteed Asparagus, Walnuts & Apples in a Pumpkin-Goat Cheese Sauce
Serves 4


1 c quinoa, rinsed
1/2 tbsp butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 c pumpkin puree
1/4 c 2% milk
1 1/2 tbsp goat cheese
1 bunch asparagus, trimmed and chopped
1 Macintosh apple, cored and chopped
1/4 c walnuts
Salt, pepper, EVOO


Prepare quinoa according to package instructions (or if you buy bulk, you can find the basic preparation online. I added a bit of EVOO and salt to mine.)


Meanwhile, melt butter and 1/2 tbsp EVOO together in a medium saucepan. Add garlic and sautee until toasted. Add pumpkin and milk, bring to a simmer and lower heat. Cook for 2-3 minutes and add goat cheese. Stir until melted. Season with salt & pepper. Set aside.


In a large saute pan, heat a drizzle of EVOO. Add asparagus, apple and walnuts. Salt & pepper. Sautee until vegetable is cooked through.


Toss quinoa with pumpkin sauce and sauteed asparagus, apple and walnuts. Serve!

Saute! Ole!

Pumpkin Infused Thickest-Ever Brownies

For the main event:

Chocolate + Fall

But first, I have a few questions, comments, concerns that I feel need to be addressed.

1) Chocolate and pumpkin smell amazing baking in the oven together. They taste just as great in batter licked from the end of a spatula. You might not want to actually make the brownies. But I suggest you do. And then share them. Your thighs will thank me. (Can you tell I had that inner dialogue with myself already?)

2) I dropped an entire container of toothpicks into my oven. That's right. Wooden toothpicks and a hot oven vs Meghan. Who will win? A few caught on fire. Thank god for tongs (not thongs... ok, maybe those too.. panty lines, ew). I came out on top.

3) I left my bike outside last night. It rained. This was after I got lost for 30 minutes while trying to ride my bike to Fed Ex to pick up a certified check that I ordered to pay a speeding ticket. Then, when I attempted to drive to work I noticed that my front left tire was flat. I certainly feel that I deserve another brownie. Or two.

4) Does anyone else secretly love gloomy days? Just a tip: it's fun if you refer to the weather as blustery and pretend you live in the 100-acre wood.

5) I don't think I've been drinking enough wine lately. Someone please bring me a glass! Something red.

6) I'm currently obsessed with winter squashes. Did you know that a pumpkin is a squash? Let me apologize now before this goes any further and morphs into something like my goat obsession.

7) I love this website.

8) Do you think these brownies are too big?

Good, because I don't

9) What amount of excitement about the opening of Federal Donuts next week is appropriate? At what point is it too much? I'm so excited, I'm so excited...


10) My recipe to-do list is getting really long. So much food. So little time. In order to get all of this done I might have to quit my job, stop cleaning my room, stop doing any cleaning at all, and stop doing laundry. Don't worry, I will, of course, continue to work out and see friends, because I gotta be healthy. Who wants to volunteer to do all these things for me? Hands?


11) Sure, I'll stop blabbing and just show you the recipe. Sheesh. Wait! One more note, it's about the recipe! These brownies involve making what I like to call, a "master batter." Then dividing that batter into 2 bowls and combining it with different ingredients. So, go on. Get your master batter on!

Soundtrack: Real Estate (Myspace Link)

Pumpkin Infused Brownies

Adapted from Pumpkin Swirl Brownies, by Martha Stewart

8 tbsp unsalted butter
6 oz bittersweet dark chocolate chips
2 c all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1 3/4 c sugar
4 large eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 c pumpkin puree
1/4 c canola oil
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the over to 350 and line a 8 inch square pan with parchment paper. Spray the lined pan with cooking spray.


In a small saucepan, over low heat, melt together the butter and chocolate chips, stirring constantly. Set aside and allow to cool completely.

In a medium sized bowl, combine flour, baking powder, cayenne pepper, and salt with a whisk. Set aside. 

In a large bowl, beat together the sugar, eggs and vanilla until the mixture is very pale yellow and has a sponge-like consistency, about 3-4 minutes. Beat in the flour mixture until thoroughly combined.


Take about 2 cups of the batter and put it back in the medium sized bowl from the flour mixture. Set aside.


Do these next few steps quickly in order to keep the batter from thickening and setting. 


To the batter in the large bowl, add the pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Stir to combine and set aside. To the batter in the medium bowl, add the chocolate mixture and stir until combined. (You will want to mix the pumpkin first as the chocolate has a tendency to set faster.)


Pour half of chocolate batter into the pan. Then, pour half of the pumpkin batter. Then, the rest of the chocolate. Then, the rest of the pumpkin. Using a knife, gently swirl the batters together to create a marbled effect. This involves some smooth up and down scooping motions. Don't over swirl or you will just mix everything up.


Top with walnuts and bake for 60 minutes. (Yea, I know. LONG. Alternately, you could bake in a 9 in square pan for 40 minutes, but I like the huge layers.)

Ahh, I really love opening a new bag of flour.

Cayenne! Bam!

Recipe calls for 4 eggs, I had 4 eggs. These brownies were fate!

Yea, a whole tablespoon

Marble

Battle of the dueling batters!

Brown maze

Matt's Munchies - Ginger Spice Granola

Ugh. Ok guys, I gotta admit I'm really slacking here. After hearing so many wonderful (and much appreciated) compliments on my little blog here last weekend, I feel like I owe you more. But ya know how it goes...work and stuff. Harry Potter happened and Jags wanted to go swimming. Had to get my glasses fixed, had to sleep forever on Saturday, etc, etc. I haven't even been going to the gym lately! GOD, who am I even? I promise I will go this week. I promise I will go this week. I promise.... blah. (I need some new gym tunes! Send me some shit!)


But all that aside, let's get back down to it shall we? Oh. thank. god. Time to talk about food again. Recently a friend of mine approached me to create a recipe for his line of fruit leathers, which I am actually totally obsessed with, so naturally I was pretty excited about all of this.

Serving suggestion!
(For vegan friendly, use almond milk! Vanilla? Yumm)

Fruit leather. Hmm. Because I mean, even I gotta admit it doesn't sound like it's going to taste all that great. Or at least the consistency should be awful. Right? Leather? But honestly I. LOVE. THIS. STUFF. Self described, Matt's Munchies, "are pure and natural Fruit Leathers in 9 palate pleasing flavors, all less then 100 calories per one ounce serving," (Ok, it should read "than", but I'll let that slide. God, I have issues.) and they aren't kidding. Check out their site for specifics, but they are gluten-free, vegan, and organic. They never contain more than like 4 ingredients (most have just 1 or 2) and are all fruit based (either banana or mango are used as a base - even for the apple flavors!). 


But most importantly, do they taste good? Fuck. YEA. they do! Island Mango is my fave (Matt gave me one to consider for a recipe, but I ate it instead. Oops.) then Ginger Spice (who also happened to be my favorite Spice Girl). Plus, how can you not support something that uses as many exclamation marks on it's packaging as Matt's Munchies? (I'm actually serious about that.)


This recipe was made with the Ginger Spice flavor (because, like I said, I ate the Island Mango flavor). I tried my best to stay true to the healthy and all natural snack that is Matt's Munchies. Oooh!! And I learned something! Oats can be totally gluten-free! The gluten-free varieties will be marked on the package, because they are not always grown gluten-free due to cross pollination issues. 


So this granola is gluten-free, vegan and all natural as well. It can be a snack, it can be your breakfast. I don't have to tell you how to eat your granola, now do I? (Ok, I will give you one suggestion and then I promise to stop being bossy. Toss some apple slices in some cinnamon and sugar. Nuke them for a few minutes or so, until they are soft and look a little like pie filling. Top with this granola and a little vanilla yogurt.)


Oh yea, and thanks to Alton Brown for providing the inspiration for this recipe. I love him. That's really all there is to say.


Soundtrack: Aloe Blacc 


Ginger Spice Granola


3 c. gluten-free rolled oats
1 c. almonds, chopped
1 c. walnuts, chopped
3/4 c. sesame seeds
1/4 c. packed light brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp molasses
1/4 c. maple syrup
1/4 c. vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 tsp salt
2-3 packages Matt's Munchies, Ginger Spice Flavor (honestly I used 2 and it was great, but I
could have used another!)


Preheat oven to 250.


Start by measuring the oats, almonds, walnuts, sesame seeds, sugar and cinnamon into a large bowl. Stir until totally combined.


In another bowl, whisk together the molasses, syrup, oil, vanilla and salt until fully combined. 


Pour the liquid ingredients over the dry and stir to coat. Coat 2 sheet pans with parchment paper (or use cooking spray). Spread the granola mixture evenly over the sheet pans. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes to get an even toast.


Meanwhile, begin chopping the fruit leathers. Fruit leather can be a sticky product, (I made this on pretty hot day, no AC.) but in this case the freezer will be your friend. Simply stick the fruit leathers in the freezer for a few minutes and then chop into raisin-sized pieces. It might ball up a little, that's fine. Store the chopped pieces in the freezer while you chop. This way they will be easy to separate once you are ready to add them to the granola.


After 1 hour, remove the sheet pans from the oven. Move granola to a large bowl and stir in the pieces of fruit leather, separating as you add them. Do not wait for the granola to cool, do this as 
soon as possible.

Horse food?

Feeling nutty!

The dry stuff

Liquids. It's literally impossible to store molasses
without the container being sticky. Impossible.

Left-handed photography, not bad!

Pre-toast

Little pieces of fruit leather - it's not going to look perfect.

Slainte! (Toasted... c'mon people!)