It's time for more recipes

So... I had two rotting bananas. Didn't want to do banana bread, so I did a banana cake. (I got it from The Pastry Studio blog that I love.) I had a slice this morning. I like it.

Oatmeal Banana Cake
8 Tbsp unsalted butter (@ room temperature)
3/4 C brown sugar
2 eggs @ room temperature
2 large very ripe bananas, mashed
1 tsp vanilla
zest of 1/2 lemon
3/4 C flour
1 1/4 C rolled oats
heaping 1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda

TOPPING:
3/4 C oats
1/3 C brown sugar
zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp cinnamon (more if you like it)
1 Tbsp flour
1/3 cup finely chopped nuts or seeds (optional - I used walnuts)
4 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9" springform cake pan with butter and parchment paper.

Whisk together dry ingredients for the topping. Add melted butter and stir with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking soda and oats. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 3-5 minutes). Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Scrape down the bowl and add mashed bananas and vanilla. Mix thoroughly. Stir in dry ingredients until just combined - do not overmix. Pour into prepared pan and smooth out evenly.

Sprinkle topping over cake batter and press down gently. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out moist but clean. Cool completely on wire rack. Run a thin knife around the edge of the cake and remove cake pan ring.

Notes: Okay, after having my first slice, I think I might make a few alterations. I realized after the fact I had used an 8" springform instead of a 9". For the 8" diameter cake, there is too much topping. So, either follow directions (duh!) and leave things as they are, or if using a smaller pan, reduce the amount of topping you put on.

Also, if you are a fan of chocolate-dipped bananas, it might be fun to drizzle some melted chocolate over the top of this cake. I think I'll try that next time.

Overall, I like this cake. It's not too sweet and is a nice change from banana bread.

Once again... I forgot I now own a camera, so there are no pictures of this culinary delight. I'll try and remember to take a picture next time before I cut into whatever I've baked.

I have nothing to add...

Just go to this webpage. It has touched me more than I know how to say.

Your Ears Are Not Deceiving You

I got rid of the music. It was buggin' me. Now, don't get me wrong. I LOVE Bonnie Raitt, and Keb Mo, and Jimmy Buffett and ... well you know the list by now. But, what can I say? I would come onto the blog to post or to read comments, and in the beginning I thought, "Cool. There's Bonnie singing." However, lately, I've started to say to myself, "Shut up! I gotta concentrate here." So... I took a deep breath and said, "it's just like ripping off a band-aid. Do it fast. One quick Delete key and it's done." Hmmmm, I wonder if other bothers in my world could be eliminated with the 'just get rid of it, quick Band-aid approach.' I'll have to think about that one for a day or two.

Anyway, no more music. For those who are bummed, well, I daresay you'll get over it. For those that are relieved, I say, no hard feelings. I'm relieved too.

New Year - New Camera

Okay. It happened. I got a camera. Permanent memories are about to be a reality. We started the new year in Escalante (one of my favorite places on the planet). I took my camera with me and we went with my in-laws to Bryce Canyon National Park. Nirvana. I wanted to try out my camera and figured it wasn’t possible to take a bad picture of Bryce, so that’s where we went.




What follows is my favorite picture of the day. Arm in arm. For what equals a lifetime. Always moving forward. A remarkable achievement. Too rare these days. Understated is their style about it all. But that doesn’t change the rarity of it... or the value.



So, while going to Bryce and taking nature photos was nice and all, I’ll finally come clean. I didn’t want a camera to take pictures of Bryce. I wanted it to take pictures of Mae. I wanted to be able to stop poaching off of other people’s blogs and have some photos of my own. Oh. My. Gosh. She is just so cute I about can’t stand it. She tolerates the rest of us... but with Katie she smiles and talks and coos and grrrrrs and kicks her little feet and grabs Katie's fingers while she's doing it all. We all just figure it's "girl talk"... so we try not to interrupt the two of them.