Banana Hoarder

I am a thrower...I don't save things, I don't really like clutter.  I think I get this from my Mom.  I do have a secret hoarding tendancy though...I can't bear to get rid of bananas.  I so dislike it when there are one or two left in a bunch that start to get a little spotted...and then a LOT spotted sitting on the counter.  So I save them.  In the freezer.  Currently, in my freezer there are 12 bananas scattered throughout.  I always tell myself, I'll make banana bread!  Sometimes I do.  But who needs that much banana bread?  So when I happened upon this smoothie recipe that calls for FROZEN bananas I though, this is perfect!  It is quite a tasty treat and it is also great for breakfast as it has fruit and protein! So here it is:

Banana Peanut Butter Smoothie
1 Cup Skim-milk
1 Tbsp sugar or honey (I used two packets of Splenda...honestly since it is made with banana I really don't think you need this part...especially if it is an over-ripe banana)
1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter
1 frozen banana
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Put it all in a blender and turn it on...voila!

Bernstein Family Birthday Cake

Jon's birthday was yesterday.  Every year he asks for the same cake: his "Family Birthday Cake."  It is a easy and yummy...although if I'm honest I like to make one slight change to it to suit my tastes :)  So last night, because I didn't want to have an entire cake for the two of us to eat I made a cupcake version of The Cake and a personal mini cake for Jon.  Julian actually ate part of an un-frosted cupcake, which was exciting for us since he really didn't eat any cake at his first birthday. 

Bernstein Family Birthday Cake
Duncan Hines Devils Food Cake mix
Whipped Cream

Bananas  (I like to use raspberries, yum!!)

How easy is that!! 

Breakfast Dessert

I have just been on a dessert kick this summer.  I'm not sure why, but I just can't stop making sweet things.  On Friday night I made another pie.  A peach pie.  It was delicious too...not as good as an earlier triple berry pie that I made last week, but quite tasty.  It was so good that we (Jon, myself, and Jon's parents) thought we should have it for "Breakfast Dessert" yesterday.  We refrained from that though...not by willpower, but by sheer forgetfulness!  Anyway...I don't have a picture of the pie...we ate it before I could get one!  So here is a picture of the pie plate. 

Everything that ends in "pie."

I've decided to occasionally document my family's adventures in home dining, just for fun, because it gives me an excuse to use our camera, and I hope that anyone who actually ends up reading it will share recipes for food they make. 

Last month Jon and I had a couple of friends over for the 4th.  We had hamburgers, we had hot dogs, it was great.  We also had PIE!  I love pie, I really do.  I recently had a friend say she enjoys everything that ends in 'pie' and I whole-heartedly agree.  So the pie of the month in July was apple.  I combined two recipes (a Williams-Sonoma recipe and a recipe for a crustless apple pie I got from my mom.)  The result was delicious!  It made a VERY tall pie...which once baked was actually an apple cave...but delicious none-the-less. 

Apple Pie (Recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma Pie & Tart)
1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust (confession...I rarely make my own crust...Williams-Sonoma of course has a perfectly lovely recipe for a crust and if you want it just let me know.)

1/2 cup sugar
2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
7 large tart, firm apples (I used green apples) peeled, halved lengthwise, cored and sliced 1/2 inch thick (I think if I had sliced them much thinner and layered them into the pie instead of just tossing them in my apples wouldn't have collapsed so much creating my pie cavern.)

2 Tbsp. unsalted butter

In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, spices, salt, and flour.  Place the apple slices in a bowl and mix in lemon juice.  Sprinkle with the sugar mixture and toss to distribute evenly.  Pile the apples into the dough-lined pan.  Dot them with butter.  Place the second pie crust on top folding the edge of the top round of dough under the edge of the bottom round and crimp edges to seal.  Using a small sharp knife, cut 5 or 6 slits in the top to allow steam to escape.  Refrigerate the pie until the dough is firm 20-30 minutes.  Meanwhile, place an oven rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat oven to 350.  Bake until the crust is golden and the apples are tender, approximately 60-70 minutes.  (Oh yeah, I also brushed the top of my pie with egg.)