26 October 2008

20 Pounds of Bananas

My brother works as a manager at a nearby grocery store. This isn't a great lead-in, but there's no other way to explain how I came upon a 20-pound box of almost-ripe bananas for only a dollar (plus tax).

Do you know how many bananas are in a 20-pound box? I'm only asking because I didn't really realize how many that entailed. I didn't actually count them, but...I think it's a little more than 100 bananas.

Now, I like bananas; don't get me wrong. But I'm a busy lady and between school and work and a little bit of sleep, I can only use so many at a time for banana bread. And after about a week, 100 bananas on the counter of your laundry room start to smell quite strongly and to attract flies of the fruit variety.

In a last-ditch effort to waste...I mean, use the bananas as quickly as possible, I looked for a recipe for a banana cake, and my queries were answered by none other than Paula Deen, the southern belle herself.

Notice the sliding layers


I was disappointed, and I'm sorry because I always seem to be disappointed on here. Maybe it's because I'd been huffing too many bananas, but it just tasted like...banana bread with sugary cream cheese. Everyone else freaking loved it.

Also, in case you were wondering, I could not get any good pictures of the cake.

Plus, that weird black shadow


Banana Nut Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes one two-layer cake

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup vegetable oil
4 large ripe bananas, mashed
1 cup chopped pecans
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pound confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Butter and flour 3 (9-inch) round cake pans; set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Add the eggs and oil and stir just until the dry ingredients are moistened; do not beat. Stir in the banana, pecans, and vanilla.

Divide the batter among the prepared pans and bake for 23 to 28 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake layers in the pans for 10 minutes, and then turn them out onto a rack to cool completely. While the cake cools, make the frosting.

In a bowl, blend together the cream cheese and butter. Gradually add the confectioners' sugar and beat until light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Stir in the pecans, or reserve them to sprinkle over the frosted cake. Fill and frost the cake when it is completely cool.

07 October 2008

Criss-cross

Working at a coffeeshop offers ample oppurtunities to meet all kinds of people; if you're lucky, you'll come in contact with some that aren't completely insane (yet). Instead of focusing on the crazies who either like you a lot (for no real reason) or hate you so much (for no real reason), it's easier to thank the customers who are pleasant to be around. When one of these regulars remarked that his favorite cookie was homemade peanut butter and that his birthday was in a week, I accepted the challenge.

Usually when I put peanut butter into a cookie, it's combined with something else, like oatmeal or chocolate chips. Honestly, I don't have much experience with classic peanut butter cookies. Obviously, I turned to the master for help: Martha. Surely, I thought, she will not lead me astray.

Bird's eye view


All in all, I thought they were kind of...forgettable. Believe me, they were peanut-butter-y and crunchy and chewy, and the customer was really happy with them. I guess I just don't like plain peanut butter cookies.

Bird's eye poo


Peanut Butter Cookies
Makes 4 dozen cookies

1 1/2 cups crunchy peanut butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat peanut butter, sugar, and butter until smooth. Beat in egg. Gradually add flour mixture, beating to combine.

Pinch off dough by the tablespoon; roll into balls. Place 2 inches apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Using a fork, press balls in a crisscross pattern, flattening to a 1/2-inch thickness.

Bake cookies, rotating halfway through, until lightly golden, 18 to 22 minutes. Cool cookies on a wire rack.