Buttermilk Banana Bread

Buttermilk Banana Bread

Buttermilk Banana Bread Recipe - from Snack Girl.com

(Makes 1 loaf)

2 large eggs
1/2 cup sugar (I put 1/4c brown sugar)
3 mashed ripe bananas
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (I used whole spelt flour for all of it)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 °F. Lightly grease a loaf pan (I lined mine with parchment paper). Using a whisk or a fork beat eggs and sugar in large bowl until thick and light. Mix in mashed bananas, buttermilk, oil and vanilla. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Mix until just blended. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake bread until golden brown on top and butter knife inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Turn bread out onto rack and cool.

mac & cheese

Homemade Mac & Cheese
(2 servings)

* Cook and drain pasta for 2 people
* Saute 1/2 an onion in 1 tbsp butter
* Grate 2 1/2 cups of cheddar cheese (mine was white cheddar but either one works)

Set all the different components to the side.
* In a saucepan:

Mix 1/2 liter of milk
2 tablespoons of corn starch (maizena)
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch of pepper
pinch of nutmeg

Over low heat continuously stir until the white sauce (bechamel) thickens and if you run your finger over the back of the spoon the sauce is thick enough to stay off to the sides.
Quickly mix in the cheddar and the onions. Stir until the cheddar is melted and smooth then pour onto the pasta and mix all together. Serve with a pinch of paprika on top.

galettes de sarrasin

Galettes de Sarrasin

Here is the recipe I used for my batter for 2 people (2.5 galettes each)

* 125g farine de sarrasin (buckwheat flour)
* 1 egg
* salt
* about 50cl water

I started with a little less water and then kept adding some until the batter was the right consistency (should run a thin ribbon when poured with a spoon or ladle and swirl around easily inthe hot pan.)
Then we flipped them once and then filled them with ham, cheese and a cracked egg on top, (or anything else you want!) YUM!

risotto

Risotto

1 onion
4 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
1 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 cups risotto rice (the round kind)
veggies
1 liter chicken stock
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Dice the onion and saute until clear in the olive oil and butter. Add the rice and mix well. Add the white wine and lower the heat to a simmer. As the rice absorbs the liquid start ladling in the chicken stock letting it absorb between each ladle full. When you're about 2/3 through the stock add diced veggies (zucchini, mushrooms, bell peppers etc) and any meat (turkey, chicken, seafood) and continue to simmer and add half the Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper to taste. Cover and let sit 5 minutes.

Serve with more Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top!

When the rice is just cooked through remove from heat and add 1/2 package of

pecan pie

Maple Syrup Pecan Pie

1 prepared unbaked pastry shell, 9-inch (try a gluten free crust)
3 eggs
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups pecan pieces or halves

Preheat oven to 350° and place rack at lowest position. In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add maple syrup, brown sugar, melted butter, and vanilla. Blend well and stir in pecans. Pour into prepared pie shell. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown and the filling is set.

(there is no Karo (corn) syrup in France but this recipe is just as yummy!!)

spaghetti sauce

Spaghetti Sauce

2.5 kilos fresh ripe tomatoes (chopped)
2 small onions (minced)
2 cloves of garlic (minced)
1 steak hachee
1 small green pepper (minced)
mushrooms (sliced
olive oil
basil
thyme
oregano

In a large pot sautee onions, garlic and green pepper in olive oil until soft. Add the crumbled pieces of steak hachee (or hamburger meat) and mushrooms (and any other veggies, I threw in some leftover zucchini. Cook until the hamburger is browned.

Add the tomatoes and bring to a simmer. Salt, pepper and other spices to taste.

Cook down until the tomato has broken down and the consistency looks good.

Tapioca Pudding

Tapioca Pudding

2 3/4c milk
1 egg (well beaten)
1/3c sugar
3 tbsp tapioca pearls
1 tsp vanilla (or 1 sachet sucre vanille)

In a medium saucepan mix the first 4 ingredients and let sit for 5 minutes.

Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. As soon as it comes to a full boil remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Let the pudding sit for at least 20 minutes (it will thicken as it cools). Serve warm or chilled and for an extra treat add some fresh fruit or jam.

summer veggies

Summer Veggie Dish

3 medium tomatoes
1 zucchini
1 small/medium eggplant
2 bell peppers
1 fresh mozzarella
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Fresh basil to sprinkle on top after baked

I made this veggie "lasagna" last night and added a few extra steps that could probably be left out if you're in a hurry. I wanted to make something that my vegetarian friend and Mystery Guest on his gluten free experiment could enjoy.

First I roasted the bell peppers in the oven until they were black all over (or you can do this over a gas stove but alas I run on electric...). Then peel off the skin and take out the seeds.

Second I peeled and sliced the eggplant and sprinkled salt over the slices to let them sweat out some of that extra water.

Finally I layered all the ingredients in a small dish topping the whole thing with the Parmesan cheese. I baked it for about 30 minutes until the veggies were bubbling and the cheese was golden brown.

I thought it might turn out to be too dry with no extra sauce but the veggies actually had a lot of juice when backed and the whole thing was quite delicious! I should have made some rice to go with it but I had run out :-( Next time!

eggplant parmesan

Eggplant Parmesan

1 large eggplant
2 tomatoes
3 balls of fresh mozzerella
spaghetti sauce
1 egg
parmesan cheese

Slice eggplant into fairly thin round disks. Dip into beaten egg. Fry in olive oil until golden brown.

Slice tomatoes and cheese.

In a large pan pour 1/4 of the pasta sauce and layer eggplant/tomatoes/cheese alternating with the sauce until the pan is full or until the ingredients are used up. Sprinkle parmesan over the top and bake at 350F for about 30 minutes until brown and the sauce is bubbly.

I didn't like eggplant until I tried this recipe but now I'm a convert! :)