Banana Bread

This banana bread recipe never fails me. Its quick and very good. You can also add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips for a sweeter treat

1 3/4 cup of whole-wheat white flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
3/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup of veggie oil
2 eggs
3 very ripe smashed bananas
1/4 cup of chopped walnuts

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda mix in a large mixing bowl. Combine sugar, eggs and oil and beat till frothy. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add mashed bananas and nuts stir until combined. Place in a 5" x 9" loaf pan. Bake at 325 for about an hour.

Pizza Dough

I am constantly inspired by the things that other people are making/eating. One of the newest blogs that I am following is A Year in Bread. I love the individual blogs of each of the contributors too. So, inspired in fact that we're having homemade pizza for dinner.

Pizza Dough
Measure 3 cups of flour, add 1 teaspoon of active dry yeast, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1 teaspoon of sugar and 1 teaspoon of each dried parsley, oregano, thyme and/or rosemary. Thoroughly combine with a fork. Add a generous 1 1/3 cup of warm water. Stir until combined, starting to have a ball of dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead three to five minutes into a stiff ball. Oil a large bowl, add dough and allow to double in size in a warm place (I turn my oven on and than off after a minute or two.) for an hour or so. Punch down and allow to rise for at least 15 more minutes. Roll out.
Add your favorite toppings.
Enjoy!

Blueberry Muffins

Andy is teaching a course this semester, he has two T.A.s that are responsible for running the lab associated with the class AND grading mid-terms over spring break. So, to sweeten the task, once they're done grading they can trade their tests for baked goods. They'll have a choice of these or banana bread (upcoming post).

1 egg
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 1/4 cup low-fat yogurt, Greek style (very thick)1 teaspoon of vanilla
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/ 8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups blueberries (leave in freezer until you are ready to use them)

Preheat oven to 375°. Have all ingredients, except frozen blueberries, at room temperature (this takes at least an hour). Prepare muffin pan with paper cup liners.

1. In a medium-sized bowl, beat the egg briefly with a wire whisk to lighten. Add the sugar and continue to whisk until you can no longer feel any resistance from undissolved sugar.
2. Add the butter to the bowl and mix briefly to combine, then add sour cream and vanilla, whisk until mixture is very smooth.
3. In another bowl, combine the dry ingredients and stir thoroughly to mix and eliminate lumps.
4. Add the blueberries to the dry mixture, toss gently for a few seconds to coat the berries.
5. Add flour mixture to the liquid mixture and combine with a few quick folds.
6. Scoop batter into muffin pan.
7. Bake for about 25 minutes.

Once they come out of the oven, brush with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.

Yields: 12 muffins

Time: 45 minutes, once all ingredients are at room temperature

Chicken-Chile Mango Pizza

From 1 or 2 Photos

Note: This is my attempt at a pizza that Andy had (and loved) in New Zealand after returning from Antartica in 2003. He can't remember the name of the cafe where he had it but he highly recommends both the pizza and Antarctica.

- Over medium heat in a small sauce pan, saute 1/2 chopped onion till tender, add red pepper flakes* to taste. Add 1 cup of prepared Mango Sauce from Trader Joe's (it can be found with the apple sauce), reduce heat and allow reduce to very thick, 10 - 15 minutes.
- Over medium-high heat in a medium sized skillet, brown 1/2 lb of boneless, skinless chicken tenders or breasts. (In lieu of this step, use any cooked chicken on hand). Season with salt, garlic powder and chili powder to taste). Once thoroughly cooked remove and chop into strips. In the same skillet, brown one thinly sliced onion and one thinly sliced red bell pepper for garnish.
-Pre-heat oven to 450 F. The oven should be very hot for a crisp crust.
- Roll out prepared pizza crust (also available at Trader Joe's. You'll find it with the prepared salads and sandwiches). Keep the crust on the thick side (1/4 inch thick or so) to avoid a soggy center. Place on a cookie sheet dusted with coarsely ground cornmeal to avoid stickage.
- Cover the pizza crust with a thin layer of shredded mozzarella cheese (low-fat mozzarella is fine), a thin layer of mango sauce, chicken, red bell peppers and onions. Finish with a thin layer of cheese.
-Bake for 10 - 12 minutes. Allow to sit for a few minutes before cutting.

*In order to balance the sweetness of the mango, you want to add some type of chile to the recipe. This can be in the form of red pepper flakes, chili powder or even actual chiles (fresh or dried and re-hydrated). Feel free to experiment. The mango is very sweet, so you can add quite a bit without burning your tongue!

Time: 45 minutes

Yields: about 3 servings