Banana Whoopie Pies

I am always looking for recipes to make with bananas because I feel like I always have ripened bananas hanging around. I think I have told you before that I always have bananas on hand even when I am not a big banana eater. It just makes me feel healthy and makes my kitchen feel homey to have them sitting there on top of my microwave. Since living in the South I have heard more about whoopie pies and seen them sold more than I have anywhere else. There are red velvet whoopie pies, chocolate, vanilla, coconut, raspberry, peanut butter........any flavor you could ever want.

So as I was browsing through some of Martha Stewart's recipes on her website, I typed in the word banana and it gave me an array of recipes involving bananas and there in front of me was a recipe for Banana Whoopie Pies. Since I was a Whoopie Pie virgin I knew that I had to try them and enter into the world of Whoopie Pies. These cake-like sandwiches were originally made by Pennsylvanian Amish woman, who placed them in farmer's lunches and it is said that when they would find these pies in their lunches they would shout "whoopie". After making these delicious little treats, I was taken with the moistness of the recipe, and how good the banana cake was with a creamy cream cheese frosting.....divine is all I can say about this recipe, divine.

Banana Whoopie Pies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup mashed banana (from 1 large ripe banana)

1/2 cup sour cream

4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar

1 large egg

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

In a small bowl sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a bowl. Set aside. Combine banana and sour cream in another bowl. Set aside. Beat butter and granulated and brown sugars with a mixer on medium-high speed, until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, beating until incorporated. Add banana mixture in 2 additions, alternating with flour mixture. Mix until well blended.

Transfer batter to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4-inch plain tip. Pipe batter into 1 1/4-inch rounds on baking sheets, spacing rounds 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 9- 12 minutes (mine were done in 9 minutes). Slide parchment, with cookies, onto wire racks. Let cool. (Unfilled cookies can be stored for up to 1 day.) While cookies are cooling make the cream cheese frosting below.........

Cream Cheese Frosting (for filling)

8 ounces cream cheese

1/2 cup butter, softened

16 ounces confectioners sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a stand mixer combine cream cheese, butter and sugar. Mix at high speed for 5-6 minutes. The longer you mix frosting, the smoother the texture will be. Then lastly, add in the vanilla. Mix until completely blended.

Once cookies are cooled, pipe or spoon 1 tablespoon cream cheese mixture onto the flat sides of half the cookies. Sandwich with remaining cookies. Dust with confectioners' sugar, and serve immediately.

I have been converted to Whoopie Pies and I am a lover of banana bread, so banana bread with cream cheese frosting is nothing short of heavenly. So easy to make and is a perfect finger food for any gathering. You will not be disappointed by this amazing comfort food!

Enjoy!

Dorie's Classic Banana Bundt Cake......

Boy do I have a great recipe for you. Who doesn't have their bananas go bad? I have this thing deep in my subconscious about bananas. Somehow I feel like if I buy bananas and apples that I am healthy. The apples always go fast but for some reason at our house, the bananas always end up sitting there, turning browner and browner by the day.

So the other day I realized that I had 2 ripened bananas and 3 bananas in the freezer and was looking through one of my fav cookbooks by Dorie Greenspan "Baking, from my home to yours", and came across her Classic Banana Bundt Cake. At the top of each recipe Dorie talks a little about each recipe and either tells where she got it from or why she loves it. I trust Dorie, like I trust getting recipes from my own mother. They are both superb cooks and have a keen sense for what tastes good. Dorie explains that she was given this particular recipe from Ellen Einstein who along with her husband owns "Sweet Sixteenth Bakery" in Nashville. Dorrie describes this bundt cake as "dense, ,moist and extremely banana-y-the tangy sour cream accentuates the flavor of the banana".


So I decided to make this recipe, it looked simple enough and plus my poor little brown bananas needed to be put to good use. I was expecting this recipe to be good due to it coming from Dorie but little did I know how good it was going to be. When my Banana Bundt Cake was all done, I of course made Thad sample a piece and to my surprise, he was dying over it. Upon further inspection (which means my own personal taste test), I realized that this simple little Banana Bundt Cake was fantastic. It was so moist and the perfect amount of sweetness. I knew when I added a cup of sour cream that it was going to be moist. So not only was I pleasantly surprised by how yummy this was but marked it in my cookbook to make sure I make this again soon.


Classic Banana Bundt Cake
3 cups all-purpose flower
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, preferably at room temperature
About 4 very ripe bananas, mashed (you should have 1 1/2 - 1 3/4 cups)
1 cup sour cream or plain yogurt

Start off by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F. Then generously butter a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) Bundt pan.(If you've got a silicone Bundt pan, there's no need to butter it.) Make sure not to place the pan on a cookie sheet, you want the oven's heat to circulate through the Bundt's inner tube.

In a medium size bowl whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together. Set aside.

Then working with a stand mixer (or hand mixer, either works just fine) fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and creamy. At medium speed add the sugar until pale and fluffy. Next add the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each egg goes in. Reduce the mixer speed to low and mix in the mashed bananas. Finally, mix in half the dry ingredients (don't be disturbed when the batter curdles), add the sour cream and then the rest of the flour mixture. Scrape the batter into the pan, rap the pan on the counter to de-bubble the batter and smooth the top.

Place the Bundt cake into the oven, baking at 65-75 minutes (my cake took 55 minutes so about 50 minutes in, start checking it), or until a butter knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Also Dorie says to check the cake after 30 minutes, and if it is browning too much, cover it loosely with tin foil. Once done, place the bundt cake on a rack and let it set and cool for 10 minutes. Then turn Bundt cake onto the cooling rack, unmolding the cake. Let cool to room temperature.

*Note: If you can, wrap the cake in plastic wrap well and allow to sit on counter over night. It is better the next day.

This Classic Banana Bundt Cake is perfect for dessert, brunch, a shower or just cause you are feeling like a moist banana-y Bundt Cake and be sure to top it off with a tall glass of milk.

Bon Appetit!



Adapted from: "Baking, from my home to yours", Dorie Greenspan

Some good ol' Banana Puddin'..........

Before moving to the south I really never gave banana pudding much thought, I just thought it was an artificial jell-o pudding mix and did not have much of a desire to sample it. Then I moved to the south, where many restaurants serve banana pudding.

The first place I had banana pudding was at a place called Dreamland which also happens to be my favorite place in town for ribs and it is quite recognized as a must eat when in Tuscaloosa. Dreamland serves their banana pudding in these little bowls that are the perfect size for just finishing off a plate of ribs. Their banana pudding is so light and creamy and this is where the addiction began. Also our neighbor who we lovingly call "Neighbor Becky" makes a killer banana pudding that Thad loves.

Thad and I at Dreamland.....I have a craving for Dreamland about once a month


Dreamland's to die for Banana Pudding

So with all these inspirations, I had been wanting to make a good banana pudding and had been searching for a recipe when I was visiting one of my fav blogs....Bakerella where she had posted a banana pudding recipe that looked scrumptious. I made it for Thad and he loved it AND got a thumbs up, which is great since Thad is a connoisseur of good banana pudding.

So here it is, creamy, rich and so easy to make and I think what gives this one a great taste is the sweetened condensed milk which gives it its richness....

Cold & Creamy Banana Pudding

1 (14-ounce) can Eagle Brand Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 1/2 cups cold water
1 (3.5 ounce) package instant pudding and pie filling
2 cups (1 pint) whipped cream, whipped*
36 vanilla wafers
3 medium bananas, sliced and dipped in lemon juice

In a large mixing bowl, combine sweetened condensed milk and water, mix well. Then add pudding mix and beat until well blended. Once mixed place in the refrigerator for 5 minutes.

Then in a stand mixer, mix 1 pint whipping cream until thick. I used a little powdered sugar and vanilla to give it a little taste. Once whipping cream is thick, fold into the pudding mixture (Do this slowly and as few times as you possible can to combine, so the mixture will retain its thickness.)

Then using a nice glass serving dish (about 2-3 quarts), spoon 1 cup pudding mixture into serving bowl. Top with 1/3 each of wafers (I did twelve wafers per layer but Thad said he would have liked more wafers per layer, so maybe 20-22 per layer), then bananas and then pudding. Repeat twice. On the very top I just put a nice thick layer of whipping cream on top and garnished with vanilla wafers and then chilled it over night.

You can also layer in individual serving dishes, which I would like to try next time.

So if you want a light but rich dessert, that is a crowd pleaser, you need to make this southern favorite.



Recipe from Great American Favorite Brand Name Cookbook, 1993.

The Best Banana Muffins Ever

Everytime I go to the store I buy bananas, I think it is a mental thing like bananas = healthy. But usually they sit there and just get browner and browner by the day. I had 4 old aging bananas sitting in my fruit bowl and with each passing day I knew I had to make something with them and thought I probably will just have to bake some banana bread. Then the next day I came across a banana muffin recipe and thought I would try something new with my poor brown bananas.

The Banana Muffin recipe was easy and straight forward and I literally whipped them up in 15 minutes and the finish product was oh so tasty. Thad is my taste testing victim and when they were finished, I cornered him with a warm muffin adorned with butter, I watched him as he bit into the soft muffin.......the verdict? He loved them. He said the muffins were moist and flavorful. I told him the secret ingredient was nutmeg and it did add a cool flavor to the banana muffins.

Banana Muffins

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
3 or 4 ripened bananas (about 1 cup mashed bananas)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 egg
4 tablespoons melted butter
(I also added about a half cup pecans)

Start off by turning the oven to 350 degrees. Then get out a 12 cup muffin pan and spray each muffin cup with a non-stick spray. Set aside and move on to the recipe. Getting all of this stuff out of the way makes the cooking process move alonger quicker.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Set aside. In another mixing bowl, mash the bananas and add the sugars, egg and melted butter (and pecans if desired). Whisk together until smooth. Combine the dry ingredients with the wet. Mix until they are combined but be sure not to over mix.



Next pour the batter into 12 muffin cups, distributing the batter evenly. I found that by distributing the batter and using ALL of it, the muffin cups were too full and so the tops got too big while baking. So my advice would be to only fill them up 2/3rds of the way so they have more of a clean shape. Perhaps once the first batch is done you can make a couple more muffins with the remaining batter. Lastly Sprinkle with sugar if desired. Then bake for about 15-20 minutes (my muffins baked for exactly 15 minutes).

Then remove from the muffin pan and let cool on a cooling rack. I would recommend serving the banana muffins warm with some butter and a small glass of milk. Enjoy!

Adapted from Stephanie's Kitchen

Bb is for Banana Bread

Banana bread recipes are like chocolate chip recipes, everyone has one and everyone thinks theirs is the best. Banana bread is also a feel good food, to be made on a rainy or cold night, when you want something cozy and homemade to nibble on. Since I have been a little girl I have used the same recipe for Banana bread. My recipe comes from a little kids ABC Cookbook called "Alpha-Bakery" published by Gold Medal Flour. The copyright is 1987 so it 20 years old. We inherited the cookbook from friends who were moving when we lived in Paris, France. It is a simple but very tasty recipe and therefore I want to share my favorite banana bread recipe, which I think is the best with ya'll.

















ABC Banana Bread

3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (3 large)
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
2 tablespoons milk (my addition to give the bread more moisture)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped nuts (I use pecans or walnuts)
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon (my addition, I love cinnamon)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Heat oven to 325 and grease a loaf pan with shortening, set aside. Mix sugar, bananas, oil, milk and eggs in a large bowl or I use my kitchen aid and put it on the medium setting. Mix well, scraping down the sides occasionally. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Once well blended pour into the already greased loaf pan. Place the loaf pan in the center of the oven and let cook for 60-70 minutes. I start checking the bread around 55 minutes and I usually use a butter knife and if it comes out clean then I know it is ready. You can also use a toothpick for this purpose.

Once out of the oven, I take a butter knife and sweep all the sides of the loaf pan to loosen the sides and make for a clean and easy release. I then turn over the loaf pan, emptying the bread onto a cooling wrack, then letting it cool right side up. Once out of the oven you can let it cool completely and then serve or Thad likes his fresh out of the oven, with some butter smeared on top and a small glass of milk. Just a suggestion. Enjoy!