black bottom banana bread

i've been trying to use up ingredients i have around the house, so i baked this black bottom banana bread. i had 3 bananas leftover from banana pancakes i made, and they were really really really ripe. almost rotton, but not yet. i also didn't have ovaltine, and since i was just using stuff i had around the house, i used this 3/8 cups of this chocolate caramel hot chocolate mix ryan bought me from disney world, and 1/8 cup of malted milk. i know, the way i'm describing this banana bread sounds so appealing, right? the end result is soo amazing. i love this recipe because it uses whole wheat flour and i love the flavor and texture of whole wheat, which is something i'm trying to use more of because i have a bag of it i need to finish before i move. also, the bananas, and yogurt make this whole wheat bread moist and not dry and all. ugh it's soo good i'm gonna eat it all.


1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 very ripe bananas, mashed well (about 1 1/2 cups)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup plain yogurt
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup OVALTINE Rich Chocolate Mix
Directions
PREHEAT oven to 350° F. Spray bottom of 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

COMBINE whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl.

COMBINE bananas, sugar, butter, yogurt, eggs and vanilla extract in large bowl; stir well. Stir in flour mixture just until moistened. Remove 1 cup of batter and place into separate bowl along with Ovaltine; stir until combined.

SPOON Ovaltine mixture into prepared pan; top with remaining banana batter.

BAKE for 55 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes; transfer to wire rack to cool completely. (Bread can be wrapped in plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days.

pecan pie

*notice how the photos have been so much better since i found my camera and i haven't been using my cell phone camera?

I finally baked a pecan pie! i don't know what took me so long to bake one. it's not like i'm scared of pecan pie like i'm scared of yeast. i think it's because i almost never buy pecans, even though i love pecans. i finally got ryan to try a pecan and he said "eh not so bad". BUT he has still not eaten a piece of pie yet! 

i baked the pecan pie because i'm trying to use up everything in the kitchen since i'm moving soon, and i had everything to bake this. surprisingly it was very easy positioning the pecans on the pie, even though they weren't all halves they were mostly quarter pieces and smaller. this pie has less of a corn syrup flavor, that wasn't done on purpose. i didn't want to buy dark corn syrup since i already had a giant light corn syrup i almost never use and i had a jar of molasses melinda had given me when she moved. so there ya go 3/4 cup light syrup and 1/4 cup molasses = 1 cup dark corn syrup. also i used 2 jumbo eggs instead of 3 eggs and it congealed just fine.

3 eggs, beaten

1 cup of dark corn syrup

3/4 cup of granulated sugar

1/4 cup of butter (4 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar

4 ounces of pecans, halved

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust (either store-bought or homemade)

Directions

In a small saucepan melt the butter and cool slightly.

In a large bowl, combine and stir the sugar, the syrup and the vinegar.

Add the melted butter and the beaten eggs. Pour the mixture into an unbaked pie crust.

Place the pecans on the top of the mixture and crust. Start on the edge and work your way inside.

Then take a fork and push down slightly on each pecan so it is in the mixture a bit.

Bake at 350 degrees F. until firm, which is about 1 hour.