Hawaiian Banana Bread

I tend to prefer banana bread with white sugar versus brown sugar because the banana flavor comes out more. I noticed this is the key difference between banana recipes from Hawaii and the mainland so I made this recipe and it's delicious. The flavor reminds me of Vietnamese banana bread pudding I grew up eating.

Yields: 2 loaves
*I halved it since I made this during a pandemic and needed to limit valuable ingredients such as egg, flour and sugar and put the batter into 3 mini loaves because I can't find my regular loaf tin.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup butter
• 2 cup sugar
• 6-7 ripe bananas, mashed
• 4 eggs, well beaten
• 2 1/2 cups, all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking soda

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Prepare 2 loaf pans, by greasing with butter. Set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar.
4. Add masked bananas and eggs. Mix well.
5. Whisk/sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
6. Slowly add to the creamed mixture.
7. Mix gently until just combined. Do not over mix.
8. Pour batter evenly into 2 prepared loaf pans.
9. Bake for 45-50 minutes. (About 35 minutes for the 3 mini pans)
10. Test doneness with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, it is done!

Maui Banana Bread Muffins

This is my favorite recipe. Reminds me of banana bread Mike and I got on our honeymoon in Maui halfway on our road to Hana trip. It's also super easy with not a lot of ingredients.

Ingredients:

• 1-1/4 cup of flour  
• 1 cup sugar  
• 1/2 teaspoon salt  
• 1 teaspoon baking soda  
• 3 very ripe bananas  
• 1/2 cup melted butter 
  
• 2 eggs

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift together flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda. 
3. Blend together bananas, shortening, and eggs. 
4. Fold flour mix into blended wet ingredients ...don't over mix. 
5. Spoon into 9 x 9 x 2-inch pan, sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. (Or use paper liners in 12-cup standard cupcake tin.) Thump once to remove air holes. 
6. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. (20 minutes for muffins). Bread/muffins should be a dark brown color.
7. Cool. Cut into squares. 

French Yogurt Cake

Got this straight out of Bon Appetit and it is a yummy cake. I convinced Thi to make it and she did. Not too sweet with a slight hint of lemon.
(Bon Appetit May 2012)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. lemon zest, finely grated
3/4 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Coat a standard (8 1/2 x 4 1/4") loaf pan with nonstick vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.
Whisk 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 tsp. baking powder, and 3/4 tsp. kosher salt in a medium bowl.
Using your fingers, rub 1 cup sugar with 1 Tbsp. finely grated lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist.
Add 3/4 cup whole-milk Greek yogurt, 1/2 cup vegetable oil, 2 large eggs, and 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract; whisk to blend.
Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.
Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top.
Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50-55 minutes.
Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
Invert onto rack; let cool completely.


DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead.  Store airtight at room temperature.

Chi's Banana Muffins

I loved this recipe and so does the kids! Applesauce and yogurt makes this so moist and makes you feel it's healthy too! I only had nonfat Greek yogurt at home and it worked out fine. (I halved this recipe and got 23 standard muffins. I also omitted the nuts)

Ingredients:

3½ Cups flour
2.5 Cups sugar (I used half brown sugar and half white sugar)
1 Teaspoon salt
2 Teaspoon baking soda
2 Sticks butter (softened)
½ Cup of applesauce
½ Cup of plain yogurt
4 Eggs
1 Teaspoon vanilla
5 Tablespoons of butter milk
*Substitution: 1 Cup of a milk and lemon (1 whole) mix
1½ Cup nuts of choice (optional)
5 Bananas or 2 Cups (mashed up)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix all wet ingredients except bananas in a large bowl.
Sift dry ingredients and add to wet ingredients in portions. When the batter is all mixed
up, fold in mashed bananas.
Pour into muffin pan and bake at about 20 minutes or until
toothpick comes out clean. Or you can bake in a loaf for about an hour.

Pumpkin Apple Bread

A yummy and easy recipe from a friend.

Great recipes are meant to passed around & this one is the best I've ever tasted - moist, etc. Will make your whole house smell like autumn!!!

I add about a cup of chopped walnuts to the batter cause I love walnuts w/ apples & pumpkin & also sprinkle chopped walnuts on top of "topping".

I double the topping. I pour 1/2 batter into the loaf pan -sprinkle one serving of topping & pour rest of batter & then put second serving of topping on top of that - killer!

For topping:
1 Tbs all-purpose flour
5 Tbs sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 Tbs unsalted butter, softened (I use "salted" just cause I don't have "unsalted" in my house usually)

For bread:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp salt
2 tsps baking soda
1 1/2 tsps ground cinnamon
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground allspice
1 (15-oz) can solid-pack pumpkin
3/4 cup vegetable oil (I use 3/4 cup butter instead - wonderful!!!)
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
2 Granny smith apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (2 cups)

MAKE THE TOPPING: Blend together flour, sugar, cinnamon. Melt the butter in the microwave and pour into the dry mixutre. Mix with a fork.

MAKE THE BREAD: Put a rack in the middle of oven and preheat oven to 350F. Butter two 9 X 5 inch loaf pans. (I just spray "PAM" into pans.)
Sift together flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice into a medium bowl. Then add oil(or butter), sugar, and eggs in a large bowl. Add the pumpkin. Add flour mixture, stirring until well combined. Fold in apples (and walnuts if using nuts).

Divide batter between buttered loaf pans. Sprinkle half of topping evenly over each loaf. *Remember, if you double the topping, do batter, topping, batter, topping. So yummy to have that topping the middle, too.

Bake until a wooden pick or skewer inserted in center of bread comes out clean, 50 to 60 minutes.

Cool loaves in pans on a rack for 45 minutes, then turn out onto rack and cool completely, about 1 hour.

This bread is meant to be SHARED!!! Make for your neighbors, your coworkers, your family. The only downside to this is it will be requested every year!

You can bake and freeze, too. It freezes well. Just thaw in room temperature the day before.

Zucchini Bread

I started with a recipe I found on Allrecipes.com and substitute the white flour for wheat flour. It came out perfectly. It does have a hint of a wheat taste for those of you who don't like wheat but we're use to it in my family. Top with some honey whip and it's perfect. (I omitted the nuts to keep it kid-friendly.)

Ingredients

• 3 cups wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil (OR ½ cup veg oil & ½ cup apple sauce)
• 2 cups brown sugar
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups grated zucchini
• 1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

1. Grease and flour two 8 x 4 inch pans. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
2. Sift flour, salt, baking powder, soda, and cinnamon together in a bowl.
3. Beat eggs, oil, vanilla, and sugar together in a large bowl. Add sifted ingredients to the creamed mixture, and beat well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until well combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
4. Bake for 40 to 55 minutes, or until tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on rack for 20 minutes. Remove bread from pan, and completely cool.