Equally Famous Banana Bread

Inspired by my recent visit to the World Famous International Banana Museum 
I wanted to make something with bananas.  I remembered I have this really
terrific Banana Bread recipe in my repetroire that I hadn't made in awhile.

My recipe is actually adapted from an also famous recipe for Julia's
Best Banana Bread originated by a gal named Julia and sold in her
bright green treehouse located in a small village called Kahakuloa
on the island of Maui.  You'll want to check out this cute bright
green treehouse which is on her website here.

When a recipe is "adapted" it usually means the current cook/baker has
changed something in the original recipe.  In this case, Julia makes her
famous Banana Bread using whole wheat flour and I use All Purpose white flour.

This banana bakes leaving a crackly and wonderful crust on the top.
I think that is what makes this Banana Bread so special.

It can be eaten just as is or as I like it - with a spread of butter.  Delicious!
I am so happy that I reminded myself of this recipe.

Thank you for visiting,

Fondly,
~ Karen




World Famous Banana Museum

Would you believe there is a Banana Museum in So Cal?

I would bet most Southern Californians don't even know it.  I didn't, but

my sister did. On a recent day trip through the area, she insisted we stop in.

Sure enough, there is an International Banana Museum

World Famous and recorded in the Guiness Book of World Records.

It's official website can be found here.

It is located in the desert Coachella Valley, Southeast of Palm Springs,

on the North Shore of the Salton Sea in Mecca, California.

It made it into the Guiness Book as having the largest

collection of banana-related items.  Do you believe me now?

Everywhere I looked, banana items and more banana items.

Everywhere I looked there was a banana something.

If it were made into a banana - its here!

But not just to look at - but to eat! 

As a foodie, I was all about that.

I jumped on one of those banana and ape stools quickly

to decide what I would have.

Banana Shakes in Banana-Chocolate, Banana Strawberry, or Banana Mango?

How about a Banana Float with Rootbeer, Orange, or Peach Soda?

or a Banana Sundae!!!

My sister and niece split (haha!) a Banana Split

while my mom and I shared a Banana Milkshake but we

didn't wait to take a picture.  Sorry :(. 

But, I did stop this one guy headed out to his

car with this Banana Sundae

(with a cute banana and monkey napkin!)

and he kindly let me take a picture. 

It was a thumbs up for everything that we ate.

I think I will get a Banana Sundae if I ever return.

 

All inspiring, I got home and decided I needed to make

my own banana something.

 

Check back and see what I decided to make...

and if you ever get in the desert -- go see the International Banana Museum.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Bunny Tails Hopping Down the Bunny Trail

 Here comes Peter Cottontail's - tails!

Hopping down the bunny trail.

  In this month's issue of Southern Living,

I came across these Bunny Tail Bonbons. 

 

 

They reminded me of the

soft cottontail on the back of a wine bunny apron

 

 

 I recently picked up at Pottery Barn. 

You can go back and visit that post of

my Spring visit to Pottery Barn.

 In this recipe, melted white chocolate is mixed with cream

cheese then crushed coconut cookies are added.

 

 

I rolled and scaled each of them at three-quarter's lb.

I made one change to the recipe instructions by

rolling them in the coconut before placing them on  a

half sheet pan to rest in refrigerator overnight to firm up.

The recipe calls for adding the coconut after the night's stay in the frig

then refrigerating for another hour before serving.

 

 

The final tails become these rich and tasty soft balls of sweetness.

I dyed some coconut green to give the tails green "grass" to rest on. 

I did this by putting some coconut into a Ziploc bag along with some

regular liquid food coloring and smooshing and shaking the bag

from the outside until the color was distributd evenly.

 

You can find an easier printable version of the recipe on the

Southern Living's website here.

 

There are so many fun spring ideas out there.

I just love this time of the year, don't you?

 

I will be joining

Rattlebridge Farm's Foodie Friday

and

The Tablescaper's Seasonal Sundays

 

Thank you for visiting.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

 



Whats for Dinner? Crock-Pot Chili with Chocolate

 

This chili with fool you!

Going into the crock-pot, it may seem like any ordinary chili.
 

 

It begins with black beans, kidney beans, and pinto beans,

along with cooked ground beef, tomatoes, onions, and spices.

It cooks for 6-8 hours... then for the last 15 minutes it

gets finished with chopped Chocolate - and just a tad of honey!
 

 

It's sure to please the most skeptical palate and would be fun to

serve guests, asking them what they think is the secret ingredient.

Its actually pretty tasty and delicious and, other than seeing the

sprinkling of shaved chocolate on the top for garnish, you would

never suspect there was chocolate in it.  The chocolate really is that subtle.
 

 

I made some seasoned saltine crackers to serve
along side. I often make these with chili flakes but for
tonight I left the spicy-ness off so we could get enjoy
the full spicy flavors of the chili.

 

Come on! Eating can be an adventure. Give this a try!

You can click on this link for the recipe for the

Slow-Cooker Chocolate Chili with Three Beans

and here is the recipe for the crackers:

 

Seasoned Crackers

Source: Unknown
 

1 lb. unsalted saltine crackers
1 cup canola oil
1 (1 oz. pkg) ranch dressing mix
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons chili flakes (optional)

Line crackers on their ends in an air-tight container. In a small bowl, combine canola oil, ranch dressing mix, garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Stir until well combined. Spoon mixture evenly over crackers. Close the lid and gently flip over the crackers.  Flip over every 5 minutes for a total of 20 minutes.  There will be excess oil at first but as they get flipped they will absorb the oil.  The crackers can be stored in a ziploc bag and will last for about a week.

Enjoy and Thank you for visiting!

 

I will be sharing this recipe along with others at

Rattlebridge Farm's Foodie Friday

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 



 

 





Cupcakes at the Mission Inn!

Looming large in Southern California is The Mission Inn -

a historical hotel and spa dating back to 1876 where it

began as a 2-story adobe guest house.

 

It has been visited by seven U.S. Presidents beginning

in 1903 when President Theodore Roosevelt stayed in

the hotel shortly after the Mission wing was added.

Richard and Pat Nixon were married at this hotel and

Nancy and Ronald Reagan chose this hotel as

their honeymoon destination.

 

During the holidays, it holds its Festival of Lights

which shows its spectacular collection of nearly 4 million lights!

 

Today, however, my visit to the Mission Inn fell in with

a visit to a nearby antique mall and a visit to the

- never to be missed...

Casey's Cupcakes.

Casey's Cupcakes is actually located on the backside of

The Mission Inn and opens out onto a courtyard of quaint retail shops.

Besides delicious cupcakes, what makes it so fun to visit Casey's Cupcakes?

Casey was featured on Food Network's hit show Cupcake Wars

where she was a Cupcake Wars Winner!

Inside is cheery and bright.

and her cupcakes are some of the best cupcakes I've ever eaten!

As much as I always want to try one of each...

I came home with two.

Caribbean Coconut

and the Beach Boy with a gumball on top!

Individual cupcakes are packaged in their own cute

lidded-box to bring home. 

Not only has Casey figured out some great-tasting cupcakes,

she has figured out its all in the packaging.

 

Thank you Casey for the cupcakes - once again!

 

And thank you for visiting!

 

I will be joining

The Tablescaper's Oh! The Places I've Been!

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 

 

 



For a laugh... Remembering the Pillsbury Doughboy!

Who authored this gem of a piece is unknown to me.

 

Just for a laugh and to put a smile on your face.

(and just remember, he's really not going anywhere)

The Pillsbury Doughboy passed yesterday of a yeast infection and

trauma from repeated pokes in the belly. He was 71.

 

 Doughboy was buried in a lightly greased coffin. Dozens of celebrities

turned out to pay their respects, including Mrs. Butterworth,

Hungry Jack, the California Raisins, Betty Crocker,

The Hostess Twinkies [yes, back from their vacation],

and Captain Crunch. The gravesite was piled high with flours.

Aunt Jemima delivered the eulogy and lovingly desribed Doughboy

as a man who never knew how much he was kneaded.

 

Born and bread in Minnesota, Doughboy rose quickly in show business,

but his later life was filled with turnovers. He was not considered a

very smart cookie, wasting much of his dough on half-baked schemes.

 

Despite being a little flaky at times, he still was a crusty old man and

was considered a positive roll model for millions.

Doughboy is survived by his wife Play Dough, three children:

John Dough, Jane Dough, and Dosey Dough, plus they had one in

the oven. He is also survived by his elderly father, Pop Tart.

 

The funeral was held at 3:50 for about 20 minutes.

 

Hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

 

Fondly,

~Karen

 



Spring Has Arrived!

Spring has arrived!

I love Spring. 

Flowering bulbs begin to pop out of the earth after their winter chilling...

Trees are blossoming (my Meyer lemon tree is loaded)...

Birds are chirping...

 

I'm often annoyed at the retail stores for "pushing" us into the

next holiday or the next season too early...

but Spring is always welcomed and as of the 20th we are here...

and Pottery Barn is showing off it's Spring line.

I'm always excited to see what they come up with

and secretly wish they carry over something from the

year before that I wished I had bought - but didn't!

Pottery Barn never fails to disappoint!

Beautiful arrangements of birds in nests...

in a picnic basket!

Plenty of bunnies, including wine bottle decor...

and  not to be missed are their gorgeous tablesettings!

I particularly like the orange, green, and pink napkins

they use here.  The middle of the table is left neutral and

the flatware in the cafe glasses are a surprise.

Now let's just sit back and continue to watch

the earth come alive and enjoy the beauty of Spring!

 

Thank you for visiting.

 

Fondly,

~Karen