I’m inspired by a friend’s blog, Below Blue Skies, to publish a few of the snapshots I’ve taken of the meals we’ve eaten. My husband and I have been married for a year and most of our relationship we have been less than well-off so we’ve improvised by pretending we’re Iron Chefs and whipping up gourmet meals at home. You can track our relationship by our recipes, so I’m working backwards over the next few months, to see what this pack rat photographer has collected in her love cookbook.
First off, what’s cooking now…
While I love the idea of fresh baked bread, I seldom have the time to make it. Well, now that excuse is gone! Apparently slow-cookers get hot enough for yeast to rise, but more importantly for most cooks today is that quick breads don’t have to be so– well quick. Use your favorite quick bread recipes, like Banana Nut Bread, Cornbread, or ready made muffin mixes and a pan that will fit inside your slow-cooker. For every hour your recipe calls for, cook on Low for 8 hours, or on High for 4 hours. Presto Bango, wake up to bread that’s slightly crispy on the outside and moist and tender on the inside. Almost like pound cake, only minus the pounds on my hips and thighs
. Plus, you don’t have to be really strict on how long it’s cooked because there’s so much steam inside your cooker that it stays moist! Go ahead, let those bananas sit a little too long and indulge this weekend. Set the coffee pot’s timer, the slow-cooker, and the alarm. Hey! Looks like we’re not far off from the Jetson’s after all!
Here’s the recipe I use. Straight from my trusty 1959 version of “The All New Fannie Farmer Boston Cooking School Cookbook”:
Some like to add 2 tablespoons melted butter to the batter. I like to add Cinnamon and Nutmeg to taste.
Mix in a bowl
3 ripe bananas, well-mashed
2 eggs, beaten until light
Sift together
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
Add to the first mixture.
Add 1/2 cup nut meats, chopped
Stir well. Put in a buttered loaf pan 9 by 5 inches. Bake 1 hour (here is where you bake in your slow cooker for 4 hours on high, or 8 hours on low) at 350 degrees F.
And yes, that’s Shamrock Green Fiestaware, by Homer Laughlin, it’s sitting on, part of our wedding gifts! My grandmother painted china for Homer Laughlin and would take home the imperfect pieces of Fiesta, resulting in a rainbow of dishes (that all magically work together, no matter how old or new!). We are slowly collecting our own, and honoring her (Gladys Hilda Hendricks Heiney)
Related Articles
- New Slow Cooker Recipes (ask.metafilter.com)
- 7 Must-Have Kitchen Gadgets That Are Worth the Money (mint.com)
- Slow Cooking Surprises! 10 Warm, Gooey, Wonderful Desserts in a Pot – Food on Shine (shine.yahoo.com)
- Projects ” How-To’s ” Vegan Banana, Chocolate And Nut Bread (cutoutandkeep.net)
- Book Review: Slow Cooker Winners by Donna-Marie Pye (blogcritics.org)















2003
Spring 2007
Winter 2007
Winter 2007
Winter 2007
Winter 2007
Winter 2007
Winter 2007