Banana Bread with Nutty Streusel

Oh, I love a good streusel; don't you? Today's recipe is from my Miette cookbook.  If you aren't familiar with Miette, you should be.  It is a most fantastic bakery in San Francisco, and her recipes are wonderful.  Her cake creations are beautiful, and pastries are delightful.  Here are some pictures:

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Now on to the really good stuff.  The best part of the bread is the streusel on top.  Because that part is so tasty, I double it, and I also substitute walnuts in place of pecans, but you can do what you like!  The bread is moist and chocked full of walnuts, so it has a great texture.  Here's how you can make your own.

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Banana Bread with Nutty Streusel
Adapted From Miette
Makes 2 loaves

Ingredients:

Streusel:
(amounts listed are doubled from original)
1 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup flour
4 tablespoons cold butter
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Bread:
2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 medium soft, but not black, bananas, peeled and roughly mashed
1/2 cup walnut pieces

Directions:

Liberally butter two 8x4 inch loaf pans and dust with flour.  Tap out excess.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
To make the streusel, add all ingredients.  Blend together with your hand or pastry blender until all ingredients are combined.  Place in the fridge until you are ready to use.  Can be made up to five days in advance.
To make the banana bread, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl and set aside.  In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, eggs, and vanilla until well combined and lightened in color, 4-5 minutes.  Reduce the speed to low and drizzle in the oil, whisking just until combined.  Add the banana mash and whisk.  Add the dry ingredients and walnuts to the batter in three additions, whisking until combined.  Do not overmix.
Divide the batter between the prepared pans.  Sprinkle the tops with the streusel, dividing it evenly.  Bake until the breads have risen nicely and the tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. about 45-50 minutes.  Transfer to wire racks and let cool in the pans for 20 minutes.  Run an offset spatula around the edges of the pan, then invert the cakes onto the racks and let cool 20 minutes longer.  Serve right away or refrigerate until you are ready to serve.  To freeze, wrap tightly in a second layer of plastic and store in the freezer for up to two months.

Caramel Sauce

Oh what to say, what to say? Homemade caramel is absolutely the best, and I will never buy the store brands again. Last night, I made caramel for some cupcakes that I am making (I'll post those tomorrow), and it is absolutely the easiest and most fulfilling of recipes for the amount of time and effort it takes.

For the longest time, I was scared of caramel. I don't know why, but I always pictured it bubbling up (which it did) and ending in a burnt, sticky mess (it did not.) Actually, the end result was a thick, smooth topping that trumps any brand out there. Plus it only has 4 ingredients and one is water. My version is healthier (ha) and I know exactly what's in it. It would also make a lovely gift.Sass+Frass

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/3 cup water
1 1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:
1. Place the sugar in the center of a sauce pan, and add the water. DO NOT STIR. Why you ask? Sugar crystals will form up the side, and they don't dissolve easily once they harden. No stirring, no crystals in caramel.
2. Let the mixture boil; still do not stir, but keep a very close eye.
3. Wait until the mixture becomes a dark golden amber color (350 degrees on candy thermometer). Begin to slowly add your cream, but now you need to stir like crazy! The whole thing will bubble up and hiss, but fear not, it will calm down; just keep stirring and adding more cream.
4. Remove your caramel from the heat and stir in the vanilla. (A salted caramel alternative could be to add a dash of Himalayan sea salt... delish.)
5. Let the caramel cool to room temperature, jar it, and use when ready. It will continue to thicken as it cools, especially in the fridge.

Use as a topper on ice cream, cakes, toast (just kidding about the toast... or am I?)

Enjoy!

Chocolate Peppermint Double Doozies

Hello my friends; do I have a treat for you! The other day at school, a mom brought us some chocolate cupcakes with peppermint icing. Since then, I have been on a quest to find out how to make this addictive icing, and what do you know, I found it. I am not, however, the biggest cupcake fan, but I do love a good cookie. That's when I decided to find a chocolate cookie recipe.

Today, both of my searches were completed, and it was time to put my idea to the test. I created the most decadent double doozie imaginable. The normal double doozie can be found at the mall with a chocolate chip cookie and vanilla icing, but mine are double chocolate chunk cookies with a peppermint buttercream icing. Oh, they were delicious. They are extremely rich and perfect with a glass of milk.

Enough talk; here's how you make these delightful little sandwiches:

Peppermint Buttercream Frosting:

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter at room temperature

1/2 cup finely crushed peppermint candy (about 7 peppermint sticks)

3 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted

2 to 3 tablespoons milk

1 to 2 tablespoons peppermint schnapps or 1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract

1. Place the butter in a large mixing bowl. Blend with an electric mixer on low speed until fluffy, 30 seconds. Stop the machine and add the peppermint candy, confectioners’ sugar, 2 tablespoons milk and 1 tablespoon peppermint schnapps. Blend with the mixer on low speed until the sugar is well incorporated, 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat until the frosting lightens and is fluffy, 1 minute more. Blend up to 1 tablespoon milk or peppermint schnapps if the frosting seems to stiff.

Chocolate Cookies:

1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/4 cup white granulated sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 t. salt

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips or chunks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugars until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until incorporated. First sift together the cocoa powder, flour, baking powder, and salt and then add to the butter and egg mixture. Mix just until incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Using a small ice cream scoop or two spoons, place about 1 1/2 tablespoons of batter on the prepared baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart.

Bake for approximately 8 - 10 minutes or until the cookies are still soft in the center but are firm around the edges. Remove from oven and let cookies cool on baking sheet for about 5 minutes before removing the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes about 24 - 3 inch round cookies.

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Biscotti

This Saturday, we are having a women's gift exchange at church. The rules are that you can buy, bake or make a gift. Each person brings six of the same gifts. I didn't have time to make something crafty that looks smart at the same time, and I've spent enough money this month, so I decided to make cookie plates. This is my first batch since these can easily be made ahead of time. I probably shouldn't have made them this early though because I fear that my husband is going to eat them all!

These cookies are so dainty and absolutely perfect. Scott said he wouldn't change a thing (which I take as a high compliment because he can usually find at least something to tweak.) These are the perfect biscotti to make if you have never made them before... Plus you can get out some of the holiday stress by beating the peppermints to smithereens on your counter. I hope you can try to make them, or just come to church on Saturday, and you can be the lucky recipient of one of my cookie plates.

Ingredients:

½ cup sugar

½ cup butter, melted

½ teaspoon peppermint extract

3 eggs

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup miniature chocolate chips

½ cup crushed peppermint candy

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease a baking sheet. In a large bowl, beat sugar, butter, peppermint extract and eggs until well blended. Stir in remaining ingredients. Divide dough in ½. Shape each half into two - two inch logs on the baking sheet. Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden; cool for 15 minutes. Cut rectangles crosswise into ½ inch slices. Place cut sides down, on baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes or until light and crisp.

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