[Valentine's Day Recipes] Easy Fruit and Nutella French Toast Stacks

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Just in time for Valentine's day, here comes a super easy recipe that has the heady intoxication of love and happiness. Learn how to make french toast recipe, stacked together and filled with tons good stuff like bananas, strawberries and nutella. It cannot get better than that! Same recipe can be made as a savory treat or can be served with jam. Make these love filled stacks for your dear ones and watch them say "Fruiticilious!" at every bite. 

{Easy Summer Drinks} Mango Green Tea Smoothie

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Everybody has their own version of 'a favorite smoothie' recipe. Smoothies are the best way to gulp up a good  number of fruit and vegetable servings required by us, each day. During summers especially, I simply love to have a glass of chilled drink as soon as am back home from sweltering heat outside.

The smoothie am going to talk about today is light, delicious and super rich in essential vitamins + iron. It just needs five minutes of your time and six ingredients to make a healthy mango and green tea smoothie. Its perfect for any time of the day - for breakfast, for those hot afternoons or at mid-evening when hunger pangs are at its peak.

Enjoy!

{Valentine's Day Special} Banana Blueberry Butterscotch Pudding Cake - a Step by Step Recipe

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I have this habit of listening to radio while I work. With music on, my mind is more attentive, works faster and tend NOT to fall asleep. ;-) Being Valentine's day, am having an overdose of sweet, lovey-dovey songs and love stories/poems from radio listeners since morning. Pardon me, am in no mood to talk about it anymore. (I already wrote much in my last post). We all know the importance, so let me just jump right into today's recipe as that's what I am most excited about! :-)

Those heavily freckled, overripe bananas that usually take a permanent space on our cooking counters taste yum in baked goodies. Don't throw them away. Make a pudding cake for a change and treat your friends with this scrumptious dessert. Also note the ingredients list is very similar to what you would want to make pancakes. How about you switch the plans and make this pudding cake for breakfast instead? :-)

Enjoy!

...Love is in the air..

..all decked up..

Adapted from here.

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup blueberries (I used dried. fresh or frozen ones can be used too)
a pinch of salt
1 cup milk
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3 tsp baking powder
1 overripe banana, mashed
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract

For topping - 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/8 cup maple or golden syrup and 1/2 cup boiling water

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F/Gas 4). Grease the bottom of casserole dish + few ramekins or a big 2.5L baking dish. Keep aside.

In a bowl, add the mashed banana, milk, melted butter, beaten egg and vanilla extract. Whisk together until well combined. Keep aside.

Sift together - flour, salt, powdered sugar and baking powder.

Add sifted dry ingredients to the banana mixture and mix gently.

Toss blueberries as well. Pour the mixture into the greased baking dish.

For the topping, place the brown sugar, maple syrup and water in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce it to simmer and let it thicken a bit.

Pour few tablespoons of boiling mixture on top of the pudding and bake it for 25 to 30 minutes or until cooked through when tested with a toothpick.

Serve. I liked the cake plain and simple. You can also try with some vanilla ice cream.

..in the oven..

I couldn't wait for long to dig and eat it all! Yum! Oooh,  I simply love overripe banana in baked goodies.

I later also tried Banana Butterscotch Pudding Cake without blueberries or the brownsugar topping.
It tasted equally  delicious! :D

Before I say goodbye for today, let me share the one and ONLY gift TH gave me in all these years we have been together. :-)

This is Recipe 12 added to my 2013 Recipe Archive. Check out the rest of the recipes too!

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until next recipe,

Dried Blueberry and Banana Muffins- Step by Step Recipe

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What's with this rain, I say? Not one evening went by since past one week where we had a clear sky after 6pm. and the weather forecast says the situation will not change for next 24 hours. It's not like I detest rain. Don't get me wrong. But, an overdose of anything will get on your nerves by some point.

...and I am at that point!!.

To pep myself up, I wanted something that can be made quickly, grab a coffee and eat in peace. What else other than "muffins" that perfectly fit the bill. :-) Just combine few ingredients that are commonly found in pantry, mix, pour and bake. In less than half hour, you have a fresh batch of muffins ready to be devoured. These are THE most enticing food when its raining or when I am craving to have something quick.

So, next time when it rains, make these Dried Blueberry and Banana Muffins - soft & cake-y from inside and light golden brown crumb with a subtle banana flavor and succulent blueberries to bite into. Enjoy!

Recipe: Dried Blueberry and Banana Muffins

Adapted from Star Tribune

Makes around 9 normal sized muffins

Ingredients:

4 tbsp (1/2 stick butter), at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1 ripe banana, mashed (~ 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup milk
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 cup dried blueberries (fresh or frozen works too)


Preparation:

Step 1: In a medium bowl cream butter and sugar (with an electric mixer or hand). Add egg. Mix in bananas and milk.

Step 2: Sift together - flour, baking powder and ground cinnamon. Carefully fold in blueberries. If you are using frozen blueberries, fold them while they are still frozen or they will turn the batter purple. Dried blueberries do not need to be reconstituted before they are added.

Step 3: Fold (flour + blueberry mixture) into banana mixture carefully, only until the batter is moist.

Note: Do not overmix.

Step 4: Preheat oven to 375 F or 190 C. I used silicone muffin cups with a paper cup inside. If you are using a muffin pan, grease lightly with butter. Spoon batter into muffin cups, filling cups until 3/4ths. Top with one or two blueberries or chocolate sprinkles. Bake for 10-15 minutes until muffins are light golden brown. When a tooth pick inserted in the middle, it should come out clean.

Let them cool for 5 minutes in the muffin cups, then transfer to a cooling rack. Serve for breakfast, brunch or just as a snack. You really don't need a reason and specific time to enjoy a fresh home-made muffin. Isn't it.

Storage: Tightly wrap each muffin in a plastic wrap and store in an air tight container. Since it has banana, its recommended to consume these within few days.

until next time,

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A Taste of Yellow: Caramelized Bananas with Toffee Sauce

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“You've gotta dance like there's nobody watching,

Love like you'll never be hurt,

Sing like there's nobody listening,

And live like it's heaven on earth.”  ~ William W. Purkey

Each one of us has an ever-growing wishlist filled with dreams, with a hope that they will be fulfilled, become a reality some day. But, sooner or later we realize that some day is just an illusion. We need to first understand and learn to live today - to the fullest.

Barbara of Winos and Foodies had a wishlist too. To eat her 87th Birthday Cake. It was the year 2004 when she was diagnosed with cancer. She started her blog as a distraction and she has lighten up the blogging world with her ever inspiring, beautiful and personal blog posts. I knew her only through the "Taste of Yellow", a popular event which coincides with LiveStrong Day, created by cancer survivor Lance Armstrong's LiveStrong Foundation to raise awareness of cancer. With a heavy heart, I say - Barbara lost her long battle with cancer on June 29th 2012. 

My deep felt condolences to the family and May God rest her soul in peace.

In memory of Barbara, Meeta and Jeanne dedicated this month's Monthly Mingle to "A Taste of Yellow" - Bake or make something yellow. and I choose a super simple recipe - Caramelized Bananas with Toffee Sauce which can be put together in less than 15 minutes.

Caramelized Bananas with Toffee Sauce

{Recipe} Caramelized Bananas with Toffee Sauce

Adapted from Taste.com.au

Serves 4

Ingredients

2 tbsp butter
4 bananas, peeled, halved lengthways
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons thickened cream

Preparation

1. Melt butter in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add banana slices. Cook, turning occasionally, for 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Transfer to a plate. Cover with foil.

2. Add sugar to pan. Cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes or until sugar has dissolved. Add cream. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes or until combined. Place bananas on serving plates. Drizzle some toffee sauce.
Serve remaining sauce on the side.

messy is good!

Note: This toffee sauce is so versatile that it can be used as a topping on anything & everything - cakes, cookies, muffins, scones, oatmeal etc. 

Giveaway Announcement - Don't forget to share your quick fix recipe for a chance to win a copy of Quick Fix Indian Cookbook by Ruta Kahate. Details are in this post. Good luck.


Today is also a day when an ever-green superstar of Bollywood Rajesh Khanna died after a prolonged illness. Many timeless classics were picturized on him and he was almost every girl's fantasy in 1960's. He who has gone, so we but cherish his memory, abides with us, more potent, nay, more present than the living man. R.I.P Rajesh Khanna.

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until next time,

YRTML IV - Vegetable Biryani & Mango Banana Smoothie

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Vegetable Biryani by Nags of Edible Garden (Click here for the recipe)

Who doesn't crave for a delicious biryani with a spicy paneer side dish as their dinner. Probably not every singe day, but think about those special occasions or those lazy sunday afternoons with a tiny little caveat - without spending much time in the kitchen. For all of those, Nags's Vegetable Biryani is the answer. The best part, it can be made in pressure cooker. And the spice paste is the absolute highlight. Sorry, the pic is not doing any justice to how good it tastes. :).

Mango- Banana Smoothie by DK of Chef In You (Click here for the recipe)

Summer is almost over and so is an end to our mango-fetish!. Let's say adieu to the beloved summer with a quicky yet delicious smoothie, Shall we?...all those ripened bananas over your stove top counter, blend them all with that last mango-bounty with a tiny hint of orange juice to enjoy this delectable smoothie. Top them with fancy chia seeds like she did or some raisins like I did, walk into that sunny balcony one last time, spread our your legs onto a comfortable chair, pick up a book and let yourself soaked in. :). Happy last few days of summer to all of you.


Click here to check out other recipes that were featured in YRTML segment.

until next time,
Siri

Skillet Banana Bread

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My recent priced possession is an 8 inch cast iron skillet. It is versatile, easy to use, durable and can go from stove top into the oven within seconds. Remember, this is how our old grandmas used to cook and that's why their dishes used to taste so delicious. :) From dutch babies to souffles to breads to cakes - anything & everything can be made in this ultimate, magical gourmet tool and with such fantastic results with my first attempt, I am determined to make them all.

Below are some notes for YOU and for ME that are important to know.