Banana Nut Bread

Ingredients

1 1/4 C mashed ripe bananas
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/4 C milk
3 Eggs
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 2/3 C Bisquick
1 C chopped walnuts


Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Mix ingredients except the bisquick and walnuts. Fold in the remaining ingredients with a spoon and mix; pour into a greased loaf pan and cook for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire cooling rack. Keeps for about a week when covered in plastic wrap.

Mango-Pear Pecan Bread

Ingredients

1 1/4 C mashed ripe mango and pear (drain away some of the moisture the mango makes)
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 C granulated sugar
1/4 C milk
3 Eggs
3 Tbsp vegetable oil
2 2/3 C Bisquick
1 C chopped pecans


Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Mix ingredients except the bisquick and pecans, using an immersion blender if necessary (depending on the consistency of the fruit). Fold in the remaining ingredients with a spoon and mix; pour into a greased loaf pan and cook for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out cleanly. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire cooling rack. Keeps for about a week when covered in plastic wrap.

Cajun-Jamaican Chex Mix

Ingredients

4 C assorted chex
1 C pretzels
1 C cheez-its
1 C kashi whole grain crackers
1 C nuts
2 dashes pickapeppa sauce (or veg. worchestire)
Tony Sacherie's (palmful or to taste)
freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp dried rosemary, crushed
6 tbps butter


Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Melt the butter and add the spices, pour over the mix in a deep baking dish and gently stir. Cook for 45 minutes, stirring at 15-minute intervals. Spread on paper towels and leave out for at least an hour; store in airtight containers.


Adapted from Aunt Jac's famous Caughey "Texas Trash" recipe. I'm thinking of tossing just a bit of pineapple juice in the butter mix next time....

Baby Arugula Walnut Pesto

Ingredients

2 C baby arugula leaves, stemmed and tightly packed
2 cloves garlic
1/2 C canola oil
1/4 C chopped and toasted walnuts
s&p to taste

Instructions

Blend the arugula, garlic, and oil until smooth. Scrape down the sides and add the walnuts; process until well-combined (but don't make gummy nut butter), season to taste.

Roasted Plum Sandwich with Baby Arugula Pesto

Ingredients

3 plums, ripe but firm
3 tbsp balsamic or sherry vinegar
1/2 medium yellow onion
1/2 c unbleached all-purpose flour
oil for frying
4 slices rustic bread, about 1/2 inch thick (i used a rosmary round from whole foods)
Arugula Walnut Pesto (see recipe)
6 oz. soft cheese (I have to go back to Whole Foods to get the name of the one I used)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Cut the plums in half, remove the pits. Slice into 1/2 inch wedges, and toss with the vinegar to coat. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet; spread the plums on it without crowding them and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 20 minutes and set aside to cool.

While the plums are roasting, cut the onion into crescents as thin as possible. Put them in a bowl of cold water and stir to separate the pieces. In another bowl mix the flour and salt. Drain the crescents, and toss with the flour-salt mixture until completely coated. Heat oven in a deep pan to at least twi inches (I use canola oil). Heat to 360-360 degrees. Gently drop one-third of the onion pieces into the hot oil. Fry until light brown, about 3-4 minutes. Remove with slotted spoon and drain on a single layer of paper towels. Fry up the rest and set aside.

Toast the bread: Lay the bread slices directly on the oven rack and bake until lightly toasted, a couple of minutes or so.

Build the sandwiches: spread 1 to 2 tbsp of pesto on the bread right to the edges. Arrange the plum wedges on top in a single layer, and top with sliced cheese. Cover a baking sheet with foil and pop back in the oven until the cheese is melted. Top with springs of fried onion and serve.

Spiced Walnuts

Ingredients

1 C walnut halves
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 tsp each ground cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp powdered sugar

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350. Grease a baking sheet. Put the walnuts in a mixing bowl and drizzle with olive oil, tossing to thoroughly coat the nuts. Mix the nuts with the spices, tossing to coat fully. Toss again with the powdered sugar.

Spread the mix on the baking sheet and bake for 10, 12, stirring halfway through (be careful not to burn them)!

Warm Pear Rainbow Swiss Chard Salad with Sour Orange Vinaigrette, Goat Cheese and Spiced Walnuts

Ingredients

2 Ripe Anjou or Bartlett pears, at room temp, ripe but unpeeled
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp grated orange zest
2 tbsp sour orange juice, freshly squeezed
1 tbsp orange juice, freshly squeezed
2 tbsp balsalmic vinegar
4 tbsp olive oil
1 bunch rainbow swiss chard, rinsed and torn into pieces
1 c spicy walnuts (recipe follows)
crumbled goat cheese (freeze for 30 minutes to crumble easier)

Instructions

Slice the pears into 1/4 inch thick slices, set aside. Combine the garlic, zest, orange guices, vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste. Warm the dressing in a sauce pan over med heat and add the pear slices, gently turning until coated and warm (about 2 minutes). Pour the pears and vinaigrette over the salad greens and toss gently. Serve topped with the cheese and spiced nuts.