February 9, 2010

Banana Bread

Posted by zoomyummy under banana, bread, nuts | Tags: , , , , |
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What comes to your mind when you think of banana bread?

To me it’s BEAUTIFUL.

And FRAGRANT.

And IRRESISTIBLE.

And a piece of sweet art.

The kind of food that makes me feel really good.

I missed this art in my life lately.

And that is unacceptable.

So I just created it…

~~~

To make wonderful Banana Bread you need:

1 cup (115 grams) walnuts or pecans (optional)

1 3/4 cups (230 grams) all-purpose flour

3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 ripe large bananas, sliced

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

~~~

1. Preheat an oven to 350 F (175 C).

2. Place the nuts on a baking sheet and bake for about 8-10 minutes.

They will become wonderfully tender and fragrant.

3. These are our dry ingredients.

Pour them into a larger bowl and mix them.

4. After you toasted the nuts chop them coarsely,…

… add them to the flour mixture,…

… and give it all a good mix.

5. These are our wet ingredients – the sliced bananas, lightly beaten eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract.

6. Mash the bananas.

7. Add the eggs, the butter and the vanilla to the bowl.

Mix, mix, mix.

8. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, lightly fold the wet ingredients (banana mixture) into the dry ingredients just until combined.

The batter should be thick and chunky (try not to over mix here – the bread could end up being tough and rubbery – and we don’t want that).

9. Butter and flour (or spray with a non-stick spray) the bottom and sides of a loaf pan.

Fill it with the lovely batter.

10. And bake for about 55-60 minute (or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the bread comes out clean).

Mmmmm, this smells wonderful…

Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove from the pan.

11. Enjoy dear friends…

… and remember that there are many more lovely posts for you to see here.

(This recipe was adapted from joyofbaking.com.)

 

February 6, 2010

I Am Doomed

Posted by zoomyummy under family, kids, snow, winter | Tags: , , , |
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This is the last picture your dear Petra had ever taken in her wonderful life…

NOT!

Just joking.

No matter what this looks like it is a project.

A big, fun, well-planned project.

SNAPPING A SNOWBALL IN THE AIR, everybody!

With my lovely nephew Gabi being the co-operator in this big thing.

And let me tell you that we succeeded big time.

Because we are a great team…

That’s what we are.

 

February 4, 2010

I Want To Let You Know

Posted by zoomyummy under cup | Tags: |
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Long story short – I have this strong feeling of responsibility towards you.

I think I have to let you know about everything important I happen to come across.

For example – this cup.

My beloved sister gave it to me for Christmas.

And I reckon it carries this strong and important message.

So please remember and never forget that THERE IS NOTHING BETTER THAN A GOOD FRIEND EXCEPT A GOOD FRIEND WITH CHOCOLATE!

This lovely cup came as a set with a wonderful tray and a coaster.

I will surely use it for some of my future food arrangements.

With something wonderfully chocolaty, I suppose.

 

February 2, 2010

Lemon Cake With Lemon Frosting

Posted by zoomyummy under cake, lemon | Tags: , , |
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This cake is a wonderful treat to serve in the afternoon with a nice cup of tea.

Or in the morning.

Or in the evening.

Or as a midnight snack.

Simply – whenever – so good it is.

I would describe it as, hm..,  lemony – which comes from adding lemon zest and lemon juice to the cake.

And then it’s very, hm…, lemony – because there is this delicious and refreshing lemon frosting on the top.

~~~

To prepare this lovely lemony Lemon Cake with Lemon Frosting you need:

1 cup (226 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar

4 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

zest of 1 large lemon

1 1/2 cups (210 grams) all-purpose flour

1/2 cup (60 grams) cornstarch (or corn flour)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup (60 ml) lemon juice

For the Lemon Frosting you need:

1 cup (115 grams) confectioner’s sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

~~~

1. Preheat an oven to 350 F (175 C).

2. We are going to kick it off with the butter and the sugar this time.

3. Place these heavenly ingredients into your magical mixing machine.

4. And give them a good mix – …

… (and you surely already know what’s that going to be followed by)  -   “UNTIL LIGHT ‘N FLUFFY”.

Right!

5. Add the eggs – one at a time, please (beating about one minute after each addition).

Then add the vanilla extract and the lemon zest.

6. In a separate bowl mix together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt.

7. Add the flour mixture into the batter – one tablespoon at a time – and mix.

8. Finally, add the lemon juice.

Mix only until incorporated.

(Wow, have you ever seen a more beautiful batter? I felt like eating it right then – when making it.)

9. Butter or spray your spring form pan (9 inch/23 cm) with a nonstick spray and cover it with flour lightly.

Pour the batter into the pan and smooth it out nicely.

10. Bake for about 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Let cool and remove from the pan.

Magic Trick: If you want the top of your cake flat turn it upside down after baking.

Ta – daa!

11. Now onto the frosting.

In a small bowl mix together the confectioner’s sugar and the lemon juice until smooth.

(If you feel especially artsy today and feel the urge to create an ornament on the top of your cake – like I did – you can set aside one third of the frosting in another bowl and mix it with one teaspoon of instant coffee.)

Then pour the white frosting over the top of the cake and even it out.

12. Fill a pastry bag (or a small plastic bag with one corner cut out) with the coffee frosting.

Pipe three circles over the top of the cake.

Using a wood stick draw a line from the edge of the cake towards the center.

Yummitty Yum.

Enjoy Dear Friends!

(There are many more lovely posts for you to see here.)

 

January 30, 2010

Angel

Posted by zoomyummy under crafts, crochet | Tags: , |
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I made this angel the other day for my boyfriend.

Just in case.

And now I’m granting him permission to protect you too.

So no worries, you are safe now.

 

January 29, 2010

I Have Always Wondered

Posted by zoomyummy under nature, photo, photo editing | Tags: , , |
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I have always wondered what a thing like this means – an old rusty pot on a wooden pole.

Have you ever seen it?

Well, you might have, especially if you ever happened to find yourself in the country.

I suppose that a thing like this might be a tad more difficult to spot in Singapore or New York.

But there’s something else that haunts me.

What is it good for?

I remember I used to see this interesting pot-pole combination in some old movies on TV.

There were these old fences made of wooden poles and pots like these were stuck onto their tops.

Were the pots protecting the wood from rain water?

Could be.

I don’t know for sure (not that I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep without this information).

But what I know for sure is that it looks very nice in a picture.

And it absorbs various color shades perfectly, see?

Violet – no problem!

Little bit of graininess, way more contrast with some darkened edges here and there and it’s perfect – just like an old picture.

But still, why – WHY is it there?

 

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