Moist Chocolate Chip Banana Nut Bread

I can’t get enough of that chocolate chip banana nut loaf from Starbucks and this tastes exactly like it…well to me. Try it and let me know what you think!

1 1/2 c. sugar
1 cup of cream cheese
½ c of butter
1 tbs. of almond paste
1 package of banana baby food
1 cup of mini chocolate chips
3/4 tsp. salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3 c. flour
3 bananas, crushed
1 c. pecan, diced sm

Preheat oven to 350 degrees:

-Cream first 4 ingredients. Add banana baby food.
-Mix eggs in, one at a time. Add soda, salt, and flour while mixing at medium speed.
-Add chocolate chips and then mix in bananas and nuts.
-Bake in greased and floured 9 x 5 inch loaf pans for 1 hour until toothpick comes out clean.

Cranachan Café

While in Glasgow visiting friends I found myself having lunch at the Cranachan Café in the unlikely (for Scotland) bourgeoisie shopping arcade of Princes Square.  The café’s specialty is as advertised “Coffee & Modern Scottish Fayre” and it is mighty good fare, despite its cutsie Scottish spelling.  

Off their menu I chose to order the Cullen Skink soup ( I’m always attracted to menu items that could easily be misread or mispronounced…I like Poisson) which is a traditional Scottish soup consisting of smoked haddock pieces swimming in a creamy broth with leeks and corn.  Cranachan claimed this was their specialty soup which meant it could either go terribly right or wonderfully wrong, with absolutely no room for anything in between.  Thus, I was anticipating being served a liquid version of Janet Jackson and her exposed nipples, a hit or miss affair depending on mood and timing.

When the dish arrived it had an appearance a bit like that of a  leek and potato soup  and it was also  served with two pieces of hardy looking brown bread.  I could not help but feel I  stepped into a minimal security cafeteria prison where a white collar criminal was about to pinch my credit card details at any moment. My concern thankfully vanished with the first spoonful of Cullen Skink:  the creamy broth had a slightly heavy semi-sweetness about it while the haddock was a melting excursion of meatiness. These flavours made a wonderfully soothing winter soup reticent of a proper New England chowder (found mostly in New York where no actual New Englander is available to perform a culinary massacre).  What made the dish particularly delicious, however, was the brown bread that was served with the soup ( I must admit that if I miss anything by living in the UK it is decent bread). It was flavorsome and absorbent bread perfect for dipping into soup (and perhaps even for some sharp cheddar and Irish butter), the kind of bread one would like to be served for their last living meal. I wish Mary, Queen of Scots, had this delightful bread before her head ended up decorating one of Queen Elizabeth’s front parlors. Imagine the scandal of Elizabeth trying to wipe a smirk of the dead Mary’s face! Alas, even in death Mary disappointed the Scots (and me) but fortunately, back in present times, the bread was a very tasty affair for me.

Unfortunately, however, the combination of the heavy bread and creamy soup meant I was too stuffed to have pudding with my friends, who ended up ordering a sizeable scone (think face, body and stringy limbs of that round headed scientist from the Muppets). I did try the other thing Cranachan advertises, coffee and that happily was a very nice cup of coffee. I highly recommend you visit Cranachan if you find yourself in Glasgow and in need of comfort food, pleasant service and perhaps even some refreshing décor (Timorous Beasties design marks are found throughout the premises).

(For more details please visit Cranachan’s website: http://www.cranachancafe.co.uk/ ).

Apple and Quince Bread Pudding

There is nothing more comforting than a big bowl of warm bread pudding right out of the oven. My father generally made bread pudding with raisins, but I found the addition of apples and quinces makes this dish heartier…and dare I say more delicious?

1 loaf of Italian bread (cut into cubes)

2 cups of heavy cream

1 peeled/diced quince

1 peeled/diced gala apple

3/4 cup of sugar

4 eggs

3 tbs of butter

¼ ts of cinnamon

½ ts of vanilla

¼ cup of whiskey (Johnny Walker Black)

Preheat Oven to 350

Melt butter in pan with whiskey and throw apples and quince. Cook until tender. Remove and let cool

In the meanwhile cut Italian bread into bite size pieces. Mix together cream, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon until well blended. Grease oven safe bowl. Toss in bread a fruit mixture and let sit for 10 minutes.

Cook for 45-60 minutes until golden brown. If you like it creamy, cook for only 45 minutes.

My Love of Asian Buns

“Come along inside… We’ll see if tea and buns can make the world a better place.”

-Kenneth Grahame, ‘The Wind in the Willows‘

I was introduced to the wonderful world of Asian buns - both steamed and baked -  when a new coffeehouse named ‘Honey Cabin’ opened up a few blocks away from my house. I remembering walking in for the first time and being hit in the face with a waft of sweet/savory bread aromas. It smelled amazing. I was already enthralled before I got to the counter to see the array of delicious bready foods on display. It soon became my favorite place on the Island to eat both for its delicious food and insanely cheap prices.

My saliva is increasing just looking at it

I created a list of new favorite snacks. The coconut cream buns were one of their truly irresistible treats. Fluffy sweet dough, baked to perfection,  stuffed with a not-too-sweet coconut flaked cream, and then covered in coconut flakes. Sometimes the bun was stuffed with an eggy custard, or a sweet red bean paste, or even a chocolate/peanut butter combo. All for under $1.  For $5 I would stuff my bag with goodies and eat them all throughout the day during my classes - needless to say I fully blame Honey Cabin for my increase in mass during my college years.

Then there is the delicious roasted pork bun  - my ultimate downfall. Savory moist meat packed into a light and fluffy bun with just the hint of sweetness surrounding it. Never too heavy and always the right price. I could literally eat 5 of them in one sitting.  Ever so often I would go for the steamed buns - the best and fluffiest you could ever order.

Honey Cabin closed a few years ago and I have beeen lamenting the loss ever since. Now I have to travel to get my Asian bun fix. Here are a few places I go out of my way for:

Fay Da Bakery - you can also pick up a great bubble tea here

327 Canal Street

Golden Fung Wong Bakery

41 Mott Street

Canal Bakery

242 Canal Street

Fulton Stall Market Opens!

Of course I had to go to the opening day of the Fulton Stall Market at the South Street Seaport this year on May 22nd. It was a lovely 80-something degree day and I was parading around NYC with my sis-in-law Marianne. We decided to check out the market around lunch time  - figuring we’d get a bunch of stuff and eat lunch outside. We did the free taste test run throughout all the stands and then made our way backwards to purchase.

The Positives:

Sang Lee Farms had delicious veggies-to-go with ginger dipping sauces and garlic dipping sauces - note to all moms in the area: these are great snacks for young ones. The boys at the Valley Shepherd Creamery were more than generous with their samples (I’m almost positive one of them was hitting on Marianne ) and their cheese was delicious. Try the Manchego if they have it or the cheese with nettles. I had never tried nettle cheese before but it was actually pretty tasty! Bread Alone had excellent baguettes and also produced a yummy and smooth lemon/blueberry pie.

The Negatives:

Its just too small. It hardly feels like a market at all. With all the delicious food in the area, why such a small space? Plus its next to the seaport which I guess is a plus if you are a tourist but I always find it to be a bit of a drag. I’m not in LOVE with the seaport crowd and never have been. I was also a bit disappointed that Yummy Coffee only had beans to purchase. No samples. No drinks available. Its a hot Spring day in Manhattan and you can’t offer me iced coffee drink options? WHY? Maybe I’ll want to buy the beans after tasting how delicious your coffee is?! Heck - even local wineries give out taste samples…C’MON!

All in all it was a nice experience and if you are in the area - you should go….even if it’s just for the cheese boys.

http://www.fultonstallmarket.com/home.html

My Foodie Crush on Daniel Boulud

Daniel Boulud is quite possibly the classiest NYC celebrity chef ever. End of Story.  Now there is talk of a new Boulud restaurant and much like a 12 year old girl waiting for the Jonas Brothers show to come on - I am on the edge of my seat. There are few things we know. We know it will be located on the Bowery, we know it will have an intense beer menu, and we know he will focus on bistro/casual food.

My foodie crush with Daniel started when I was in high school. Around 1998/1999 I subscribed to all the culinary magazines I could afford -  Bon Appetit and Gourmet Magazine. Since I was still unemployed, I would save up my lunch money and spend it on both of these fine publications. Any chef/restaurant that was featured in the ‘Best Of’ section soon became my obsession. Daniel’s name was often brought up and was always followed with nothing but praise. His gem of a restaurant - appropriately named “Daniels” - was outrageously expensive compared to my high school budget of nada. I had to put my dreams of indulging in the luxury that was Daniels on the back-burner.

That is until 2002, my boyfriend (now husband) was turning 20 and I had saved $300 to take him to the classiest restaurant I could think of - I even bought myself a $125 Guess dress to wear to the occasion. This was already shaping up to be the most indulgent night of my life to date. I had never spent more than $75 on anything up until then. We arrived at 5:45 - the earliest time they had since we needed to catch the 10pm express bus back to Staten Island. The atmosphere was intense, lush reds and gold. I felt special automatically. Dave and I were terribly awkward ordering the food and trying to be as proper as we possibly could. The waitstaff was incredibly sweet considering how young and poor  we were - they treated us the same way they treated their other patrons - although I wouldn’t blame them if they snicked in the kitchen on these dining noobs. I don’t remember everything I ate. Only colors, scents, and flavors. Skate in brown butter, olive-rosemary bread, succulent sea scallops, and warm madelines straight from the oven. It was the best dinner I had the pleasure of savoring at age 19. After that night, I was hooked. I was hooked on his flare, his classiness, his flawless execution, and most importantly his ability to make my mouth water.

I returned to Daniels several times after that night, each time just as delicious as the first. Then I branched out to the other Daniel Boulud NYC restaurants: DB Bistro Moderne, Cafe Boulud, and Bar Boulud. Each restaurant having its own unique take on food and presentation - yet still managing to stay very ‘Boulud’ in execution. Now I hear he’s got a new restaurant opening this spring on Bowery: DBGB. I will be there opening week. Mark my words.I will eat and drink and be happy surrounded by all things Boulud.

Usually I steer clear of LES, finding very little - if any - charm in its neighborhood shenanigans. However for you Boulud I would walk from South Ferry to the door.

More to come on DBGB at a later date…