Almond Flour Banana Bread

Almond Flour Banana Bread

I don't know that I have much to say about this banana bread except that I'm obsessed with it right now. There's no added fat/oil (until you slather butter on it before eating). It's higher in protein that banana bread made with wheat flour. It's gluten-free. It's really super delicious too. Great option if you have to be gluten/wheat-free.

Almond Flour Banana Bread

     Adapted from Mama Knows Gluten Free

Ingredients: 

• 2 medium-large bananas
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups superfine blanched almond flour

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350°Fahrenheit. Grease/butter one 9" x 5" loaf pan or two mini loaf pans (5 3/4" x 3 1/4"). 
• In a large bowl mash the bananas until smooth. Add the baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Whisk until combined.
• Add the eggs, vanilla extract, and granulated sugar. Whisk to combine.
• Add the almond flour to the banana mixture. Use a silicone spatula to mix until thoroughly combined.
• Pour/Scrape batter into prepared pan(s).
• Bake on the center rack: single loaf for 50 minutes; 2 mini loaves for about 35 minutes--or until bread bounces back instead of denting upon pressing lightly on top.
• Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the pan before turning out onto a wire rack to cool further. 
• Slice with a serrated knife and enjoy.

Wrap leftovers in foil or plastic wrap.

Liege Waffles

Liege Waffles

Liege Waffles: a buttery yeasted dough studded with Belgian pearl sugar and baked on a waffle iron. I've been wanting to taste these and make them for years. I finally tasted them maybe two years  ago(?) at waffle truck at a bar in Marietta, GA, on St. Patrick's Day. Then a trivia teammate shared with me ones she had made. That was the clincher. I had to make them--and here they finally are, in all their glory. The waffle dough isn't sweet at all, but the sugar pearls add just the right sweetness and crunch on the outside. 

Be sure to read the cleaning note at the end. These make a mess of your waffle iron. 

Shoutout to the blog Whipped for sharing the recipe.

Liege Waffles
Adapted from Whipped

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons white sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup butter, melted and cooled
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 cup Belgian pearl sugar

Instructions:

• To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast. Then stir ingredients with whisk to blend completely.
• Add the water and mix on low. 
• Add eggs, one at a time until they are all completely incorporated. Then mix in vanilla.
• Slowly add the melted & cooled butter, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally to make sure it's evenly mixed.
• Tidy up the dough by scraping the sides with a silicone/rubber spatula.
• Cover with a tea towel, plastic wrap, or a clean plastic grocery bag, and allow to sit and rise for about 1 hour.
• Once dough has doubled, add the pearl sugar and fold it in gently, making sure to evenly distribute the pearls.
• Allow dough to sit again for about 15 minutes. 
• After dough has sat for 7-10 minutes, plug in your waffle iron (a Belgian style waffle iron is best for this because you get the thick waffles).
• When the dough and waffle iron are ready, scoop 1/4 to 1/3 cup blobs of dough onto the hot waffle iron. Close and allow to cook until medium golden brown, or browned to your liking. My waffle iron has number settings, and I set mine to 3.5 out of 5. It beeps when they're perfectly browned. 
• Use tongs or two forks to carefully move the cooked waffles to a cooling rack to cool. The sugar pearls have melted and you don't want to burn your fingers on the molten sugar.
• Allow waffles to cool about 5 minutes before enjoying. Repeat waffle cooking until all dough is cooked.
• Store uneaten cooled waffles in an airtight container in the fridge. You can also freeze these. Reheat by toasting on a light setting. 

Makes about 19 smaller waffles or 9-10 medium sized waffles

Re: Cleaning the waffle iron

While the waffle iron was still hot, I unplugged it and then I poured in water to cover the melted sugar and go up the sides about halfway.

After a few minutes I started using a paper towel held by my pair of mini-tongs to wipe it. I then used the same paper towel to soak up the water. I had to wring out the paper towel several times, but it was sturdier than I thought.

The waffle iron has never looked cleaner.

Banana Nut Bread II

 

Somehow I ended up with loads of super ripe bananas in my kitchen this weekend, so I decided to take my favorite pumpkin bread recipe and modify it for bananas. Since the bananas were so ripe and sweet, I cut back on the sugar, and I also cut back on the water in the recipe because it seemed like the original 2/3 cup would be too much. I subbed vanilla for the fall spices, and you know what? This is now my favorite banana bread recipe.

I don't know if it's the combination of white and brown sugar, or just the balance of all the ingredients, but this is just a good, solid, sweet banana bread. 

Feel free to leave the nuts out if it's not your thing. It will be just as delicious.

Banana Nut Bread II


INGREDIENTS 

• 15 oz mashed (very) ripe banana (I actually weighed mine)
• 4 eggs, room temperature
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 1/4 cups white sugar
• 1 1/4 cups light brown sugar
• 3 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 
• Butter and flour three 7x3 inch loaf pans.
• In a large bowl, mix together mashed banana, eggs, oil, water, vanilla and sugars until well blended. 
• In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. 
• Stir the dry ingredients into the banana mixture until just blended. 
• Fold in the nuts.  
• Pour into the prepared pans.
• Bake for about 50-60 minutes in the preheated oven. 
• Loaves are done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  
• Wrap tightly in aluminum foil and freeze what you won't eat in two days.

Makes three medium loaves

My pan must not have been level.

Babka (Two Kinds: Chocolate and Pecan Cinnamon)

Chocolate Babka

Pecan Cinnamon Babka

Twice the Babka awesomeness

I've been seeing lots of posts on Instagram of people making babka, or at least making breads using the technique of slicing a rolled log of dough lengthwise and twisting. And since this seems to be a summer of baking and blogging, AND since I purchased another pair of 7" x 3" loaf pans, I decided it was time I tried my hand at babka, even though I've never tasted it before now.

If you want a more straightforward recipe that does not involve making small loaves of two different kinds of babka, you may want to look at the recipes from Food & Wine and Butternut Bakery linked here. I'm just going to describe what I did because it's all I know.

What is produced from the recipe below is even more delightful than I expected. Crisp on the outside, soft and buttery on the inside bread with such flavorful fillings that made my mouth and my tummy very happy. I think I like the pecan cinnamon version slightly better because it develops this super tasty, chewy, caremely crust. The pecan flavor really stands out as I cut the amount of cinnamon in half, and it is just so, so good. I can't even do it justice with words. You just have to try it.

I've said too much already. If you've never made or eaten babka before, I think this is a solid recipe. If you're used to baking, you can probably adjust pan sizes to fit what you have at home. I think if you have standard size loaf pans, you could used these same amounts and just end up with one loaf of each kind.

Go ahead and do it. You know you want to.


Babka
Adapted from Food & Wine and Butternut Bakery

Bread Ingredients:

• 4 cups King Arthur All Purpose Flour
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 1 cup milk
• 2 1/4 teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
• 10 tablespoons butter (salted) cut into tablespoons, room temperature

Chocolate Filling Ingredients:

• 4.5 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped (I used 13 Dove Milk Chocolate Promises)
• 1.5 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped (I used 4 Dove Dark Chocolate Promises)
• 6 tablespoons butter
• 3/4 cup finely ground chocolate wafer cookies (I used Oreos w/ filling scraped out)
• 1.5 tablespoons honey

Pecan Cinnamon Ingredients:

• 4 tablespoons butter, room temperature
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup crushed toasted pecans

Chocolate Glaze Ingredients:

• 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (I used 18 Dove Dark Chocolate Promises)
• 2 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped (I used 6 Dove Milk Chocolate Promises)
• 6 tablespoons butter, cut into chunks
• 1 tablespoon light corn syrup

Instructions for Dough:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, and yeast.
• In a small bowl or liquid measuring cup, whisk together the milk, egg, and egg yolk.
• Using the dough hook attachment, mix at low speed until ingredients are incorporated. Then turn to medium and mix until dough is smooth, about 5 minutes.
• Add all of the butter and mix on low speed until butter in completely incorporated. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides down the sides as needed during mixing. Continue mixing until you have a uniform "tacky dough."
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and then spray with non-stick cooking spray.
• Divide dough in half, and form each half into a flat square, about 3/4 to 1 inch in thickness.
• Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Instructions for the Chocolate Filling:

• In the top of a double boiler, melt the chopped chocolates with the butter. Stir occasionally until smooth and then allow to cool to room temperature.
• Once cooled, stir in ground cookies and honey.

Instructions for the Pecan Cinnamon Filling:

• Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl.

Assembling the Babka:

• Line 4 loaf pans (7" x 3") with parchment paper (see photo below). Then butter the parchment paper with a thin layer of butter. Set aside.
• Remove dough squares from the refrigerator, and on a surface lightly greased with vegetable oil, roll out one of the dough squares to a rectangle approximately 11" x  20".
• Spread one of the fillings evenly over the surface of the dough using an offset spatula. Leave a margin on one of the long sides of about 1/4 inch.
• Using the edge of a bench scraper if necessary, roll the dough lengthwise fairly tightly. Press gently to seal the end once you're done rolling.
• Cut the dough log into two equal logs.
• Cut each of the shorter logs in half lengthwise.
• Flip one of the halves so that you have one narrow end and one wide end for each of the loaf ends (see pics below).
• Carefully twist the two halves keeping the cut sides up.
• Place the twisted loaf into a prepared pan and then repeat with the other half log.
• Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise until puffed, but not necessarily doubled, about 2 hours.
• Repeat with the other dough square and prepared filling.

Baking the Babka:

• While loaves rise, preheat the oven to 365 degrees Fahrenheit (I combined two different recipes, so I somewhat averaged the recommended temps).
• When loaves have risen, bake at 365 degrees for about 38-42 minutes, or until well browned and springy to the touch on top.
• Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack in the loaf pans for about 5 minutes before removing the bread from the pans using the parchment lining to lift the loaves up and out.
• Allow loaves to cool completely on a wire cooling rack.

Instructions for the Chocolate Babka Glaze:

• In a double boiler, melt the chopped chocolates with the butter. Stir until smooth and then stir in the corn syrup. 
• Spoon the glaze evenly over the cooled chocolate babka loaves.
• Allow chocolate to set before cutting the chocolate babka. This will take 30-60 minutes.

Once babkas are cooled and set, you can slice and eat.

Store uneaten babka in a sealed bag or container, freezing leftovers you do not plan to eat within two days.

Makes 4 small loaves

This is such an involved recipe, I have way too many pics. These are just a few. Click on this link to see a video of how the folks at Food and Wine made the chocolate Babka. They formed it differently than I did, but it's a good way to see much of the process.

3" x 7" on the left & 4" x 8.25" (standard) on right

Scrumptious pecan cinnamon Babka

Delicious chocolate Babka

Mini Yeasted Streusel Coffee Cakes

Mini Yeasted Coffee Cakes

This coffee cake is a family favorite. My grandma would always have at least one in the freezer to feed us when we went to visit her. Today I decided to make a small, muffin sized version just for fun. They are cute and tasty. Not very sweet, but they taste just like I remember: yeasty, a little buttery, with just enough sweet cinnamony crispness on top. 

I plan to freeze most of these and enjoy them gradually over the next few weeks.

Mini Yeasted Streusel Coffee Cakes

Ingredients:

Dough

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 cup milk 
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast (If using regular dry yeast, reduce milk to 3/4 cup and proof yeast in 1/4 cup barely warm water before adding to the cooled milk & butter.)
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• zest of 1/2 lemon
• 3 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Streusel Topping

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter, cut into slices or chunks

Instructions:

1. Scald the milk in a heavy saucepan over medium-high heat (scalding means to bring to a boil), and then remove from heat immediately.  Place 1/4 cup butter in a large heat-proof bowl and pour scalded milk over it.  Stir to melt butter and then let mixture cool to lukewarm or a little cooler. While milk/butter cools, mix the flour and instant yeast in a medium sized bowl.

2.  Once milk/butter has cooled somewhat, add the sugar, salt, eggs, lemon zest, and flour/yeast mixture.  Stir with a sturdy spoon until completely mixed.  Dough will be the consistency of a thick batter, more than a dough.  Transfer dough to a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set in warm place to rise until double in bulk. 

Note: For this batch, I allowed the dough to rise for about 30 minutes, and then I placed it to finish rising over night in the refrigerator. In the morning, I set it on the counter to come to room temperature while I prepared the muffin pans.

3.  Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Prepare streusel topping by mixing the sugar, flour, and cinnamon in a medium bowl.  Add butter chunks and mix with your fingers until all the butter is incorporated into the dry ingredients.  Squeeze and crumble so you have a nice semi-chunky consistency.

4.  Butter 24 muffin cups (2 12-cup pans). Once dough has risen, punch down and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Flatten the dough into a rectangle, about 1/2 inch thick. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut rectangle into 24 somewhat evenly sized squares. If some are larger and some are smaller, trim off some of the large ones and add it to the smaller ones.

5. Place one dough square in each of the buttered muffin cups. Spoon about 1 1/2 tablespoons of streusel on top of each dough square. Cover with plastic wrap.

6. Bake at 400° for about 15-18 minutes, or until you see some of the dough starting to brown. Set muffin pans on wire racks to cool for at least 5 minutes before removing the mini coffee cakes with an offset spatula or dull knife. Set unpanned mini coffee cakes on a wire rack to cool further. Freeze leftovers by wrapping individual coffee cakes in plastic wrap and then placing in a large zip top freezer bag. Defrost by microwaving at 20 second intervals until desired heat level is reached.

Makes 24 mini coffee cakes