The Perfect Cake to Make with your Overripe Bananas.

We’ve all been there. Neglected to eat our bananas — forgetting about them as they turn brown on our kitchen counter. Don’t feel like making a fruit smoothie? Sick of making banana bread or muffins? Well I know I was. So I was on the search for a recipe that I could make with my overripe bananas that didn’t seem boring, or overdone  — like muffins. Not that I have anything against banana bread, or banana walnut muffins, etc., but I’ve been there before. I wanted new. I took home a few overripe bananas from work, without having a plan on what to make. All I knew was that it had to be good. I’ve done banana and chocolate chips together, but how about banana and chocolate? A chocolate banana cake — bingo! Found a recipe that looked simple enough, and I already had everything I needed, which never happens. The recipe I found paired this cake with a chocolate  ganache frosting, which, don’t get me wrong, looked really great, but meh, I didn’t want that. I wanted something more fun, something that goes well with bananas and chocolate, something like, say…coconut? Yep. I had it. I would make a toasted coconut cream cheese frosting. This cake would be PERFECT! I was right. It was. It was delicious in every way. The bananas didn’t overpower the chocolate,  it was more of a slight banana taste. The cake was perfectly moist, not too moist, not too dry. And cream cheese frosting goes well with um, everything? And all of you coconut haters, go away! This cake ain’t for you! Okay, well it can be if you omit the coconut, but I know it wouldn’t be the same. To me, toasted coconut looks so lovely. It’s definitely a cake I see myself making again in the future.

Chocolate Banana Cake
from Joy of Baking

2 cups granulated white sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 medium sized bananas)

1 cup warm water

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup safflower or canola oil

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place rack in the center of the oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick vegetable spray, a 9 x 13 inch (23 x 33 cm) pan. Set aside.

1. In a large bowl whisk together the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, mashed bananas, water, milk, oil, and vanilla extract.
3. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir, or whisk, until combined.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
5. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack. When completely cooled, frost.
6. Sprinkle toasted coconut on top of the cake and on the sides if you prefer.

Toasted Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
recipe by Me.

Ingredients:
1/2 Cup butter (1 Stick)
8 oz cream cheese
2-3 C confectioner’s sugar
1 tsp almond extract (can substitute Vanilla)
1-2 Cups flaked sweetened or unsweetened coconut.

1. With an electric or stand mixer, beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the vanilla extract while still mixing.
3. Add the powdered sugar slowly, until you reach your desired texture and sweetness. You may or may not use 3 cups of sugar, or you may use more! Use your judgement.
4. To toast the coconut, I did it over the stovetop, on a nonstick pan, on low heat, until slightly browned. Careful and make sure to watch it, as to not burn.

2010
03/27
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cakes.
dessert
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Sugar braised pork

Earlier this week I had purchased a new cookbook called The Filipino American Kitchen by Jennifer M. Aranas. My parents are both from the Philippines, but I never officially learned how to make any Filipino dishes. My great aunt was always the one who cooked for us, so it never occurred to me until lately that I want to learn. The only thing I really knew how to make was chicken and pork adobo, which is really the simplest recipe ever. What made me purchase this specific cookbook was what it said on the cover — “Traditional Recipes, Contemporary flavors.” I like how the author incorporates traditional Filipino food with American — contemporary flavors. To some people, authentic Filipino food might not sit well with their taste buds, and so I would recommend this cookbook for those people. The cookbook has beautiful photographs of the food, and the recipes seem fairly simple, but do contain some ingredients that would have to be purchased at either an Asian grocery store, or in the international aisle at a market or grocery store. Continue reading →

2010
03/27
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entrees.
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st. paddy’s day goodness.

happy late st. paddy’s day! i hope you all had your share of corned beef and cabbage. i know i did! i was really looking forward to st patrick’s day because i was going to be making my first corned beef brisket and cabbage (and potatoes, carrots, parnips). since cooking corned beef brisket usually takes hours, i decided to use the trusty crock pot. i had to work at 5 am, so before i left, i just popped everything in the crockpot, and hit go, and left it to do its magic. and magic did it do. the recipe i used was really a winner, incorporating carrots and parsnips, not just potatoes and cabbage, and also including a bottle of guiness! when i arrived home sometime around noon, i had to remove the parsnips and carrots, and pop in the potatoes and cabbage. my crock pot would barely hold it all, but i made do. the recipe suggested using a pineapple ham glaze to top the brisket, and broil for a few minutes. i did this, but not only did i do this, i decided to add bacon! what could make a dish better than it already is? bacon. just add bacon. that’s going to be my new motto — just add bacon. sounds good to me. so i cooked the bacon in the oven first for about 20 minutes, then when that was done, glazed the brisket, added the bacon, then added some more glaze. broil for only a few minutes, and make sure to not get distracted like i did. some of the bacon was burnt, but only a portion, so nothing to get crazy about. let me tell you. BEST. CORNED BEEF. EVER. it was soooo good. on st paddy’s day i usually eat it simply cooked with cabbage and potatoes, nothing fun, but always good, but i decided to do things different this year. do things different and you’ll almost always be glad you did (ALMOST, always). so i ate all this with a side of rice, cause i’m asian. i have to eat it with rice. =) it was great.

Continue reading →

2010
03/18
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cakes.
cupcakes
dessert
entrees.
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No, that’s not snot on my chocolate cake.

it’s avocado!

so, like many other people, i have a love for avocados. my love is so strong, that i would eat it with everything — including chocolate cake. i found this recipe on Joy The Baker‘s blog, and knew I had to try it out. We all know, I’ve failed veganism, and vegetarianism, but it doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy a good vegan or vegetarian meal every now and then. And vegan baking is something that I like to try every now and then, because it amazes me that I can make such a yummy dessert with no eggs or butter! and this cake, lemme tell you, it was good. it was moist and chocolatey, and didn’t contain even a tiny bit of butter or an egg. instead it used one small avocado and just a bit of vegetable oil. i think it may be one of my favorite chocolate cakes for sure. and what’s nice about it is that you don’t have to feel AS guilty as you normally would, because it’s made with healthy fats. but alas, don’t eat it thinking it’s a “healthy” choice for a dessert, because it still contains a nice amount of sugar, and a whole lotta sugar in the frosting. so sorry to burst any healthy people’s bubbles out there.

the chocolate cake itself doesn’t have a single hint of avocado, but the frosting, that’s another story. avocado butter cream, an Alton Brown recipe, tastes like avocado, but a sugar coated avocado — so good. to me it tasted similar to an avocado bubble shake, which by the way, are amazing. when i first tasted the frosting before putting it on the cake, i thought it was yum, but i wasn’t sure as to how it would taste on top of the cake. i was iffy. but alas, i frosted it, and hoped for the best — and i got the best. i never imagined how good an avocado frosting would be with chocolate cake, but then again, its an avocado. avocados officially taste good with everything, and need to be eaten with everything, including chocolate cake. and i know for sure that this recipe was a success, because my worst critic, my boyfriend, said the cake was really good. so once he gives it the okay, then i know i’m good to go.

so with that said, i highly advise you all to try out this cake, because if you are an avocado aficionado like myself, you will not be disappointed.

Vegan Chocolate Cake w/Avocado Buttercream Recipe from here.

2010
03/09
CATEGORY
cakes.
dessert
Vegetarian/Vegan Friendly.
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hawaiian at home.

When I was living in California, there was this little Hawaiian restaurant within walking distance from me — Hawaiian Drive Inn in Alameda, and i fell in love with it. My sister and brother in law introduced it to me as one of their “go to” spots — other than Chipotle. When I tasted it I couldn’t understand why Chipotle was even another option! Everything about this place was great (except for the soups, but come on, why order soup when there’s other delicious options). The first thing I decided to try there was the loco moco, which, if you aren’t familiar with Hawaiian meals, is two hamburger beef patties atop rice, and atop that two eggs any style and drenched in gravy. It’s such a delicious comfort food, and that’s what I loved about that restaurant. It was a small family run business, and the food tasted like good comfort home cooking. I tried most of the things off their menu, but it was the teriyaki steak and kalbi ribs that really got me hooked. Wait, it was also the BBQ chicken musubi and macaroni salad. Wait, I can’t forget the malasadas. Malasadas are Portuguese yeast donuts that are really popular in Hawaii. They are light and fluffy and fried and covered in sugar — um, yes please.

So anyways, where am I going with this? It’s been three months since I’ve eaten delicious Hawaiian food, and I’ve been craving it since I left. I figured that since the food there tasted so home made and comforting, than I could definitely make it at home and have it be just as good. So I decided to make a macaroni salad, malasadas, and the delicious teriyaki steak. It was definitely what I needed, but I’ll be honest, not as good as the Hawaiian Drive Inn. The steaks did turn out really full of flavor, and I’m sure they would have been bursting with flavor if I marinated them longer than two hours — overnight perhaps. I searched for different teriyaki sauce recipes, and I found a simple one that looked reliable at . I will definitely be going back to that recipe, because the flavor was perfect. Like I said, if I marinated the meat overnight, it would have been insanely good. I also wanted to use thin cut steak, but couldn’t find any, but the top round i used was just fine.


As for the macaroni salad, the restaurant’s had little bits of chicken in it, but I didn’t have any chicken, so it was just plain ol’ mac. I don’t think I seasoned it enough, as it tasted kind of bland, but nothing a little salt and pepper couldn’t fix up. The recipe I used was really simple, calling only for elbow macaroni, hellman’s mayonnaise, grated carrots, milk and salt & pepper. Simple.

And lastly, the malasadas. Oh my poor malasadas. They were nothing like the ones at the restaurant, but only because I don’t think I made them right. The dough never got to rise fully like it said it would in the recipe,but I went ahead and fried them anyways. They weren’t airy, and not as soft as they should have been, and pretty dark on the outside. Not terrible, but not amazing either.

Overall, the meal was tasty and filling, and I would make again, with some tweaks here and there. I know I’m going to work on my malasadas in the near future.

2010
02/24
CATEGORY
entrees.
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