Banana Bread, Cinnamon Bun, Brownie, Bread Pudding with Carmel Sauce

I made all this Banana Bread the other day. It had been about a week and the second loaf had barely been touched. It eyed me from afar, in the depths of the over crowded fridge. In that moment, i was inspired to make it into something new.

My roomy and I headed over to the grocery store to pick up supplies. As we wandered up and down the isles, i spotted, there on the half price shelf, a container of brownies and 3 iced cinnamon buns. I decided then, that these had to be involved in the Bread Pudding!! How could I not try and top my previous version.

Banana Bread, Cinnamon Bun, Brownie, Bread Pudding

Adapted from Paula Deen

Ingredients:

• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 5 large beaten eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 cup cubed Stale brownies
• 3 stale cinnamon buns cut up
• 1/2 cup white chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan.

1. Mix together the sugars, eggs, and milk in a bowl; add vanilla and butter.

2. Next, add the chips. Pour over cubed bread and let sit for 10 minutes.

3. Pour bread mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until set. Remove from oven. Top with Easy Caramel Sauce by Ree Drummond.

Easy Caramel Sauce

Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: 1 1/2 cups

Ingredients:

• 1 packed cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup half-and-half
• 4 tablespoons butter
• Pinch salt
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Mix the brown sugar, half-and-half, butter and salt in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook while whisking for 5 to 7 minutes, until it gets thicker.

2. Then, add the vanilla and cook another minute to thicken more.

3. Turn off the heat and allow the sauce to cool slightly. Next, pour the sauce into a jar. Refrigerate until cold.

Cashew Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Today I decided it was time to make some banana bread. The bananas having been turning more and more black everyday. I looked up a couple of recipes and decided I would make my own concoction. This recipe makes 2 loaf. You could always cut it i half if you like. I like to make big batches most of the time. That way I have leftovers that I can either freeze or turn into something new. All depends on what it is I am making.

I added raspberries, blueberries,white chocolate chips and milk chocolate chips this time. I was making it for friends and have plans for one of the loafs to turn into another special treat.

Cashew Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ingredients:

• 1 cup turbinado sugar
• 1 cup raw cane sugar
• 1 cup cashew butter
• 6 bananas, slightly mashed
• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 cup coconut milk + 4 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp all spice
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups vegan chocolate chips

Directions:

1. First, you cream together the sugars and cashew butter. Next, add the mashed bananas. I like to leave chunks of banana, but you don’t have to if you prefer not to do this.
2. Now, add the baking soda, vanilla, cinnamon, all spice and salt. Mix everything well.
3. Now its time to add the coconut milk and apple cider vinegar. After that you mix in the flour and oats.
4. Put the mixture into 2 greased loaf pans and bake at 350 for 1 hour. It may need up to ten minutes more. Just check and see if a toothpick comes out clean. Then place on your cookie rack to cool slightly before turning over onto the rack to cool completely.
   

Pear Apple Crisp

It finally cooled down here the past two days. We have been having major rain storms. It’s nice to open the windows. I can’t do it as often as I’d like. I love it. My girls love the rain too. It reminds us all of the years we spent in Seattle. My girls bundle up and run out in the down pour, getting completely soaked. The violent crashes of lightening are titillating. Our cats are the only ones who don’t like.

When I went to take my kids to school in the morning, the roads were covered in water. I drove to school a completely different way. I was a little scared of driving in the drenched roads. We don’t have a normal drain system here. It makes it very interesting. It’s not like driving in Seattle. The roads get very slippery. We’ve been having so much flooding this year. We are definitely blessed to live on the west side of town. The East side is where most of the flooding occurs.

I decided to make something my girls will actually love! They love crisps, cakes, cookies, steak, ribs and hamburgers. Half the vegan meals I make for me they never like, if I can even get them to try them. This desert was for them. This would be good to make when you have a bunch of people over, or if you have a big family. Since its just the three of us, we will have delectable leftovers for days. I also tried to make a whipped cream from coconut milk. I tried whipping it for 10 minutes and it wasn’t working. I didn’t let the can of coconut milk sit in the fridge long enough. I decided to just pour it on top anyways. It still tasted divine. I am glad that it didn’t turn out, because later I poured it over some warm, sliced, chocolate chip banana bread. It was the bomb. I suggest you try it.

Update*

I had some pictures I forgot to post. I might as well update this post with them.

Mixing the apples and pears with the ingredients.

Topping resembling course crumbs.

Hot and bubbly crisp fresh out of the oven.

Pear Apple Crisp

Ingredients:

• 5 pears
• 6 apples
• 2 Tbsp mango juice
• 2 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 cup raw cane sugar
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg

Topping:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup raw cane sugar
• 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup old- fashioned rolled oats
.• 1 cup earth balance, cold

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Peel and core the apples and pears. Cut into chunks. Put into a bowl. Coat with the mango and lemon juice.

3. Whisk the sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg all together. Mix in with the apple and pears. Pour into an 8×11 in baking dish.

4. Put all of the topping ingredients into a large bowl. Mix together with a pastry blender, until everything resembles coarse crumbs. Now pour over the apple and pear mix.

5. Bake for 50 minutes to an hour.

Serve with coconut whipped cream, or vegan ice cream.

Cinnamon Bun Blueberry Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce

I love Bread Pudding. I never actually experienced this wonderful dish until I was 28. I don’t think I even knew what is was beforehand. I started working at a new restaurant that served it as a dessert. I was in love. Since then I’ve made a bunch of different versions.

Anyways, I made a ton of cinnamon buns this week and came up with the idea of making them into bread pudding. Much better then letting them all go to waste. I normally make such big batches of buns. My family never seems to eat them all, before they start to go stale.

First I assemble all the ingredients that I will be using.

I actually only used 4 of these very large iced cinnamon buns. They measured 5 cups once they were all cut up into cubes.

Mix the blueberries and cubed cinnamon buns in a bowl.

Mix the rest of the ingredients all together and whisk.

Pour cinnamon bun, blueberry mix in a greased 8×11 in baking dish. Pour liquid ingredients over top. Then put the dish in the fridge and let sit for an hour. Any who, let’s get to the recipe.

Cinnamon Bun Bread Pudding

Ingredients:

•4 cinnamon buns (roughly 5 cups)
•1/2 cup blueberries
•2 Tbsp chia seeds ground
•6 Tbsp warm water
•2 1/2-3 cups soy milk
•1/2 cup maple syrup
•1 tsp vanilla
•2 tsp cinnamon
•1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

1. Cut up the cinnamon buns and combine in a bowl with blueberries.

2. Mix chia seeds with warm water to make your egg replacer. Mix with a fork and then set aside.

3. In a large bowl combine the last 5 ingredients. Then add the egg replacer. Whisk the liquid ingredients so that the egg replacer isn’t clumped together.

4. Place the cinnamon bun, blueberry mix in a greased 8×11 in pan. Then pour the liquid mixture over top. Let sit in the fridge for about 30 min.

5. Bake in a 350 F oven for 45-55 min or until the top is browned and bubbly.

Vanilla Icing:

•1 1/2 powdered sugar
•2 tablespoons coconut oil
•2 teaspoons vanilla
•1/4 cup soy milk

Directions:

1.Heat at the ingredients in a sauce pot on med-low and stir frequently. Drizzle onto bread pudding before serving.

Cover and refrigerate for the next day. It always tastes better after its been sitting over night.

*Feel free to use any egg replacer you desire in this recipe. This recipe could also be made at night and then cooked in the morning.

Super Simple Peach Cake

In tribute to a Shiny Star

This desert is really simple and super easy. Its really Yummy too! My cousin use to make it when i still lived in Utah. Years later in Wa, my mom had received the recipe from Jacquie. Ive been making it ever since. This time I added walnuts for added texture and nutrition ;) I hope you all like it. This ones for you Jacquie.
Love you and miss you

Ingredients

2 15oz cans of Peaches
1/2 package of cake mix of your choice
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
2 tbsp oil

Open cans and strain out liquid. Then pour peaches into a 9X13 cake pan. I chopped the walnuts myself and reserved 1/4 c. Now, mix 1/2 cup of walnuts with 1/2 of the cake mix. Pour the dry mixture onto the peaches. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 c. walnuts on top and drizzle with oil.

Bake 350 F oven for 40-55 min. Or until browned on top.