Banana Bread

I am a picky banana eater. I only like mine barely ripe. Brown, spotted bananas? Yuck! Unless...they are in banana bread! So, when I noticed this morning that we had three spotty looking bananas, I decided to make some bread for B's breakfast this week.


Banana Bread

1/2 c margarine, softened
1 c sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 c mashed banana (3 bananas)
2 c all-purpose whole wheat flour
1 t baking soda

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour a 9x5 baking dish. Cream margarine and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs, then bananas. Add flour and soda, stirring until just combined. Pour into prepared pan and bake for about an hour. Enjoy!

Apple Crisp

Due to our produce delivery service, we always have an abundance of apples. So, why not make a delicious apple crisp?!


Apple Crisp

4 apples peeled, cored and chopped
dash of ground cinnamon
dash of ground nutmeg
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c all-purpose flour
4 T butter, diced
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350. Place apples in a pie pan and dust with cinnamon and nutmeg. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. In a food processor, combine sugar and flour. Add butter and salt and process until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Sprinkle over apples. Bake for 30 minutes.

Mushroom Cheddar Burgers

I got mushrooms in my produce delivery yesterday, and we're having hamburgers tonight, so I decided to throw in some cheddar cheese and make something delicious!


Mushroom Cheddar Burgers

1 lb ground beef
1/2 c shredded cheddar

8 oz mushrooms, finely chopped

1 small onion, finely chopped

1/2 t salt
1/2 t pepper
1/2 t garlic powder

Combine all ingredients, form into 4 patties. Have your husband grill and serve :)

Martha's Lighter Eggplant Parmesan

Thanks to my produce delivery, I have eggplant. This is normally not something I buy a lot of, so I did a little digging to find the perfect way to prepare it tonight. Martha to the rescue! This was delicious and very easy!


Lighter Eggplant Parmesan--via marthastewart.com

1 large eggplant--2 lbs--sliced 1/2 in thick crosswise
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper
1 c skim milk
3 T all-purpose flour
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 c marinara sauce
1/2 c grated mozzarella
1/3 c grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 450. Arrange eggplant on two rimmed baking sheets. Brush both sides with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. I also used some garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Bake 20-25 minutes; until golden brown and very tender--turning sides halfway through.

Meanwhile, make the sauce. Off heat, whisk 1/4 milk, flour and garlic into a medium saucepan. Gradually whisk in remaining 3/4 cup of milk and 1/2 cup of marinara sauce. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook about 2-3 minutes until sauce has thickened.

Spread 1/4 cup of marinara sauce into the bottom of a shallow 2 quart baking dish. Alternate layers of baked eggplant with pink sauce. Dollop with remaining 1/4 cup of marinara. Sprinkle with mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake in upper part of oven until brown; about 10-15 minutes.

Strawberry Shortcake

Sorry it's been awhile! I have been away on vacation and super busy since my return. If you read my personal blog, you know I like to make lists of things to do each season. This summer's list can be found here. As you will see, One of my "to-do's" was to make homemade strawberry shortcake. I made this for our July 4th cookout, and not only was it very simple, it was amazingly delicious!


Strawberry Shortcake

1 1/4 c milk, divided
1/4 c reduced fat sour cream
3 T sugar
2 1/4 c Bisquick
1 pkg instant vanilla pudding
1 8 oz tub Cool Whip, thawed and divided
4 c sliced strawberries (I did 2 c strawberries, 1 c blueberries and 1 c raspberries)
1/3 c sugar

Preheat oven to 425. Beat 1/2 cup of the milk, the sour cream and 3 tablespoons of sugar with a wire whisk until well blended. Stir in Bisquick until just moistened. Spread evenly into a 9 inch round cake pan. Bake 12-15 minutes or until top is golden brown. Remove cake from pan and allow to cool on a wire rack. Add remaining 3/4 cup of milk to the dry pudding mix. Beat with a wire whisk until well blended. Stir in half the Cool Whip. Toss berries in 1/3 c sugar and set aside. Cut cake in half horizontally to make two layers. Place bottom layer on serving plate. Top with half the berry mixture and spread with the pudding mixture. Cover with top cake layer and spread with the remaining Cool Whip. Top with remaining berries.

Summer Tortellini via momsie

momsie is my favorite local mom blog (other than my own column at Modern Parent, of course!) Beth is awesome and her blog is a great way to keep your finger on the pulse of what's going on for kids in Charlotte. She is currently working on keeping her main dinner dishes to seven or less ingredients, and this is one of her recipes that I am dying to try!

Summer Tortellini

Delicious Hamburgers

Alright, y'all. Remember last summer, when I was on a quest to find the perfect burger recipe? Well, I'm back at it again! Barry and I just love burgers--whether they're made of beef, turkey, chicken, lamb or bison (need to try to make one of those at home!)--so, I'll be testing out more ways to make them this summer. This weather is just perfect for grillin', don't you agree?!

Delicious Hamburgers

1 1/2 lbs ground beef (y'all KNOW I used 96/4)

1/2 an onion, finely chopped

1 t soy sauce

1 t Worcestershire sauce

1 egg, beaten

1 1 oz envelope dry onion soup mix

1 clove minced garlic

1/2 T garlic powder

1 t dried parsley

1/2 t crushed rosemary

1 t Italian seasoning blend

Preheat your grill for high heat. In a large bowl, mix beef, onion, soy sauce, Worcestershire, egg, dry onion soup mix, minced garlic, garlic powder, parsley, rosemary and Italian seasoning blend. Form into four patties. Grill until well done. ENJOY!