Banana Bread with Sour Cream

Marthastewart.com

Is there anything better to make with black bananas than banana bread?? I truly believe the first person to ever make banana bread should be on the list of smartest people or best inventions or something. I mean how many foods are out there that spoil and they make such an awesome treat? I don't know about you but we LOVE banana bread at our house. Ok to be honest we love most breads but the sweeter ones are my kids favorite. I was looking for a recipe that called for less bananas because I only had a few. I stumbled across this one and the sour cream intrigued me. Sour cream makes things so moist and to be honest the first batch of this I made I didn't have enough sour cream so I used a little bit of plain yogurt to fill my 1/2 cup. This is now the new favorite!! It is sooo moist and even days later it is still moist.



Ingredients

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature, plus more for pan
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans


Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan; set aside. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, and beat to incorporate.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture, and mix until just combined. Add bananas, sour cream, and vanilla; mix to combine. Stir in nuts, and pour into prepared pan.

Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Let rest in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool.




*****Variations

To make the cream cheese frosting-filled banana bread as featured on "The Martha Stewart Show," in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together 6 ounces cream cheese, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract until smooth. Once bread is baked and cooled, halve horizontally. Using an offset spatula, spread cream cheese frosting evenly over bottom half. Top with remaining half; slice and serve.

Homemade Hamburger Buns (or hotdog buns)

allrecipe.com

I really get tired of having to run to town for one thing really it SuCkS!!!! Lets be honest you go in for one thing and you come out with 12 and most of it isn't things you need!!! Ok maybe its just me but it never fails I swear! Anyways we try and do burger night once a week because my family loves burgers and it also helps because we don't need to go out for a good burger!

So I pulled a package of ground beef out and realized I didn't have buns and that's when I decided I was going to find a good recipe and make my own.

I made this recipe early in the am so that if it wasn't good I could make something else but I really liked the taste the problem was they weren't big enough. I made another batch and paid attention to the size more and they turned out perfect!! The burgers tasted soo much better to me with these than the store boughten buns!! This recipe says it makes 12 but I found it actually only made about 6/8 for the right size. I DOUBLED my batch and made some into rolls just to eat because any time I pull fresh bread out the hubs has to eat one hot!!

The results were amazing!!! I don't think I have had a better burger seriously!!! I cut the buns in half and toasted both sides. You could butter/egg the tops and sprinkle with sesame seeds if you wanted too.




1 cup milk

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup butter

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 (.25 ounce) package instant yeast

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 egg


Directions:

In a small bowl add milk, water, and butter. Cook in microwave until butter is melted. (the original recipe said to cook on the the stove but this is quicker) DO NOT LET MILK BOIL

In a large bowl, mix together 1 3/4 cup flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix milk mixture into flour mixture, and then mix in egg. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. (I let mine rise for about an hour before rolling out into balls)

Divide dough into 6-12 equal pieces. Shape into smooth balls, and place on a greased baking sheet. Flatten slightly. Cover, and let rise for 30 to 35 minutes.

Bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) for 10 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown.

For Hot Dog Buns: Shape each piece into a 6x4 inch rectangle. Starting with the longer side, roll up tightly, and pinch edges and ends to seal. Let rise about 20 to 25 minutes. Bake as above.


Yields about 6-8 regular sized hamburger buns