Trying a New Banana Bread Recipe

My regular readers know I often bake Banana Bread. It isn't that I love Banana Bread so much. It is more because I hate to waste food and even though I try very hard to buy just the right amount of bananas, I often don't eat them all before they get overripe. Sometimes I freeze the bananas with skins on for later use when I don't have time or interest in baking the bread. When I make it, I try to give some away or freeze some for another day. There is only so much banana bread a person can eat.

After freezing some bananas last week and having a few more that were beyond eating this week, I decided I needed to bake banana bread once again. I do not really like the recipe I've been using so I took inspiration from a new and delightful blog I've been following called "Food and Thrift".

I didn't follow the original recipe but have made a few adjustments (added oats, oat bran and pecans and omitted the granola and one egg). I've added oats and oat bran to help keep the blood sugar in check. I should really be using whole wheat flour also but I don't have any on hand today.  See the original, rather delicious looking recipe here . 

I think I may at last have found the kind of banana bread recipe for which I've been searching.  One that isn't overly sweet or too "sticky" and has a bit more substance than what I've been used to making.  Next time I can omit the chocolate chips and pecans for an even healthier bread.

The batter has a smooth consistency.

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Banana Bread

¾ cup all purpose flour

1 cup uncooked oats

¼ cup oat bran
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg*
3 ripe mashed bananas
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup milk
1/3 Crisco shortening (you can use oil)
dash of salt
½ cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ chopped pecans

* The original recipe calls for 2 eggs and I think 2 eggs is best to hold the bread together when sliced.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher. In a medium bowl cream the sugar and shortening together, then add the milk and egg. Mix well. In a large bowl, add the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients, then add the bananas, chocolate chips and pecans. Turn the mixture into a bread loaf pan.  If you want, you can sprinkle some chocolate chips on the top. Bake at 350 degrees for the first 30 minutes. Lower the temperature to 325 degrees for an extra 10-30 minutes until the bread is done.

Cooling the banana bread. It looks and smells delicious. Taste test will come after cooling.

To test for doneness, you can press your fingertip gently in the middle of the loaf.  If it springs back and isn't too moist it should be done.  Alternatively, if you have chocolate chips on top like I do, you can insert a toothpick in the middle of the bread.  If it is free of batter (clean) when you pull it out, the bread should be done.

Taste Test: 

This is by far the best banana bread I've ever made or  tasted. It wasn't very sweet and so the chocolate chips did not overpower the bread.  I really enjoyed the addition of the oats and pecans which gave it added crunch.  It was difficult to make "clean" slices of the bread because the chocolate chips melted in my hand and stuck to the bread knife. However if you aren't trying to be dainty for guests, this is probably okay. As for me, I think I will be making this recipe more often and will omit the chocolate chips and substitute walnuts for pecans.  This will reduce calories.

Another Week Ends

Hello everyone,

It is the end of another week. I trust that means that most of you will have a few days off from your usual schedule and will be able to recharge and refresh.

I was out at some large pharmacies late yesterday and decided to take some sky photos while out. The first three photos I am sharing with you were taken in the early evening on West Broadway, west of Cambie Street in Vancouver.

I like the swirling clouds in the sky.  I am not sure what the building with all the round windows is, but I think it is part of the Vancouver General Hospital complex of buildings.

On the opposite side of the street we have these interesting fountain sculptures. These sculptures have been here for years and years. I love the idea of water and fountains on a busy city street but I think it would be nicer if they enhanced the area with more gushing water and public seating so people could sit down and enjoy the sound of water.  There is a restaurant with a patio just behind or beyond the sculptures but it is a little too far away for the patrons to get any benefits of moving water.

These petunias are from my garden. I thought I would see how close I could get to the inside of the flower. My series of photos shows that once I get too close to the center there is not enough light to get a clear photo.  It was just a quick experiment. I'm sure that one can angle the flower petals differently to get better shots or one would need a better camera.

Please join in and see what others are doing for SkyWatch Friday and Floral Friday Fotos. 

Have a wonderful weekend!

Nearing the End of the Day on Car Free Sunday

Lots going on: music, food, entertainment but I didn't get to most of it. Day was sunny until dusk then clouded over.

Join others for (nearly) Wordless Wednesday here.

White Cake with Fruit Cocktail

Recently I've been seeing all kinds of cake recipes from my blogger friends. I didn't have the ingredients on hand to make the cakes on offer, so instead I whipped up this basic white cake using some fruit cocktail I had in the refrigerator.  I used half of the sugar called for in the recipe and it was sweet enough for me. The addition of my left over fruit cocktail also gave it added sweetness.

I also used reduced fat cream cheese for the frosting.  If you wish to reduce the calories further you can use skim milk rather than whole milk in the cake mixture and use splenda. I personally do not like to use artificial sweeteners though I might use something like xylitol or stevia in a powdered form if I had it on hand.  Though after reading this article, I might have to reconsider the idea.

White Cake Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup white sugar (I used 1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup butter (I reduced this about 1/4 cup)
• 2 eggs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk (or to make desired consistency)
• 1/2 fruit cocktail (without the liquid syrup)

 

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, cream together the sugar and butter. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Combine flour and baking powder, add to the creamed mixture and mix well. Finally stir in the milk until batter is smooth and add the fruit cocktail.  Pour or spoon batter into the prepared pan.
2. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes in a 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). For cupcakes, bake 20 to 25 minutes. Cake is done when it springs back to the touch.   

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

 

Ingredients - I made only half of this recipe to cover the cake.

• 1/2 cup of butter (1 stick), room temperature 
• 8 oz of Light Philly cream cheese (1 package), room temperature 
• 2 - 3 cups of powdered sugar 
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract 
  

 

Directions    

With an electric mixer, mix the butter and cream cheese together, about 3 minutes on medium speed until very smooth. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to ensure even mixing.

 Add the vanilla extract and mix. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Keep adding until you get to desired sweetness and thickness.

 Either spread on with a blunt knife or spatula, or spoon into a piping bag to decorate your cake or cupcake. 

 

The cake was well frosted and there was frosting left over. If you like your frosting a bit thicker, then wait for the cake to cool fully before frosting. 

Taste Test: This isn't my favourite cake. It was moist but I found it a little too rich for my taste despite reducing the sugar and butter and using light cream cheese. It was also plenty sweet enough for me. I used a round 9" pan and the cake was not that high so if you want a higher cake I suggest you double the recipe and make a layer cake or simple make one deep layer. I will likely look around for another white cake recipe that isn't quite so rich and add fresh berries next time. I tried the cake again the day after and I enjoyed it much more. Perhaps it just needed to cool off more to come into it's own.

Rainy Saturday Adventures

It was another wet Saturday in Vancouver but I had to go out. I was making my way to Trout Lake Farmer's Market where I had an appointment with my hat maker.

I took this photo as I was crossing a street to make a bus transfer. It's not cold as you can see the gentleman in the foreground doesn't have a jacket on.

After my transfer I had to get off and walk several blocks. I don't often come to this place so I always get off too soon and end up walking too far. In the old days this wouldn't have been a problem. These days it is a bit more challenging.

As I walked down the street, I noticed that the building which is undergoing restoration is a senior's residence.

This was a rather short street with very few homes on it.  I found this modern styled home.

I liked the simple, yet effective front entry with the small garden and potted plant. The door colour is nice too!

I didn't expect to find a restaurant here just a few steps away from the modern house. It looked like a well used coffee shop.  There aren't too many coffee shops for several blocks radius since this is a residential area although I understand that there is now a coffee shop in the newly constructed Trout Lake Community Centre across the street.

I didn't have a chance to go inside the new Centre but it is newly constructed and opened in February 2012. I believe the old buildings were demolished because they probably didn't meet current building codes for fire safety.

The community centre seems to have two buildings.  You can see one in the background in the photo below.  I also noticed the interesting shrubbery in place of grass. I think it is probably to make the space more eco-friendly.

Now I am about to enter the park area. Every weekend during the farmer's market this sign is put up to let non-residents know that they are not to park in this area.

Trout Lake is set in what is known as John Hendry Park and is the only lake in Vancouver proper.  This park is a real gem. I don't get to spend much time in it but whenever I do get there I see the locals having a wonderful time. The lake itself is in a beautiful setting. One always sees mothers and dog owners, taking their children and dogs for a walk.

The little dog in the photo below was friendly. It came up to me but when it realized I had no food, it didn't stop to visit.  It just kept right on going.  His owner, the man up ahead in dark blue rain coat, was patiently calling  "Maisie", as she dawdled along at her own pace.

You can see how deep the puddles were in various places along the pathway. By the time I got to this stage of my walk, I was soaking wet.  The rain soaked through my rain coat which is not rubberized for heavy duty rainfall.

I was going to the place you see just up ahead beneath the leaves....

But first, one last look and photo of the lake and the nice walking path along the waterfront.

At last! I make it to the market but I didn't take photos of the hat lady's stall. By that time I was just too wet and was more interested in drying up a bit and trying on hats.  Sadly, she had made two hats for me but neither of them fit just right despite giving her the measurements beforehand. She has to make some adjustments and I have to wait a bit longer. *sigh. I did manage to find a new hat for my mom and got a bit of a discount even though the hat still cost a lot more than my mother would ever want to pay. I've told mom that I will take the hat if she doesn't like it.

Here is a photo showing just how much rain was accumulating.

After I left Trout Lake, I decided to go to Chinatown to buy some new medicines and get another foot reflexology treatment.  The medicines I bought last time were not doing the job. 

I also wanted to get more photos for my Namibian blogger friend, Graham.  I admit that once again I didn't get the best photos but they add to what I posted last time (you can click here for the last visit). I will of course be making future trips and hopefully at some point the weather will be nicer and show a different side to Chinatown.

The first thing that caught my eye was this red street light. The bottom of it has Chinese characters but I have no idea what is written.

This is a long view of a street. You can see at least 5 street lamps in the middle part of the photo.

I love the streets of stores in Chinatown. You will find all kinds of stores with stuff for sale out in front, on the sidewalk.  During the early part of the day these shops are very busy with older Asian people buying their daily veggies and fish for dinner.

In this store window you can see various cakes which are waiting for their customers to come and pick them up. I especially love the cakes with the fruit on top as they have fresh cream in the middles and more fruit inside.  This is what they call "Fruit Cocktail Cake". The cake itself is a chiffon cake and very light in texture.

In another part of the window, you can see what events are going on if you can read the Chinese characters on the brochures.

I always love to see all the variety of things for sale as displayed out on the sidewalk.  Some of it is medicine and some of it is food. For example, this store had all kinds of beans and dried berries out front.

I bought some goji berries (wolfberrys) to put in  my cooked oats.  These berries are called a superfood because they are supposed to be very high in antioxidants.  However as always it is good to check with your medical practitioner before taking such things. For example this berry has been known to cause problems in some cases with people taking warfarin (a blood thinner).

Some stores sell food and herbs and some strictly sell herbs; like the one in the photo below next to the Fido (phone) store. If you click on the photo you can see all the medicines and herbs in jars.

Here are some dried shrimp.

And here are some dried mushrooms. These can be reconstituted and used in your stir frys and other foods but I've only ever used dried mushrooms to date. I did not like the particular brand I bought and prefer using fresh mushrooms.

That's it for my tour of Trout Lake and Chinatown for today. I'd love to hear your comments or questions.  

I'm joining in with Our World Tuesday here. Please check in there and see what others are up to around the world.

I hope you come back soon.  Have a wonderful week ahead.

I'm 

Lions on the Loose

 Credits:  This story and photos are from today's AFP story, "Lion on the loose in Kenyan capital's urban jungle"

By Peter Martell | AFP

When Danish author Karen Blixen penned her autobiography "Out of Africa", she wrote of the fierce leopards and lions that prowled the coffee estate she farmed at the foot of Kenya's Ngong hills.

Today, that farm is a leafy upmarket suburb of the rapidly growing capital Nairobi, swallowed up by breakneck urbanisation that has turned a century-old colonial railway yard into a traffic-clogged major city.

But the sharp toothed big cats have remained, finding themselves under growing pressure as one of Africa's fastest growing cities creeps onto ancient migration routes and hunting grounds.

This notice outside the main entrance of residential houses in Nairobi's Karen suburb 

"There have been no attacks on humans -- only dogs -- but as the encroachment increases the probability of attacks grows," said Francis Gakuya, chief vet for Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), as captured lion cubs growled in the background.

Pacing in a cage at the KWS headquarters in Nairobi, four orphaned cubs hiss and snarl at vets taking care of them -- then give a surprisingly powerful roar for a two-month-old baby already the size of a small dog.

Wildlife rangers were forced to shoot dead the cubs' mother after it was spotted in Nairobi's Karen suburb and it charged before it could be darted. The cubs are now being looked after.
But it is not the only recent case. Conservationists warn of the growing likelihood of closer interaction between wildlife and humans if development is not managed in a sustainable manner.

Kenya Wildlife Service rangers Juma Baraka (L) and Samuel Induare examine a two-month-old 

Another lioness captured last month later escaped back into the park, a 117 square kilometre (45 square mile) wilderness where buffalo and rhino roam just seven kilometres (four miles) from the bustling high-rise city centre.

Wildlife officials have issued warnings to residents near the park to call them "should they see another lion in their area as it is possible more than one lion had strayed from the park."
Traps are set out when a big cat is reported but the wily lions have so far avoided the baited cages - sparking concern in residents, fearful at night when guard dogs howl that a lion could be hunting in the back yard.

"Lions can hide invisible in the long grass so it's frightening they could be around waiting to pounce," said Mary Okello, who lives close to where recent lions were caught.
Visit the park and one is rewarded by the bizarre sight of long-necked giraffes running through wide plains of yellow grass with the gleaming skyscrapers of Nairobi's business district rising in the distance.

These two-month-old lion cubs, in quarantine at the Kenya Wildlife Service.

Although fenced in on the city side -- some bars even have terraces where one can view animals over a cold drink -- the park is open-sided elsewhere else to allow the annual wildlife migration in search of grazing.

Zebra and wildebeest in the park migrate from the protected Nairobi national park through informal wildlife corridors, areas where pastoralist herders graze their cattle. But Kenya's population is quickly growing.

The land is under threat from increasing urbanisation and more intensive agriculture, and the routes used by migrating herds in search of fresh grass -- and the carnivores that follow for fresh meat -- are growing narrower.

"Some can't find their way through, and they get stranded," said Nicholas Oguge, President of the Ecological Society for Eastern Africa.

"There is an urgent need for an effective land policy...without establishing formal wildlife corridors, Nairobi National Park will become like an island, a large contained zoo," added Oguge, a professor at the University of Nairobi.

The situation has changed dramatically in recent decades. In the 1970s residents used to report roaming herds of wildebeest several hundred thousand strong. Today, in comparison, there are just a relative handful of wildebeest left.

Conservationists say wildlife protection is a low priority for city officials struggling with multiple challenges in a grossly unequal capital of some 3.5 million people with overstretched basic services and infrastructure.

In Nairobi, lavish villas rub shoulders with squalid slums and cramped high rise apartments.
"Nairobi National Park is a microcosm of what is happening elsewhere," said Luke Hunter, president of the wild cat conservation group Panthera, noting that lions have lost over 80 percent of their historic lands across Africa.

"In protected areas lions do well... but outside they are getting hammered."
Kenyan wildlife officials and other conservation groups are working to support the establishment of a wildlife corridor, including mapping the key routes, but it is no easy matter, said Paul Mbugua, KWS assistant director.

"It would be good to have corridors in place, but we have a challenge as all the land to the south of Nairobi is owned by somebody," Mbugua said.

How Great is Our God, Hallelujia

I was listening to worship music last night on line. I was looking for a couple that had recorded the worship music for the "Revival Down Under" in the 1990s. I found their CD but didn't find any youtube videos of them, nor did I find out their names. However, I've always liked the worship group, Hillsong and the worship style of, Darlene Zschech. I wanted to share this song with you where they sing part of the songs in Russian.

I understand that Darlene Zschech and her husband have moved on from Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia after 25 years there. They are now senior pastors at Hope Unlimited Church on the Central Coast.

Today I also want to acknowledge that the late Internal Security Minister, George Saitoti, of Kenya was laid to rest at his Kitengela farm.  The Hon. Saitoti, and his assistant, Joshua Orwa Ojodeh were killed in a helicopter crash in Ngong Forest earlier this week as they were carrying out the functions of their ministry. I was able to watch a good part of the service on line as it was televised through several news agencies in Kenya.

The accident occurred on Sunday minutes after they had taken off from Wilson Airport in a new police helicopter, heading for a fundraiser in Mr Ojodeh’s Ndiwa constituency.  A high powered government delegation, led by President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, paid their last respects.  The late minister has been eulogised as a “hero, patriot, team player and a voice of reason” during a requiem mass at the Holy Family Basilica, Nairobi Friday.

My thoughts and prayers are with the families of these two honourable gentlemen who gave their lives in the service of their beloved country, Kenya.

Internal Security Minister Prof George Saitoti  
 Photo credit: The Kenyan Daily Post

Don't forget to tell your loved ones that you love them. Only God knows how long each of us has on this earth.  Be blessed.