Banana Bonanza!

This is for Katie because she requested it and I don't have her e-mail address. It's also for anyone else who wants a really good banana bread recipe (although, I can't take credit because it's my mom's).

1 Cup Sugar
1/2 Cup Butter (softened)
2 Eggs
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
2 Cup Flour
1 Teaspoon Vanilla
3 Very Ripe Bananas

Cream sugar, butter and eggs in a bowl. Add dry ingredients and mix. Mash up bananas and vanilla in separate bowl. Add banana mixture to dough. Mix until blended thoroughly. Grease loaf pan well (not the spray stuff, get real shortening and grease it so some white is still visible, get the corners really good). Bake @ 300 for 45 min - 1 hour. The best way to tell is to touch the top and see if it sponges back up. If it's too soggy leave it in for 5 more min. This recipe usually makes one big loaf and one small loaf or a dozen normal sized muffins.

Redfish Excursion

Paul and I spent our summer vacation at Redfish Lake last week with Curt and Megan. We had a blast biking to the lake and playing games and (in curt and paul and megan's case) jumping off the dock. The following are snap shots of endless summer fun.

Beyond A Crush

Ok, so I've had a KitchenAid for eight years and have had a crush on it the whole time. How could you not?! They come in all different cute colors, they're so sleek and stylish looking, and just the presence of one on your counter top gives you added credibility in the culinary world. Unfortunately, a crush is all is ever was because the one time I actually tried to use this masterpiece of machinery was a disaster that ended in blobs of egg-soaked butter and sugar all over the place. Since then the KitchenAid and I have had a strained relationship where I sigh and stare from afar and it squats cold and beautiful in its corner, unwilling to compromise.

And so it continued until this weekend when, with the help of my personal Kitchen Appliance Counselor and Mediator Extraordinaire, Diane, the KitchenAid and I finally progressed into the next stage of our relationship. I had my first successful encounter with the KitchenAid and actually made one normal sized and two tiny loaves of bread. Will we continue along the path into a full-blown culinary affair? Well, I'm pretty sure we'll never share the love that I harbor for my Chi Blow Dryer, but now I can bake easy in the knowledge that we are at least friends. I no longer have to exist in the uncomfortable situation of having an unrequited crush on an appliance.