Everyone seems to have a recipe for banana bread. It’s such a popular thing to make that I thought long and hard before even deciding to do my own. Seriously, there are thousands of variations on this simple thing: using overriped bananas to make a fabulous bread.

Still, my kids adore bananas in a must-have-daily sort of way. So banana bread? It’s a natural fit for us. This particular version has a subtle banana flavor that is enhanced with meaty walnuts and smooth, sweet chocolate chips.

This is a fabulous dessert bread, perfect for after a great meal. Or, serve it as an awesome breakfast treat. I’m happy to have it either way. However you eat it, be sure to smooth a little butter onto a warm slice — it’s amazing like that.

This is also a perfect recipe for cooking with kids because there are so many opportunities for children to get involved in the process. From the peeling and mashing of the bananas to the measuring and mixing, there are so many prime opportunities for them to help make this bread. I love seeing the pride in my children’s eyes when they say that they helped to make something like this … it’s beautiful. Read the rest of this entry…

This week’s meal plan is …

Monday: Leftover ham, macaroni and cheese, Roasted Green Beans (new recipe)

Tuesday: Homemade Salmon Burgers on ciabatta rolls with a tossed salad (new recipe)

Wednesday: Maple Soy Flank Steak, rice and salad

Thursday: Chicken Florentine over pasta with salad

Friday: Homemade fresh mozzarella, ham and pineapple pizza with salad

See last week’s plan
Read the rest of this entry…

(Psst! There is some definite cuteness at the end of this post. Be sure to click though.)

It’s hard to believe that it’s been three weeks already. As you probably remember, the first week of my spending diet was really hard but the second week was a little easier. So, how did the third week go?

First, a quick recap of what my spending diet is all about:

The Plan: No spending from Saturday until the following Saturday. Cash in wallet can only be used in a true emergency.

What Happened: In a lot of ways, I feel like I hit my stride with controlling spending this week. The urge to shop just wasn’t there, and more importantly the thought of not spending didn’t consume me all week. That was a huge win.

In terms of planning, I’ve come a long way. Pretty much everything was taken care of this week … and there was even enough room for a little flexibility when I decided against a third day of Asian-inspired foods (the turkey burgers had to wait). So, that was good.

Spending: The only spending I did this week was for a magazine subscription that was part of a gift (which I think was A-ok) and a quickie lunch for the kids yesterday (which was paid for by cash that I had on hand). It was a beautiful day and they deserved the treat. Today, I will need to run out for white eggs and milk. The eggs are for dying tomorrow and the milk is because Paige drank way more than expected this week.  Our week’s shopping will happen tomorrow as planned.

About My Saturday Shop: Doing all the shopping for the family for the week in just a few hours isn’t just challenging, it’s really tiring too. Actually, if I am going to be really specific, it’s exhausting. Last week, all I wanted to do after shopping was sleep (which, of course I couldn’t actually do). Read the rest of this entry…

Months ago, I started doing something new every week. Every weekend, I would sit down and decide what dishes would appear here for the next week. Taking the time to plan this into my week helped me to spend less time fretting over what to make and more time on the recipe development and writing. I’ve also had more time to try recipes from books, magazines and blogs, which is always fun.

The only problem? Sometimes recipes don’t work out. Yesterday, I planned to feature an Arugula Pesto adapted from a popular food blogger’s recipe … however, even with my changes (which included cutting the amount of garlic in half), the recipe was a huge fail. The overpowering flavor was shocking.

Today, I planned to feature a recipe from my weekly meal plan: Peanut Soba with Stir-Fried Beef and Broccoli, which came from the April/May 2010 issue of Fine Cooking. I followed the instructions to the letter, but the recipe just didn’t end up being something to share here. While we enjoyed the Stir-Fried Beef and Broccoli, we just weren’t fans of the soba noodles or their peanut sauce. Plus, the preparation was far more involved than I like food to be. I really thrive on quick, simple and flavorful … not so much on dishes that require lots of steps.

While I love Fine Cooking, this was one instance where I didn’t love a recipe from there. That’s okay. Read the rest of this entry…