Poco-Cocoa

You know, I’m just not a big fan of raisins. By themselves, they’re okay, not too offensive. But in baked goods? Yuck! I hate biting into a slice of bread or an oatmeal cookie and being confronted with the chewy sweet blandness that is the raisin.

I do occasionally like dried cherries or craisins in baked goods, but I just have this thing with the raisins.

So I’m always happy to find an oatmeal cookie that tastes just dandy without them. This one fits the bill, chewy and crisp, with a bit of lovely coconut to add some dimension and flavor. I took them to work today in celebration of the promotions of two of my coworkers (hooray for them!), and the plate was empty before lunch. Pretty popular little cookies.

Random fun link: Orangette, for absolutely lovely food writing. Molly makes food seem happy and lively and fun.

Coconut Oatmeal Drop Cookies

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream the butter with the sugars until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and vanilla, and beat well. Add the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly. Stir in the oats and coconut. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets, leaving several inches between for expansion. Bake for 11 to 12 minutes, or until lightly golden.

Cool the cookies on the sheets for 5 minutes, and then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies.

Source: More from Magnolia by Allysa Torey

I don’t know why I do it. You’d think I’d learn from past experience. But somehow, every time I go to the grocery store, I buy a bunch of bananas. I plan to eat them on peanut butter sandwiches, or sliced into yogurt, or drizzled with chocolate syrup. And usually I do eat one or two. But then I’m left with sad, over-ripe fruit that starts to smell too strong and attracts lovely gnats. Every time!

And it doesn’t end there. When I end up with that black bunch of bananas, I can’t just let it go. Oh, no. I start to feel guilty for not using them up, and I plan to freeze them for smoothies, or bake them into sweets. About half the time they make it to the freezer, until I realize I have several bags full of frozen bananas, with no prospects of smoothies in the near future. Otherwise, they go into the trash, or on those rare days when the mood strikes, into something sweet.

Today happened to be one of those rare days. Thank goodness, because this cake is the bomb. It’s a simple little snack cake, moist and flavorful, with no need for frosting or nuts or anything extra (though I’m sure it would be fine if you decided to add those things). It’s a nice change from banana bread, and it serves well as a dessert or a snack. Or both. Or, you could eat half of it while it’s still warm. Whatever works for you.

Random fun link: Food Fight, a short film depicting an abridged history of American war, with food representing the countries in conflict. One of the coolest videos I’ve seen.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup mashed bananas
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1/4 cup milk (I used soymilk)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8×8-inch pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, combine bananas, egg, melted butter and milk. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture until blended. Don’t overmix. Stir in chocolate chips.

Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean (it will have some melted chocolate, but no crumbs).

Makes 16 pieces.

Source: Adapted from allrecipes.com.

Whew! What a busy couple of weeks. Work has been pretty hectic, Justin’s been super-busy with freelance gigs, and we haven’t been eating at home much. That’s all going to change, though…we’re determined to spend less, which means NO MORE EATING OUT. Or, less eating out. (I know myself too well to say I won’t eat out…)

Another thing that’s been keeping us busy is this:

We got scooters! They are too much fun. I don’t know why I didn’t buy one before…I’ve wanted one for years and years. Well now that I have one, I try to spend time on it fairly often. I’d love to ride it to work each day, but it means getting up earlier and being careful about what I take with me. I haven’t quite gotten that down yet.

I wanted to share a recipe that I made a while back that was so incredibly easy and yummy. No photo this time…though I wish I would have taken one. Actually, I have a few recipes that I’ve made recently that I forgot to take pictures of. I hate that.

I also made crazy cherry popcorn balls for a coworker’s birthday. She requested “something red.” They were fun to make, and they went over fairly well at work. There were a few people who wouldn’t touch them because they were bright red, and thus “unnatural.” I can see that.

Okay, on to the recipe.

Random fun link: Wasted Food, a blog about, well, wasted food. And how to avoid it.

Tiny Key Lime Pies

• 6 miniature graham cracker crusts (or 1 regular graham cracker crust)
• 1 1/4 cups sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 cup fresh key lime juice
• 1 cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks

In a large bowl, whisk together the condensed milk and lime juice until well blended. Gently fold in the whipped cream. Pour the mixture into crusts. Refrigerate at least 2 hours before serving.

Makes 6 tiny pies, or 1 regular pie (8 slices).

Source: Entertaining for a Veggie Planet by Didi Emmons.