The same way you can be president and say "nuke-u-lar."

Ahhh....thanks. I usually don't cook Indian food. Maybe that's why I haven't encountered it much.

Chocolate banana bread....:D

I used Wolf's recipe that Sundae put up in her thread. Thought I'd put a picture here, although it's not a cookie. It was a bit dry, so I microwaved it a tiny bit before eating to make it a bit more moist.

you say cardamom, I say cardamon, let's call the whole thing off!

Clod, it varies. Cardamon/ cardomom/ cardamom/ cardoman etc.
Anything which originates in a country that does not share a written alphabet with Europe is open to interpretation.

When reading an Indian menu I expect to see differences in the spellings of many popular dishes, let alone the spices they contain. Naan bread, nan bread, nann bread etc. And even variations of names for the same dishes, Chicken Ananas, Chicken Ceylon, Murgh Curry with Pineapple etc etc.

I feel your pain. But in this case I think regional spellings and pronunciation from a vast sub-continent should be celebrated. In order not to send you stark staring mad.

ETA - that post was a w-h-i-l-e back!
I hope you are still sane.

Lola that cake looks good even to me.
(as in banana hater)
Would you recommend a lower cooking temp or a shorter cooking time?
I might make a welcome back to school cake for after the hols. Just for old time's sake :)
My other fallback is a rainbow cake. More effort assemble but spectacular. And fun in a way, because... well it's a rainbow cake. Subliminal and all that and everything.

Slightly shorter cooking time, or a bit more banana. Or oil. I usually have more bananas available than the recipe calls for, and just use them.

More banana :thepain:
But of course I wouldn't be cooking for me.

When I think about a rainbow cake, it's usually where I separate the cake batter and put different colours in, then blob it into the cake pan, then swirl it a bit before baking.

I've made it twice lately because Max loves it.

Hmm....personally I would shorten the cooking time. This was my first time so I used the toothpick testing method. The other banana recipe I did before actually baked the whole 50 mins and was not dry, so I didn't think 50 mins. would be too drying for this one. The banana flavor was not too strong, so I may go with Wolf's suggestion by adding more bananas. And shorten the cooking time too! :D Whenever I bake brownies and chocolate cake (from mix, hihi), I usually shorten the cooking time and that would make them more moist.

I do that with some cookies and cakes if I prefer them a bit more moist, or sometimes just lower the oven temp a bit.

I have a question.

Is banana bread the same as banana cake?

I get the impression that some people call it banana bread, but it's really a cake. Am I right?

eta: I'm asking because I know people who make a cakey mixture, but it comes out more like bread and usually it is served with some kind of condiment/spread.

In America there's a difference between a quick bread and a cake, not sure about the rest of the world. "Bread" implies a denser end product. Cakes are lighter in texture. You could certainly do a banana cake, though.

Speaking of which ... The fact that this is a really dark batter makes it suck the heat in more efficiently, and leads to it drying out more if you overbake. I may just get lucky because my oven tends to run under the set temp.

Serving suggestion ... slather it up with butter and stick the slice in the nuker for 20 seconds. Don't eat until the butter is all melted in.

Yeah, that sounds about the same here. I was just wondering.

It's hard to tell textures from pictures. :)

Yeah, I'm thinking of going to whole hog and having a seven layered cake :yum:

Thin layers of course.
But it will take time as we only have two sets of two sandwich tins, so whatever size I choose will mean four quick changes!

Since I received lots of compliments on this recipe, I thought I'd post it here in case someone wants to try it. This banana bread is very moist. If I remember correctly, I only baked for 50 mins. But I could be wrong. My mind has been off lately. :neutral: Do the toothpick test if you want to be sure.


Banana Bread

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook Time: 1 Hour Ready In: 1 Hour 10 Minutes
Servings: 15

" Sour cream guarantees a moist and tender loaf. And bananas are sliced instead of mashed in this recipe, giving a concentrated banana taste in every bite."


INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
2 medium bananas, sliced


DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla, mix well. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt, stir into the butter mixture until smooth. Finally, fold in the sour cream, walnuts and bananas. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.
3. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool loaf in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

wow, that looks good.

Made some Hello Kitty cookies today. I used the shortbread recipe that came with the Godiva's cookie cutter. The cookie is really yummy (if you like buttery cookies, that is) and simple to make too. I will post up the recipe later in case anyone who might be interested.

Thank you. :D It is very yummy, unless you don't like bananas.

Lola you are so precise, your cookies are a wonder to behold.
I think I tend towards the more "rural" cake styles because they allow me to slap things together!

Oh! I have some batter for you.
Will probably post on payday.
Comes with instructions - I can translate but you'll find what you need online otherwise.
It's also pancake batter pver here, but our pancakes are not like yours - more like crepes.

Sundae, you are such a sweetheart. You didn't have to waste money on me, but I have to confess, that made me feel special and loved. :blush: I'm sure I should be able to understand the instructions.

As for cakes, nothing can just be slapped together. Cakes take work too. And all your cakes look like your efforts were well spent. ;)

Lola, did you know that wolf has a proclivity for all things hello kitty?

Yes, I do. I assumed she'll see this post so I didn't post a pic into her FB page. Hmm...maybe I shouldn't assume.

Ali means mail some to her.........

Well I wasn't going to suggest it, but I figured Lola might choose to if she wanted to. :)

no offense, but I thought they were sheep at first.

lol...but they don't look like sheep.

Yes they do. Kitty's hairbow is the sheep's head, they're standing side-on :D

Mmmm...ok, kinda. lol

I couldn't see it at first. But after staring at them for a bit I can.

Already on its way. ;) I was hoping to make it a surprise. :D

I see it now too. :lol:

Hello Kitty Cookies!!!! Wow!!

I now need to know where you got the cutter and stencil, and, of course, your recipe. Those look AWESOME!!!

The new nuthouse's very strict internet and cell phone use policies are keeping me offline during work. I did not see these until now. Ah, the downside of actually working instead of letting the state support me.

Those are some seriously happy cookies!

mmmmmmmmm, sheep!

Speaking of sheep, Max said yesterday that he wants me to get a lamb. I asked why. His response was that they're yummy.

Attaboy!!

He's right.

Here's the recipe. Adjust to your liking. Obviously, I did not do the chocolate part, and I used my own cookie cutter. And I did not get 4 dozen cookies. I ended up with little less than 3 dozens.


Godiva Chocolate-Dipped Shortbread

Yield: 4 dozen cookies
Difficulty: Easy
Preparation: 30 minutes plus baking and cooling times
Special equipment: GODIVA Cookie cutter

Cookies:
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon salt
1 cup butter
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 bars (1.5 ounces each) Godiva Dark Chocolate, coarsely chopped

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Mix flour, sugar, and salt in mixing bowl. Cut in butter with pastry blender or two knives until mixture resembles crumbs. Form into a ball and knead until smooth.
3. Divide dough in half. Place half on lightly floured surface and roll to 8-inch by 6-inch rectangle, trimming edges with a knife. Cut out 24 shapes using the Godiva cookie cutter. Transfer to prepared baking sheet, placing at least 1 inch apart. Repeat with other half.
4. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. Cool on baking sheet on wire rack 2 to 3 minutes. Using metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire racks to cool completely.
5. Place chocolate in microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at high (100% power) for 1 minute. Stir until smooth. Dip cookies into melted chocolate, coating the bottom third of each cookie. Shake off excess chocolate and place on waxed paper-lined baking sheets. (If chocolate becomes too thick, microwave at medium (50% power) for 30 seconds.) Let dipped cookies stand at room temperature about 1 hour or in refrigerator for 15 minutes until chocolate sets.

As for the Hello Kitty cookie cutter, you can find one in ebay. At first, I was choosing items in a Japanese website, but it became expensive. Luckily my sister thought of ebay. She did a search and bought this. It came with a stencil if the effect you want is like my cookies. Using sprinkles the way I did was a b*tch! Sorry for my language, but it took so damn long. (Partly due to inexperience. :neutral:) Designing it with cocoa is faster. The second cookie cutter would also be great, especially if you want to design by icing. Works great without icing too. One day, I will get myself the cookie/bread/veggie cutter mould.

Completely adorable, and completely delicious!

I got an awesome surprise in the mail today! Thank you so very, very much!

The gorillas at the post office spent some time kicking the box around, and despite your extremely careful packing, some of them didn't make the trip intact, which is absolutely fine ... there are no calories in broken cookies!

There is extra happiness baked into these cookies. They are beautifully light and delicate and the flavor is excellent!

Awe - that was so nice of you lola!

AaawWWwwWwwWww......I shook the container and didn't feel any movements, so I was so hoping the cookies would come in one pieces. Oh well, at least two didn't break. :p:

the post office has a lot of experience.

Super sweet Lola!

Real good cookies are very hard to ship intact. The flip side is, with real good cookies nobody cares if they're pre-portioned. :haha:

I will do research on how to send cookies. I once read that cookies won't break if they don't move in the container. Apparently the post office workers are more skilled than I anticipated. :p: Anyways, I am planning a birthday party...mine. Huh? Yeah, you guys read right. My nephew said because of a friend's birthday, I didn't get a chance to have mine. Hmm....okay, so he wanted one for me.....today. :neutral: He came over this morning, asking to put up balloons and such. Anyways, we put up a train set, and he got excited so he seeked out his friends and cousins. I spent 4 hours with 5 7 yr. olds. Then I found out my nephew had told his other cousin I'm having a birthday party. :eyebrow: I later found out from my brother that my nephew really wanted for me to have my birthday party so he could have his presents. I had promised my nephew that I will give him some presents on my birthday, but I never got a chance to have a party. Therefore, he wants me to have my birthday party so he could have his presents. Of course, he wanted to call "the kids" over too. So, on Monday will be my birthday party, filled with kids as guests. :lol: My nephew has drawned a designed for the cake and of course, the house has be decorated with balloons. :p:

I've searched for recipes and decided on a carrot cake with buttercream frosting. There will be pix by Tuesday morning, if not earlier. :D

I didn't get to bed until 3AM, but everything turned out okay. Here's the cake...titled by my nephew....Air Race. By the way, the "planes" are flying over water. He was specific, hehe. When people asked, I told them the cake was for my birthday. :lol: The kids sang happy birthday to me and my nephew gave me a birthday kiss. Awww......

I only baked the cake, which is carrot, and made the butter cream frosting. My sister did all the decorations. :)

P.S. Sorry about the huge pictures. I'm so tired and just wanted to show the cake off before going to bed.

outstanding!

Thanks, Glatt. :)

Wow. That's frikkin awesome. I have never seen anything quite like it.

Excellent work, Bunny family.

That would make a good superbowl cake. :thumb:

The bubble tea straws are a nice touch. Do you have those stocked normally in your kitchen?

Thank you Dana, Monster. :)

Yes, usually. I find it easier to sip up the fruit and avocado smoothies. :D

My brother likes the banana bread so much that he suggested I make that to give to my nephew's teachers for teachers' appreciation. Also, a friend placed an order for banana bread too. So, here was my lot yesterday. The packaged ones are what I brought to school this morning. :)

Wow, you've been a busy girl!

Hihi...yes, I have. Last week, my sister-in-law placed an order for a number of banana bread too. But then she bought all the ingredients and since she's family, I didn't charge her anything. I kept all the leftover ingredients though. :D

Everything looks soo good! I remember going through this thread before....don't know why I didn't post on it.....hmmmmm.

You are a crazy baker.
I'm so impressed.

I took mini-cupcakes into school today for my first day back.
They were all cheaty though, so no pics.
Sponge mix AND prepared icing.

Woman, I "cheat" bake all the time. I see nothing wrong with that. :D :lol: My sister helped me with that load of banana bread, so it didn't take me that long. I want to eat some carrot cake, so I was gonna give your mini carrot cake recipe a go this weekend. However, my friend asked me to make her some napoleons this weekend. I asked my mom and she likes them too, so I'm gonna make some this weekend for dessert for Mother's Day meal. Gonna have to give your mini carrot cake a try another day.

Not a cookie and ain't exactly cake either. My friend asked me to make these for her for Mother's Day. It turns out, my mom likes them too, so I, uh....mostly my sister, hihi, made a batch enough for us to eat and to give half a tray, as requested, to my friend. :p:

We made strawberry napoleons. I got chocolate rather than vanilla pudding.

Yum. My kids would go crazy for those.

Ecstrawberry!

I am now apprehensive about what you will do with my mini carrot cake recipe. Probably take over the world?!

Everything you bake looks so perfect, so precice - the precision of a factory made comestible with the love and flavour of a home made bake. :notworthy