I think I need to make this a permanent part of my psyche...so I put it up this morning as a not so subtle reminder to myself. LOL
I saw this picture and it reminded me of that saying, "When God closes a door, he opens a window". Giving up my participation in the financial blog feels like a door is closing for me and I feel sad that this part of my journey is finished for now but I also wonder what the open window will allow into my life now. The last six months I have been dealing with one big door closure & I really didn't need another so soon on the heels of it.
I found this quick bread yesterday and thought it might be a nice quick bread to surprise Larry with mid-February when you can hardly remember what a strawberry tastes like let alone what a strawberry smells like. Larry loves a muffin or a couple slices of a quick bread for breakfast - I think he'll love this 'cause strawberries are his all time favorite fruit.
Strawberry Banana Bread
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 medium banana, divided (mash half – about 1/4 cup mashed banana; slice the other half – about 10 thin slices)
1/4 cup canola oil
1 egg white, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup strawberries, diced (use frozen strawberries, thawed and diced; or try mixing berries)
Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 9×5-inch loaf pan by either lining it with foil, allowing for overhang to easily lift out the bread or by spraying well with cooking spray.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugars, baking soda, cinnamon and stir to combine.
Slice a banana in half and mash one half with a fork and slice the other half into thin discs. Add the mashed banana to the dry ingredients and stir.
Add the oil, beaten egg white, vanilla and stir until just combined. Gently fold in 3/4 cup strawberries. Pour batter into prepared pan and top with 1/4 cup strawberries and banana slices, pressing them very gently into the surface of the batter.
Bake for 45 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean (Depending on moisture content bananas and berries, cooking times may vary from 40 to 50 minutes).
Allow bread to cool before removing it from the pan. Slice and serve as is, or add butter, cream cheese, jelly, or frosting, if desired. Store extra bread in an airtight container on the counter top or store in the freezer for up to three months.
Notes: I suspect you could use this batter as muffin batter. I’d bake for 18-20 minutes at 350F and start watching them closely from there.
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I was reading about container gardening and came across this and thought to myself, when I am planning our container garden & raised beds, I also need to think about how we set up an irrigation system & whether or not we want to put it on a timer. We may have to water some of our plants by hand but it would be nice if we didn't have to do all of it by hand.
I remember a gal, Kathleen, talking to me a number of years back about how the seed companies are modifying plants so that "saving seeds" from an existing plant no longer works for planting the following year. Then I saw this chart & thought ... hmmm ... talk about a strangle hold on the industry & worse still - how many of these seeds are for already genetically modified plants? It seriously makes you stop and think about our food chain in general. With the US experiencing the worst droughts in over 50 years, I wonder just how much tinkering they are going to do?
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I think I am seriously falling in love with Southern Decor! I have always loved southern food (take for instance shrimp and grits or collard greens with my eggs benedict! Check out these kitchens...
I love that sink! I could also get used to this kitchen table in a heck of a hurry!
On a more somber note, I am hoping all the girls that I chat with on various blogs that are in the way of Isaac with stay safe. So many of them were talking about the hurricane preparedness steps that they were taking this weekend. I was surprised, but I am not sure why, that their homes have solid wood shutters on the windows, inside the house, with boards to keep them closed like you'd see on a a barn door. Then they board up the outside of the windows as well. I know about boarding up the outside from having our family condo on the Gulf Coast but I had no idea that they had interior shutters in their homes as well. Another thing that surprised me that most of them as part of the prepping were making sure they they had their rifle ready and plenty of ammunition. I guess if you face this sort of devastation year after year, you get pretty darned good about prepping!
One of the gal's uploaded a picture of her pantry...check this out! Can you imagine how many hours she has spent standing at the kitchen counter this last week just cutting and peeling before canning all these quarts upon quarts of food for the winter. I take my hat off to the gals who do this year after year, not out of desire but rather necessity. WOW!
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While I was enjoying some amazing pantry shots, I can across this slow cooker cornbread recipe and it really doesn't get much more Southern than that does it?
Home Style Corn Bread
Cook Time: 4-4.5 hours on LOW 1-2 hours on HIGH Slow Cooker (4 - 4.5 Quarts)
Yields: 6-8 servings
Ingredients
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 1/4 to 1/2 clove cayenne pepper 1 egg
1 cup evaporated milk
6 tablespoons butter, melted
Directions
1. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and seasonings.
2. In a small bowl, mix the egg, milk, and butter. Pour the wet into the dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated. Do not over-stir.
3. Place the batter into well greased stoneware, cover, and cook on LOW for 4 to 4 1/2 hours or HIGH for 1-2 hours, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
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To close out today's entry, I thought I'd share some succulents...what the hell is a succulent? I haven't a clue but obviously these are some:
and a reminder how very easy charity can be!
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