POMPLAMOOSE AND TASTY BANANA BUNDT CAKE

I love Pomplamoose, and I want a t-shirt. I think my favorite song is, "If You Think You Need Some Lovin" but who am I kidding I love them all, and have listened to them so many times it would make any normal person's head spin around and pea soup shoot out of their mouths.

TASTY BANANA BUNDT CAKE

Courtesy of a magazine no longer in print, Home Cooking, submitted by Denise Hansen of Jackson, Minn. I love to make quick breads, and I always have bananas around. I of course had to tweek the recipe because I have a hard time leaving things alone. I would slap my own hands with a wooden spoon, but I am not into pain I would make a bad masochist.

1 (18.25 oz) yellow cake mix

1 1/4 C banana slices

2 eggs

1 C buttermilk

1/4 C cold coffee

1 tsp vanilla (my addition)

1 tsp nutmeg (my addition)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour 12-cup bundt pan. Combine cake mix, banana slices, eggs, buttermilk and coffee in mixing bowl. Beat at low speed until blended. Beat at medium-high speed 2 minutes. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 50-65 minutes or until tested done. Cool in pan on wire rack for 45 minutes. Invert onto serving plate. Garnish with whipped cream and additional banana slices before serving, if desired. Serves 10-12.

I love the quick ease it takes to throw this bread together and I just love nutmeg in my banana bread which is why I added it here. Yes, I am a nutmeg-in-my-banana-bread type of person as opposed to the cinnamon banana bread people, but can't we all just get along?

BANANA BREAD AND SLEEPING BOYS

BANANA BREAD

This recipe came from my mom, I love this bread. It is a moist, banana-flavorful bread and the top gets this little sugar crunch after sitting for a while. I prefer the nutmeg in this recipe to cinnamon that many other banana bread recipes call for. Originally this recipe calls for a 350 degree oven however my bread was coming out with crust that was too dark (yucky tasting) and a middle that would fall. I had to turn up the temp for my oven to get the right result. I do live in a moderate elevation, but I do not think that my meager 1000ft should really affect baking times.

1/2 C shortening

1 1/3 C sugar

2 large bananas, mashed

2 Tbsp milk

2 eggs

1 3/4 C flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp nutmeg

1 C chopped nuts, optional

Cream together shortening and sugar; add the bananas and the milk, mix well. Add eggs and blend well. In a separate bowl blend together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; add to the creamed mixture. Fold in nuts and bake at 375 degrees for 45-50 minutes.

LAZY LINDA TIP: If, like me, you are short on counter space and lacking a dream kitchen appliance pantry you cram extra appliances (in this case the food processor) in a cabinet. Instead of dragging out the food processor for chopping nuts I pull out my coffee bean grinder. I have 2 coffee bean grinders one for coffee, one for herbs, nuts etc. I like my nuts really fine cause the boys do not crunchy things in their sweets and the obliging coffee bean grinder pulverizes the nuts.

So as I mentioned above, here are the sleeping boys...E and K both in different stages of sick.



E

K

E has a fever, and while K has not had a fever for a few days yesterday he came home from school hacking something horrible. K did not get much sleep last night the coughing kept him, Mister and me, up all night. We put on the vaporizer with some of the Vick's VapoSteam, I made him mint tea with honey in it, and he took NyQuil. Poor thing is still recovering today which is why he is home. No more coughing, but his middle hurts from coughing so much and so hard and he is exhausted from lack of sleep. Wagers being taken on when A, Mister and I will collapse in illness.