peanut butter banana cream pie

The phrase 'cream pie' sounds so dated and evokes visions of jello pudding mix poured into premade pie crust, possibly available a la carte in the school cafeteria. That's a pretty harsh sentence for something as delicious as pie.

This peanut butter banana cream pie does absolutely everything right to dispel any misconceptions. Ripe bananas are folded into luscious, velvety pastry cream and poured into a graham cracker crust layered with dark chocolate and fresh ground peanut butter, then topped with fresh whipped cream.

For those of us more technically inclined, this pie is a lot of fun to make. You get to hit things, double boil things, whip hot things, whip cold things... I swear it's fun, and you feel like a fancy cook.

For pastry cream success, there are two tricks I learned not usually included in recipes:

1. Thoroughly whisk the sugar and cornstarch together before adding any wet ingredients. They help keep each other from clumping, keeping lumps out of your cream.

2. Add a little bit of the unheated milk to the egg yolks going into said sugar/cornstarch mixture. Many recipes call for beating just the egg yolks, sugar, and cornstarch together, but sometimes this isn't enough moisture to realistically mix them. A little milk will make your life much easier.

I followed this well written recipe as printed by Joy the Baker. The bananas and whipped cream balance the richness of the pastry cream, while the dark chocolate and peanut butter balance the sweetness. Yeah, it was really good. The only quibble I had was after chilling the pie, the chocolate layer was hard and difficult to cut through. In the future I might mix in a little heavy cream with the melted chocolate to make a sort of spreadable ganache layer. Also, it says that the pastry cream mixture will take about 6 minutes to thicken up. For me, it was ready in more like two.

This is pie fit for birthday celebrations!

candied walnut banana cake

This cake is like addiction you feel good about having smothered in cream cheese fluff. Bananas, whole wheat, nuts, cultured cream cheese... health food, clearly!

Cultured cream cheese is basically cream cheese with the same little microorganisms that yogurt has. The result is a slightly tangy, more complex flavored deliciousness. If you happen to see it, I suggest giving it a try!

The cream cheese fluff is the lighter, more delicate cousin of cream cheese frosting. Instead of being loaded with butter and sugar, it is just slightly sweetened and beaten extensively till nice and fluffy. The tangy, sweet-savory flavor combines really nicely with mouthfuls of banana bread and extra sweetness of candied nuts.

To feed an addiction:

1. Get a handful of candied walnuts

2. Throw said walnuts into your favorite banana bread recipe, then bake in a cake pan

3. Meanwhile, make your cream cheese fluff: Beat together about 8 oz. of cream cheese and 1-2 tbsp of powdered sugar until fluffy. Think subtle and not red velvet cake frosting here.

4. When the cake is cool, spread a layer of fluff over the top and consume promptly.

inaugural banana bread

Safely relocated and mostly moved into the new digs, I woke up this morning absurdly cold and decided it was time to test out the new oven with some early morning baking.

With my beautiful red stand mixer (BEST. BIRTHDAY GIFT. EVER.) claiming some counter space, this recipe was a breeze. Sometimes banana bread turns out overly moist and sticky, but this recipe results in a slightly sweet, fairly light textured breakfast bread. The wheat flour and toasted nuts balance out the sweetness, and give the bread a little depth. Do enjoy straight from the oven, possibly with a touch of butter. Possibly have another slice for lunch as well.


Banana Nut Bread

8 tbs butter (1 stick), room temperature
3/4 c sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

1 c all-purpose flour
1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 c mashed very ripe bananas (2-3 bananas)
1/2 c plain yogurt (or sour cream)
1/2 c chopped toasted walnuts or pecans (don't be a noob and burn them like I did)

Put on a hoodie.

Preheat oven to 350°F, butter a loaf pan. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs beating well.

In another bowl, mix dry ingredients together and add to butter mixture. Blend well. Add the yogurt and bananas. Mix, mix, mix. Stir in the nuts and pour into the pan. Bake 45-60 mins until the middle springs back when you push down on it. If it's getting too brown and it's not done, cover the loaf with foil and keep baking.

Try not to burn yourself as you cut yourself a piece and bask in the warmth of your kitchen.