Banana Loaf

What do you do with two 'black' over ripe bananas?  Make a banana loaf!

The house is still full of food being Christmas time so making this cake wasn't exactly essential,  but I hate waste so while I was cooking sausage and mash for us to eat as a late lunch yesterday after walking the dogs in the wind and rain, I mixed up this cake and stuck it in the oven. It couldn't be easier to make, it has a lovely banana flavour and was a favourite for cake makes with my Mum.

Ingredients

Two over ripe bananas (but you can use normal ripe bananas - they don't have to have black skins)
9oz of self raising flour or you can do half and half of self raising and wholemeal flour if you prefer
4oz soft marg or butter
6oz sugar - white or demerara
2 large eggs
3 heaped tablespoons of natural yogurt - I used Greek yoghurt because that's what I had in the fridge
Handful of crushed walnuts

How to do it

Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees C.

Grease and line an oblong cake tin with greased, grease proof paper.

Place all the above ingredients except the walnuts in a large mixing bowl and beat well until thoroughly blended and softly dropping - then add in the walnuts and stir well.

Turn the mix into the prepared tin and place in the hot oven for about 1- 11/2 hours until well risen and golden brown.

Test if the banana loaf is done by sticking a clean skewer or knitting needle into it - if it comes out clean the cake is done - if there is mixture stuck to it put the cake back in for a bit longer.

Leave the cake in the tin for about 10-15 mins then turn it out on a wire cake rack to finish cooling.

Hmmm....smells lovely! You can serve it on its own sliced or spread with butter like a tea bread - Mum loved it liked that. Goes well with a cuppa and it would prob also work as a pudding served warm with custard.

Mediterranean Style Baked Chicken and Vegetables

Okay here is the recipe I promised you from last night. Another very simple, easy,  but also v tasty Mediterranean style dish to make when you are tired or don't have much time for preparation. You can expand the quantities of this dish to feed as many people as you have got around the table - the quantities shown in the picture fed Jez and me! 

Ingredients

Boneless chicken breasts - the ones I used had the skin left on and this is an advantage because it stops the chicken drying out and also looks more attractive to serve. Chicken thighs would also work well.

A selection of  fresh veg. You can use any mix of veg that takes your fancy. Here I used  potatoes, carrots, leek, parsnip and a sweet red pepper.

How to do it

Wash and roughly slice/ chop all the veg - leave the skins on the spuds

Place in a roasting tin. Lightly drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with some dried mixed herbs- basil, rosemary etc and shake the tin well to coat the veg

Place in a hot oven at 180 degrees for about 30 mins shaking the tin occasionally

Remove from the oven and place the chicken pieces on the top. Return to the oven and continue to cook until the chicken is golden brown and cooked through - test with a skewer.

Serve with  fresh crusty bread

Easy Saturday Lunch

Cheese on Toast

Sometimes the simplest things are the nicest - especially when you don't feel like cooking a full blown meal. This version of cheese on toast is easy, v tasty and filling!

1. Cut thick slices of some good quality crusty white or wholemeal bread (a Swansea Bloomer has been used here) and toast on one side only under a hot grill
2. Remove from the grill and spread the un-toasted side of each slice with some wholegrain mustard
3. Top with slices of cheese - I used a nice mature cheddar and place the cheese topped toast back under the hot grill until the cheese is melted and bubbling and just turning brown
4. Serve with salad, tomato and red onion garnish and chutney
5. This also works well as 'hot bites' to serve if you have unexpected visitors call around - using rounds of a french stick or slices of bread cut into smaller chunks and following exactly the same steps as above. Serve hot on a platter with cherry tomatoes, pickles and chutneys - there def won't be any left!!!

Potent Hedgerows

This potent tale starts back in October on a regular dog walk in the meadows around Usk, when we came across a fantastic crop of late blackberries, sloes and wild damsons growing in the hedgerows.

We picked 4lb of blackberries in just 30 mins and went back the following day armed with more bags to gather sloes and damsons, with the intention of turning them into some potent liqueurs ready for Christmas - Blackberry Brandy and Vodka and Sloe and Wild Damson Gin. 


If you have never tried this before then make sure it is one of your New Year resolutions to make some for Christmas 2014, it tastes divine and has a real kick to it!

How to do it 


Blackberry Brandy/Vodka and Sloe/ Damson Gin

Pick your fruit and wash it. Have ready some large clean, dry, glass jars or bottles with a screw top and a wide enough neck to drop the fruit into. Add the fruit to the jars or bottles and cover with granulated sugar. The blackberries can go straight in, but sloes and damsons should be individually pricked with a fork first. 
You can use a mix of sloes and damsons if you  don't have enough of one or the other.

Add the liquor of your choice,  the cheapest gin, whiskey, brandy or vodka you can find, to the top of the jar or bottle and screw the lid on tightly. Shake well before placing in a cool, dark cupboard for at least 8 weeks. You should shake each of the bottles or jars at regular intervals to ensure all the sugar is dissolved.

Decant your liqueurs into small bottles (little, used, wine bottles as in the pic are ideal) adding in some of the fruit to each bottle as a decoration. 

The alcohol steeped blackberries are great stewed with a little sugar and eaten with ice cream.

If you make enough, these hedgerow liqueurs make great Christmas gifts, but make sure you keep some back for yourself. I can guarantee once you've tasted it you won't keep it long!