Banana Pound Cake

I always have bananas on hand, because my husband loves them.  Bananas are very healthy and high in potassium.  A while back I had some that were sitting around in the fruit basket and were extrememly ripe and great for cake.

I took this recipe from the Cooking Light, Annual Recipes 2001 meaning I’ve had this cook book along with many others for years, ever since I started cooking and collecting recipes.  I enjoy using this cookbook like this one, just because tend to have a large variety of light and easy to follow recipes.  I sometimes change the recipes in order to accommodate to what I have in cupboards.  Just, as I changed some of the ingredients for this pound cake recipe.

Banana Pound Cake

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of all purpose flour
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract ( i used a Turkish packet of individual vanilla powder)
• 3 large eggs
• pinch of salt
• 1 cup of mashed ripe bananas (about 3 medium bananas)
• 1 cup of milk (recipe calls for skimmed milk – i used skimmed milk)
• 3/4 cup of vegetable oil ( recipe calls for softened butter, but I prefer vegetable oil makes the cake moist)

Preparation:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Coat the bottom of your tube pan with cooking spray and set a side.  Swift and combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, vanilla (if dry) and salt in a mixing bowl.  Combine the mashed bananas  (mash the banana’s with the back of the fork ), milk and vegetable oil in a bowl.  Add in one egg at a time, beating the mixture after adding each egg.  Add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients slowly, beating at a low speed.  I used a hand mixer, beat the mixture for a minute. 

Spoon the batter into your prepared pan.  Place the pan, into the preheated oven and baking at 350 degrees for 1 hour or until a wooden pick comes out clean.  Cool in pan for 10 muntes and remove from pan.  Serve warm or cooled or as you wish, with fruits with tea or coffee.

Enjoy!

Manti the Easy Way – Sis Borek

Manti the Easy Way ~ Sis Borek  

I do not want to deprive my readers any longer of these wonderful recipes that I have.  Believe me when I say, I have several book loads, just finding the time in these last few weeks has been hard.  I am also in the process of changing the way web site look and this might take some time, but during this time I hope to continue my posting as long as I have this every useful site.

Manti, is the Turkish method of meat stuffed dumplings.  Every region in Turkey has their own method of making and serving this dish.  Like in Kayseri a well known region in Turkey, they tend to make the manti into a soup dish, as in Yalova, it is served as a main course with yogurt garlic sauce topped with pan fried olive oil and paprika.  Manti takes a lot of prep work and hand work.  I do not mind making the manti from scratch, but that is only when I have the time and when I am with my mother and aunts.  It is more fun when it is made with a crowd and the process goes by much quicker.

About a week ago my brother mentioned that their were some lovely ladies that stopped by the store, asking for manti and at the store we do sell the freshly frozen manti.  These ladies happen to locate the store via search of the Internet and they come upon my blog.  ”Thank you ladies!”  Now, I know for sure I have some readers.  I am told they had an awesome party!

Since I do not have the time to make the dough from scratch, I decided to make a ”yalanci manti” meaning “fake manti” also known in Arabic as Sis Borek. 

 

Ingredients:

• 1 box of large shelled pasta – small shell is even better
• 1 medium onion chopped
• 1.5 lb ground chopped meat (I used ground sirloin)
• 3 tablespoons of olive oil
• salt

Topping

• 1.5 cups of yogurt
• 2 – 3 garlic cloves (depending on how much garlic you like)
• 3 extra tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 teaspoon of paprika
• 2 teaspoon of mint

Preparation:

Cook the pasta as you wish.  In a separate frying pan, add the olive oil, diced onions and cook until the onions become translucent.  Add  in the chopped meat and cook the chopped meat all the way through, add salt & black pepper for seasoning. 

In a separate bowl, add in the yogurt and finely chopped garlic cloves and mix well and set a side.

Drain the pasta and put into a serving dish, add the cooked chopped and mix the both together. In a small frying pan, heat up the extra tablespoons of olive oil with the paprika. 

Serve in individual bowls, top it with the garlic yogurt and drizzle a couple tablespoons of the hot olive oil with the paprika and top it off with a pinch of mint.

Serve warm & Enjoy!