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A to Z Recipes Newsletter
April 27, 2005
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Publisher's Desk
Ramblings
Did You Know?
Monthly Theme
Reader Support
NEW Birthday Babies
Discussion Forum
Crazy Corner
Linda's Favorites
Heart Healthy
For Two
Publisher's Choice
Hi from Linda in Michigan. "Yes. We have no bananas!" We also have no power. It is spring in Michigan. That means we only got 6 inches of snow instead of a foot. Heavy heavy snow. With wind. The kind that takes down transformers and electric lines. Our power went out on Saturday. I had most of this issue done. No problem I thought. Ha! The power did come on long enough for me to tell Maggie that the issue might be late. It is now 11am Monday morning. We now have power. But we still have no bananas. If you have power and bananas... this issue is for you!
Cookbooks, Recipes, Gourmet Cooking from Amazon
BANANA POPSICLES
Margo Falls
Every day, after attending Trinity Academy Primary School in Edinburgh, Scotland, I had to walk through Victoria Park to get home. In winter, the walk home was
treacherous and bitter cold. Even though I wore warm gloves, a hat, and heavy coat, the icy wind penetrated them like they were made of paper, turning my flesh
red with the cold. The streets were covered with a thin layer of glassy ice, causing me to slip with nearly every small footstep I took. Ice carpeted the grass and it
crunched when I walked across the top of it. Sometimes the gutters were snow-covered and I stepped into them, my feet going down into three inches of hidden
slush that ran into my shoes like an overflowing bathtub.
On days when it rained, my school uniform would be saturated. The gray skirt and socks, black shoes, yellow and gray tie, white shirt and gray sweater, would soon
start to emit a damp wool smell, which is not a pleasant one. My long brown-hair pigtails that had been lovingly tied with pale yellow ribbons hung like ropes tied
with dead worms.
When springtime came everything was different. The walk home was glorious. Bright yellow daffodils and glossy red tulips lined the paths. Ladybugs, with their
black dotted wings, flew from blades of green grass to newly budding leaves growing on trees that had stood for centuries. Bees buzzed by carrying pollen, matted
on their legs, and butterflies fluttered to wherever saw color.
The most enjoyable thing about walking home in spring was when Mr. McGregor set up his ice cream cart in Victoria Park. Each day, I??™d sit at my desk in school,
waiting with anticipation for the time when I could leave. I was often agitated by the wait, and my teacher, Mrs. Kirby, would have to discipline me for not sitting
still. My outward appearance would seem to quiet right down, sometimes I??™d even put on a frown. I??™d hide the mischievous glimmer that was normally in my eyes, but
inside I bubbled with anticipation and delight as I watched the minutes pass on the clock up on the wall.
Each morning my father gave me enough money to buy myself an ice cream at Mr. McGregor??™s cart. Each afternoon I??™d run through the park and stand at his cart,
looking into the freezer, trying to decide what I would have. There were so many choices to select from - ice cream sandwiches, chocolate-covered, vanilla, ice
cream bars, cones filled with ice cream and covered with nuts on top, and two cookies (or biscuits as they are called in Scotland) with vanilla or chocolate ice
cream stuffed between them. But my favorite treats of all were the banana popsicles. They were creamy and delicious and I always picked them over anything else.
Mr. McGregor knew that no matter how much I pretended that I might get something different, I??™d always take a banana popsicle. He??™d always make sure he had at
least one in his cart for me. Sometimes he ran out of other things, but never those.
I??™d take it out of the freezer and peel the clear plastic wrapper off, always being careful to put it in the little bag Mr. McGregor had hanging on the cart for
rubbish. I??™d hold on to the stick and raise the creamy yellow treat into my watering mouth. I could smell the banana flavor before I tasted it. When my taste buds
finally caught the sensation of deliciousness, I would smile and go ???mmmmmmmmmmmm??™. Mr. McGregor would always laugh at my excitement over a mere stick of
creamy ice.
Many years have passed and still, whenever I eat a banana popsicle, memories come flooding back into my mind of springtime, Mr. McGregor, Victoria Park, and Mrs.
Kirby. Somehow though, the popsicles tasting much more delicious back then.
Save up to 70% off at the Walter Dra
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Bananas were first promoted to Americans as early as the 1876 Philadelphia Centennial Exposition. The bananas were gaily wrapped in colored tinfoil and the fruit
was sold for ten cents a finger (a fairly high price at that time). Bananas continued to be an expensive delicacy throughout most of the nineteenth century. By the
early 1900s, bananas became affordable and today they are the most popular fruit in America with each person consuming about 28 pounds of bananas each year.
Because of their impressive potassium content, bananas are highly recommended by doctors for patients whose potassium is low. One large banana, about 9 inches in
length, packs 602 mg of potassium and only carries 140 calories. That same large banana even has 2 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. No wonder the banana
was considered an important food to boost the health of malnourished children! Those reducing sodium in their diets can't go wrong with a banana with its mere 2
mgs of sodium. For the carbohydrate counters there are 36 grams of carbs in a large banana.
Vitamins and minerals are abundant in the banana, offering 123 I.U. of vitamin A for the large size. A full range of B vitamins are present with .07 mg of Thiamine,
.15 mg of Riboflavin, .82 mg Niacin, .88 mg vitamin B6, and 29 mcg of Folic Acid. There are even 13.8 mg of vitamin C. On the mineral scale Calcium counts in at 9.2
mg, Magnesium 44.1 mg, with trace amounts of iron and zinc.
Putting all of the nutritional figures together clearly shows the banana is among the healthiest of fruits. The plantain, when cooked, rates slightly higher on the
nutritional scale in vitamins and minerals but similar to the banana in protein and fiber content.
Busy Mom Recipes
Here's the scoop on the current theme:
Like many of our readers, I am a busy Mom. I love to cook (and my kids love to eat!). However, finding recipes that are busy-Mom-friendly can be difficult. Who has the time? Most of us are pretty good cooks. But some of the best recipes take a lot of time and a lot of ingredients. What we are looking for in this coming theme issue are recipes easy to fix, require no fancy-schmancy ingredients, and will help us prepare great food in our busy lives. The issue will be posted in plenty of time for Mother's Day. What a wonderful gift to all the Mothers in our group.
Here's a sampler for you:
EASY BANANA PUDDING
This is easy and so very rich!
1 (8 oz.) cream cheese, at room temp.
1 can Eagle Brand milk
1 lg. vanilla instant
1 lg. vanilla instant pudding mix
3 c. cold milk
1 tsp. vanilla
5 or 6 bananas
1 (8 oz.) Cool Whip
1 box vanilla wafers
Mix pudding, milk, cream cheese and vanilla with 1/2 of the Cool Whip. Set aside other half. In a glass serving dish, layer vanilla wafers, bananas and pudding mixture. Top with the rest of Cool Whip. Chill. French vanilla pudding tastes better; 2 small boxes will do.
Please use this link: Busy Mom Recipes
A to Z Recipes continues with its popular Theme Issues. We will share theme recipes and post them on the first Sunday of each month. Send your recipes no later than the last Friday of each month to have them posted in the next monthly theme issue. You may send in your favorite theme recipes in ONE email. If the number of recipes exceeds those needed in the issue, the publisher will post as many from every submitter as possible and save the remaining recipes for the following Sundays of that month. The rules for recipe submissions for the monthly theme issues are the same as ALL recipes submitted for posting.
The rules are as follows:
As a service to your fellow readers, please send only recipes that are in a form that others could easily copy and save for their own use. Recipes that would require a lot of editing or cleaning up or use non-standard measurements should not be submitted. Recipes without a name and location of sender may NOT be posted or posted without any credit given. There will be NO recipes posted that are from other recipe-zines. A to Z Recipes protects the privacy of its readers and does NOT publish email addresses. There will be no exceptions.
See the A to Z Recipes Theme Issues collection here:
A to Z Recipes Theme Issues
The theme issue for Busy Mom Recipes has a deadline of April 29, 2005, and will be posted on May 1, 2005.
Please use this link: Busy Mom Recipes
As usual, only recipes are to be sent to: A to Z Recipes Inbox.
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Family Photos!
You may view the
June 2004 A to Z Family Reunion. Check out Leslie and Rusty's pics from the
December 2004 A to Z Family Reunion.
Why are bananas never lonely?
Because they hang around in bunches.
Time flies like an arrow, but fruit flies like a banana.
Tom: What did the banana say to the elephant?
Nick: I don't know.
Tom: Nothing. Bananas can't talk.
Why did the banana go out with the prune?
Because he couldn't find a date.
Why is a banana peel on the sidewalk like music?
Because if you don't C sharp you'll B flat.
Looking for a particular recipe, ingredient or submitter?
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Kitchen Bestsellers from Amazon
BANANA AND COCONUT SOUP
A different but intriguing African Recipe for Soup
Source: Afri Chef
When Bananas are used in the place of, or together with, other vegetables, they can be used in almost any way that potatoes can be used.
This African recipe for Banana and Coconut Soup highlights this and produces a very tasty easily prepared soup.
In making this soup please ensure that you use GREEN BANANAS if you are not going to use plantains
INGREDIENTS
12 green bananas or plantains
2 cups chicken stock
2 cups coconut milk
1 cup coconut cream
1 small onion
1/2 hot pepper
METHOD
Peel and grate the bananas or preferably puree in a blender. Mix with the chicken stock and pass through a fine mesh sieve. Peel the onion and chop finely. Seed the
pepper and chop finely. Saute the onion and pepper until the onion becomes translucent. Add all the ingredients together and heat but do not allow to boil.
Serve piping hot with croutons. The banana soup may be decorated with fresh parsley.
BANANA POPPYSEED DRESSING
Source: Banana Web Recipes
1 ripe banana
1 cup (8 oz.) sour cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp. poppy seeds
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. dry mustard
3/4 tsp. salt
Salad greens
Orange and grapefruit sections
In a small bowl, finely mash banana. Add sour cream, sugar, poppy seeds, lemon juice, mustard, and salt. Chill for at least 30 minutes. Arrange salad greens and
fruit on a platter or individual salad plates. Serve with dressing.
Yield: 1-3/4 cups
BANANA CUTLETS
Source: Wayne M Hilburn
INGREDIENTS
6 medium-ripe bananas
1/3 cup lemon juice
1 cup crushed cornflakes
3 tablespoons butter
Lettuce
Peel bananas and halve them crosswise.
Dip them in lemon juice; then roll in cornflake crumbs.
Saute them in butter until a golden brown. Serve on lettuce
Yield: Serves 6
BANANA BREAD PUDDING
Source: Just Fruit Recipes
4 c Day old bread (to 5 cups)
4 Eggs
3/4 c Brown sugar (tightly packed)
4 c Buttermilk
2 1/2 tb Vanilla
1/2 ts Nutmeg
1 ts Cinnamon
2 Bananas; mashed
Preheat oven to 350. Butter a low baking dish or individual ramekins. The day old bread can be your choice (French, day old biscuits, corn bread or a combination
of some or all of the above). Cut the bread into 1 inch cubes and set aside. In a mixing bowl combine the remaining ingredients mixing well, making sure the brown
sugar isn't lumping up. Add the bread to the mixture, let soak 5 minutes. Pour the mixture into prepared baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Can be
served with a Rum Sauce, whipped cream, or fresh fruit. This recipe yields 6 servings.
GREEN BANANA AND POTATO SALAD
Source: Banana Recipes
Ingredients:
2-1/2 lbs. red-skin or Yukon Gold potatoes
3 lbs. greenish-yellow bananas (7 or 8)
2 medium onions, sliced
1/2 cup Spanish capers, drained
1 cup pimiento-stuffed Spanish olives
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup white vinegar
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
2-1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. milled black pepper
Preparation:
Peel potatoes and cut into 1-inch cubes. Cook in boiling, salted water until firm-tender, about 8 to 10 minutes. Peel and slice bananas into 1-inch pieces. Add bananas
to the potato pot and boil 1 minute more. Drain. In a large serving bowl, layer the warm bananas and potatoes with sliced onions, capers and olives, which have been
cut in half crosswise. Whisk together the oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper, then pour dressing over the salad. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2
hours.
Yield: 10 servings
Preparation time: 35 minutes
Chilling: 2 hours
BANANA CRUNCH CAKE
Source: Caf?© Creosote
This recipe was the $25,000 winner in the Pillsbury Bake-Off contest in 1973. It was created by Bonnie Brooks of Maryland.
1/2 cup flour
1 cup shredded coconut meat
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup pecans
1/2 cup butter - cut in tiny pieces
1 1/2 cups banana - sliced thin
1/2 cup sour cream
4 large eggs
1 package Pillsbury Moist Supreme Yellow
Heat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour 10-inch bundt pan. In bowl, combine flour, coconut, rolled oats, brown sugar, and pecan; mix well. Using fork or pastry
blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles crumbs. Set aside.
In another bowl combine banana slices, sour cream and eggs; mix until smooth at medium high speed (the banana slices will be totally incorporated; otherwise the
bananas used were not ripe enough). Add the Pillsbury Moist Supreme Yellow Cake Mix, mix 2 minutes at high speed. Spread 1/2 of batter in greased pan; sprinkle
with 1/2 of coconut mixture. Repeat again, ending with coconut mixture. Bake for 45 -50 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.
LOW FAT BANANA BREAD WITH SUGAR FREE VERSION
Source: Pastry Wiz Recipes
Yield 12 slices
This recipe is brought to us from Roger Hawkins. This recipe is simple and easy to make and is low in fat.
4 Ripe bananas
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 Tbs. Canola oil or Soy Milk
1 tsp. Vanilla
2 tsp. Cinnamon
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1 Cup raisins (optional)
1/2 Cup Nuts (optional)
Mash bananas in a large mixing bowl. Beat sugar and egg until well mixed. Add oil, vanilla, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mix well. Stir in flour, raisins and nuts
until mixed. Do not over mix because it will make your bread tough.
Bake in a 9 x 5 loaf pan (preferably non-stick) that has been sprayed lightly with Pam spray. Bake at 325 degrees for about 1 hour.
The same recipe can be divided equally into smaller loaf pans.
For a sugar-free version replace 1 cup sugar with 24 Equal Packets, 7 1/4 teaspoons Equal for Recipes or 1 cup Equal Spoonful
BANANA SALSA
Source: Epicurian On Line
Ingredients:
1/3 cup diced banana
1/3 cup diced seeded tomato
1/4 cup diced red onion
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon chopped cilantro
Directions:
In small bowl gently stir all ingredients until well combined. Cover and refrigerate at least 1 hour to blend flavors.
Nutritional/Serving Info:
Makes 4 (2-tablespoon) servings
Per Serving Calories 35, Fat 0 g, Cholesterol 0 mg, Carbohydrate 9 g, Protein 0 g, Sodium 2 mg, Fiber .8 g
This truly is my choice recipe. It comes from my mother's only cookbook, and it is the first thing I learned to bake (after cookies). It is the only recipe for banana bread that I have ever used.
BANANA BREAD
Source: Culinary Arts Institute Encyclopedic Cookbook
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed ripe bananas
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2 cups sifted flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup nutmeats, chopped
Cream shortening and sugar together. Beat eggs until light and add. Press bananas through sieve (I mash them with a fork) and add lemon juice. Blend with creamed
mixture. Stir flour, baking powder, and salt together and mix quickly into banana mixture. Add nuts. Bake in a greased loaf pan in a moderate oven (375 degrees)
about 1 1/4 hours. Makes 1 (1 pound) loaf or 5 mini-loaves.
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