Today's entry is Almond Banana Bread which comes from Joy the Baker (have you been to her site?  You gotta go!), who thanks SmittenKitchen, who thanks SimplyRecipes.   I've edited this to replace the almond oil, because it costs $9 per bottle and there is just no way I'm spending that much to use 2 tablespoons!  Still, banana bread made in mini muffn tins is really cute on a cookie platter.  And is a passing nod to healthy...

3 to 4 bananas, ripe, 3 if they're large, 4 if they're small
1/3 cup melted salted butter (this is where she called for that little bit of almond oil.  Use vegetable if you desire)
3/4 cup light brown sugar,
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon bourbon (ok, this I WILL buy...)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 dash salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 dash ground cloves
1 1/2 cup flour
3/4 cup almonds, coarsely chopped

No need for a mixer for this recipe.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. 
Mash butter, oil if you're using it, and bananas in a large mixing bowl.
Mix in the sugar, egg, vanilla and bourbon, then the spices.
Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in.
Add the flour, mix. Add the almonds, and stir until just incorporated.
Pour mixture into a buttered 4×8 inch loaf pan.
Bake for 1 hour.
Cool thoroughly before slicing.

I'm not sure how long this will take in mini muffin tins - but I'll post back after I do it.

People always ask me about recipes, and I'm hesitant to blather on and on.   Many of the emails I field are of the "I did just what the recipe said but it didn't taste how I wanted it to" variety.  In my humble (or not so) opinion, a recipe is one person's idea of how something should be.  Aside from baking, which can go very wrong if you dork with the recipe too much, general cooking is a bit more relaxed.  Let's take, for example, the entree I made for dinner last night, and deconstruct it.

Pork Cutlets with Pan Roasted Tomatoes

1 lb    pork tenderloin
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
1 cup  breadcrumbs
2 1/2 tbs kosher salt, divided
1/2 tsp pepper, divided
5 tbs  olive oil
8  italian plum tomatoes
2 tbs balsamic vinegar
1 1/2 tsps dried thyme

Slice the tenderloin into 8 pieces and pound to 1/4 inch thick.
Place the flour in a shallow bowl.
Beat the eggs in a shallow bowl.
Combine parsley, bread crumbs, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a shallow bowl.
Dredge each piece of pork in flour, then egg, then crumbs.
Heat half of the oil over medium high heat in a large skillet Cook 4 pieces of pork 2 minutes each side, then set aside and keep warm.
Repeat.
Cut the tomatoes into wedges and add to the skillet with the vinegar, thyme, and the remaining salt and pepper.
Cook for 7 minutes.
Add the pork back to the skillet just to rewarm and absorb some of the juices.

Doesn't that sound like a lot of work?  It wasn't.  First of all, I had a lot of other things going, and knew pounding pork was not a good use of my time, so I turned the oven on to 400 and sliced the pork into, well, whatever my first 3 fingers measure.  I also had 2 pork tenderloins, as the menfolk around here tend to eat a wee bit more than 4 oz.  I mixed some (what, me measure?) salt, pepper, and thyme in with the beaten egg, and tossed the pork in there while I did some other things.  Sorry, not in the mood for flour, I just used breadcrumbs. 

Breading can be a very messy experience, especially if you're prone to walking around the kitchen with the bowl while you do it, and the dog and the kids are running around too.  I can never manage to keep straight which hand is wet and which hand is dry, so I just use kitchen tongs and call it good.  If they get all muddly I just use a paper towel to wipe them off right into the trash.  Tangent:  While Rachael Ray might have the counter space and desire to wash a garbage bowl, I do not, so I just put the trash can right next to the counter while I work.  Anyhow, the first batch of pork got breaded and safely into the pan and I set the time for 4 minutes and went to bread the other half.  Why the timer?  Because I tend to start a lot of things at once.   By the time the 1st batch was done the 2nd batch was ready.  Now, many people neglect to note that food comes in and out of contact with the pan, but the pan stays in constant contact with the flame.  By the 2nd batch of darn near anything you need to reduce your heat or cook for less time.  OK, everything was nice and golden and in the baking dish and in the oven.  I guessed at 15 minutes, based totally on experience.  If you don't have this experience, go out and buy a thermometer than stays in the oven with a digital readout that sits on the counter.  You want to shoot for 145.  It is no longer necessary to cook pork to death. 

OK, time for the tomatoes.  The recipe calls for plum tomatoes, but they did not look nice at the store so I bought a box of grape tomatoes, and those were halved and tossed into the skillet and allowed to cook over medium until I notice that the pan was looking too dry.  So I hit it with some chicken stock that was still out from the rice recipe that I also was not following.  Once that reduced (while I was making a fondue for the cauliflower - don't ask), I circled the pan a few times with balsamic vinegar, and slammed the cauliflower into the steamer.  The sauce was looking good (nope, it wasn't supposed to be a sauce, but I like sauce), so I swirled some butter into it, then scraped it over the pork, which was now done,  covered it with a baking sheet because I was too lazy to go and get the foil.  It would have been even prettier with the fresh parsley, but I was barefoot and it was cold outside.  The pork just coasted to the perfect temperature while I plated everything, and Sunday dinner was served.

I have done this recipe as written, and it comes out very nicely, but it cooks so quickly that you need to have your side dishes done in advance.  It goes really well with salad, and /or a roasted green vegetable.

It annoys me to spend $2.50 on a can of soup.  Home made soup is cheap, plentiful, full of wholesome ingredients, easy to make, and did I mention cheap?

In order to get a good soup, you have to start with a good broth.  It is rare that any of us have the time or inclination to make a large vat of broth "just in case" so this means you need to find a brand you like and keep it as a pantry staple.  It should be low sodium, because paying for salt water is just silly.  You should be willing to drink a cup of it, because no amount of doctoring will mask a bad broth.

Here's an example of an easy soup that you can make with stuff you probably already have

Tomato Spinach Soup

2 tbs olive oil
1 shallot, minced, 1/4 cup onion in a pinch
2 garlic cloves, minced
14 oz canned diced tomatoes, drained
28 oz canned crushed tomatoes, I have used fire roasted for a different taste
2 cups vegetable broth
5 oz baby spinach, go ahead and use frozen, but use the whole box - don't bother thawing.
 
Sauté shallot and garlic in olive oil until soft.
Add tomatoes and broth and bring to a boil.
Gather spinach in a tight pile on a cutting board and chop.
Add spinach to soup in batches and cook until wilted.
If you're using frozen spinach, just toss it in and let it go.  It will take longer to cook, but so be it.
Reduce heat to medium low and cook 15 minutes to allow it to reduce some.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Or hit it with some soy sauce for some umami (try it!)

Could anything be easier than this?  It makes about 6 cups.  Discount the fact that you probably already have oil, shallot/onion and garlic at home.

The price tags in my pantry say:

Canned diced tomatoes $0.75
Canned Crushed tomatoes $1.67
Broth - $1.99 but that's 4 cups so let's say $1.
Frozen Spinach $0.99

That's $4.41  - the same amount of canned soup (and not even fancy gourmet canned soup) would run about $7.50 and has things in it that I'm not sure I want.  Plus I get to control the amount of salt and vegetables.  Have you ever separated soup to see how much meat/vegetable you really get?  What?  You aren't as obsessive as I am?  Trust me, you would not be impressed.

So, start experimenting with soup.  You can freeze it in little tubs and take it to work.  Save money, eat better.