My Previous Baking Excursions

Banana Butterscotch Bread

Courtesy of www.allrecipes.com

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cup butter
• 3/4 cup white sugar (it calls for white but I used brown. I heard that it's better suited for breads)
• 1 large egg
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 3/4 cup butterscotch chips
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)  

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). The recipe says to use 2 9x5-inch loaf pans. I used my smaller pans, which are about 7x4.5 inch pans. (Make sure you don't forget to grease/spray them!) Set aside. 

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg together in a bowl. Set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until light and fluffy. The mixture should be noticeably lighter in color. Beat in the egg, then stir in the mashed bananas. Pour in the flour mixture, mixing until just incorporated. 

Fold in the butterscotch chips (and walnuts if you choose. I opted for no nuts); mixing just enough to evenly combine.

Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans.

Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 25 to 28 minutes (mine stayed in closer to 35 minutes). Cool in the pans for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack. 

Wait until it's a little cooler before cutting or it wants to crumble. It is definitely worth the short wait. Have a piece that is still a little warm and you feel like you've died and gone to bread heaven. And NO butter is necessary.  

Banana Butterscotch Bread.

Excuse the not so great picture. Just make it and find out yourself how AMAZING this is!

S'more Brownie Bars

Inspired by a recipe on www.allrecipes.com 

• 1 package graham crackers
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 (19.8 ounce) package fudge brownie mix (and whatever you need to make brownie mix)
• 2 cups miniature marshmallows
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 2/3 cup chopped peanuts

Crush one package of graham crackers and mix with 1/2 cup butter and 1 tsp vanilla. Once evenly coated put in greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking pan. Press with fork until the cracker covers the entire bottom of the pan.

Prepare the brownie batter according to package directions. 

Pour batter over graham cracker crust. This is a little tricky since the batter is sticky but just spread slowly.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Sprinkle with marshmallows, chocolate chips and peanuts. Bake 5 minutes longer or until marshmallows are slightly puffed and golden brown. Cool on a wire rack before cutting. 

These are super delish. They had BIG reviews. The only criticism I would make is that the marshmallows got a little chewy. I may try the marshmallow fluff next time I make these. Just some food for thought!  

A closer look at all the gooey goodness on the inside.