Life Above the Clouds

Time to make some cookies! And it'd be great if I could use up some bananas that are getting a little too ripe. What about some banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies because I already have all of the ingredients on hand. If you haven't noticed...I'm a little bit of a lazy baker. They turned out moist with the perfect amount of sweetness. Plus, they have fruit in them so they're basically healthy.

• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2)
• 1-3/4 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. In a bowl, combine the first six ingredients; beat in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Add egg, bananas and oats; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheets.
5. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks. 

Yield: 4 dozen.

(Inspired by Taste of Home)

Time to make some cookies! And it'd be great if I could use up some bananas that are getting a little too ripe. What about some banana oatmeal chocolate chip cookies because I already have all of the ingredients on hand. If you haven't noticed...I'm a little bit of a lazy baker. They turned out moist with the perfect amount of sweetness. Plus, they have fruit in them so they're basically healthy.

• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 3/4 cup butter, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2)
• 1-3/4 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 375°.
2. In a bowl, combine the first six ingredients; beat in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
3. Add egg, bananas and oats; mix well. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheets.
5. Bake for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks. 

Yield: 4 dozen.

(Inspired by Taste of Home)

Here's another great article from Popsugar on how to cut back on butter when you're baking. Not to brag, actually yes I'm bragging, but I got a lot of compliments on my reduced fat oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies. I was so relieved that they actually turned out OK, and I'm so glad everyone enjoyed them! Who would have thought that just adding milk in lieu of butter would have been a success. Besides milk, here are some other ways to replace butter.

• Applesauce: Often used to replace oil in recipes, applesauce can also be used as butter alternative, and works best in cake-like recipes (like this Vegan Banana Apple Chunk Bread). Replace half the amount of butter in your recipe with applesauce; if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and half a cup of applesauce. If you don't mind a denser, more moist bread, replace all the butter with applesauce to cut even more calories and fat.

• Avocado: Substitute half the amount of butter in a baking recipe with mashed avocado (it works well with cookies); use the same method as you would when using applesauce. Using avocado not only lowers the calorie content but also creates a softer, chewier baked good, and is perfect if you want to omit the dairy.

• Earth Balance: Replace all of the butter with Earth Balance to reduce saturated fat and cholesterol. Using Smart Balance rather than Earth Balance will also save some calories, but note that Original Smart Balance contains whey, so it's not vegan.

• Canola oil: In certain recipes, replacing butter with oil works well, especially if the recipe calls for melted butter. Fiddle with your favorite recipes to figure out when canola works instead of butter; when baking chocolate chip cookies, I've had success substituting half a cup of canola oil for half a cup of unsalted butter. Although slightly higher in calories, canola is much lower in saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

• Greek yogurt: Replace half the amount of butter in your cookie recipes with half the amount of full-fat plain Greek yogurt. For example, if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and one quarter cup of yogurt. You'll reduce the calories and the saturated fat. Play around with using more yogurt and less butter to see if you still like the taste and consistency. Here are more ways to use Greek yogurt in baking recipes.

• Prune purée: Often used to help little ones stay regular, prune purée also makes a low-calorie and low-fat alternative to butter. Whatever amount of butter the recipe calls for, replace it completely with store-bought baby food prune puree (unless you have time to make your own; just purée prunes in the food processor). This option works well in recipes that involve chocolate and cinnamon.

(Inspired by Popsugar)

Here's another great article from Popsugar on how to cut back on butter when you're baking. Not to brag, actually yes I'm bragging, but I got a lot of compliments on my reduced fat oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies. I was so relieved that they actually turned out OK, and I'm so glad everyone enjoyed them! Who would have thought that just adding milk in lieu of butter would have been a success. Besides milk, here are some other ways to replace butter.

• Applesauce: Often used to replace oil in recipes, applesauce can also be used as butter alternative, and works best in cake-like recipes (like this Vegan Banana Apple Chunk Bread). Replace half the amount of butter in your recipe with applesauce; if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and half a cup of applesauce. If you don't mind a denser, more moist bread, replace all the butter with applesauce to cut even more calories and fat.

• Avocado: Substitute half the amount of butter in a baking recipe with mashed avocado (it works well with cookies); use the same method as you would when using applesauce. Using avocado not only lowers the calorie content but also creates a softer, chewier baked good, and is perfect if you want to omit the dairy.

• Earth Balance: Replace all of the butter with Earth Balance to reduce saturated fat and cholesterol. Using Smart Balance rather than Earth Balance will also save some calories, but note that Original Smart Balance contains whey, so it's not vegan.

• Canola oil: In certain recipes, replacing butter with oil works well, especially if the recipe calls for melted butter. Fiddle with your favorite recipes to figure out when canola works instead of butter; when baking chocolate chip cookies, I've had success substituting half a cup of canola oil for half a cup of unsalted butter. Although slightly higher in calories, canola is much lower in saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

• Greek yogurt: Replace half the amount of butter in your cookie recipes with half the amount of full-fat plain Greek yogurt. For example, if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and one quarter cup of yogurt. You'll reduce the calories and the saturated fat. Play around with using more yogurt and less butter to see if you still like the taste and consistency. Here are more ways to use Greek yogurt in baking recipes.

• Prune purée: Often used to help little ones stay regular, prune purée also makes a low-calorie and low-fat alternative to butter. Whatever amount of butter the recipe calls for, replace it completely with store-bought baby food prune puree (unless you have time to make your own; just purée prunes in the food processor). This option works well in recipes that involve chocolate and cinnamon.

(Inspired by Popsugar)

Saturday was National Banana Bread! I'm not usually one for banana bread, but my mom has been raving about this recipe she got from a woman at her bank. Surprise surprise, I didn't have enough bananas for the recipe (6), and I was too lazy to go to the store, so I ended up making a recipe from Food Network that only called for 3. 

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners...the recipe actually makes 17 muffins.

Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.

Fill each cup about 2/3 and bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack for 15 minutes.

(Inspired by Food Network)

Did I mention on Tuesday that I bought these Brussels sprouts from Costco? Yup, I had a bunch leftover, so what else could I make? I was out of bacon, but I did have some leftover prime rib that I figured would work just as well. I remembered seeing Brussels sprout hash on the menu at Huckleberry in Santa Monica, one of my favorite brunch spots, so I decided to give it a try. Plus, I had some breakfast potatoes in the freezer.

• 12 ounces Brussels sprouts
• 2 ounces thick-sliced bacon or pancetta (or leftover prime rib)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 3 large eggs
• kosher salt
• cracked black pepper

1. Thinly slice Brussels sprouts. Set aside.
2. In a medium to large skillet over medium heat, cook bacon or pancetta until crisp. Remove from pan. (I trimmed the fat from my leftover prime rib and let it melt in the pan)
3. To the bacon grease add potatoes and cook until heated through. (I added my leftover prime rib just to warm it up). Remove from pan.
4. Add oil to the pan as needed and cook the garlic for 30 seconds before adding in the Brussels sprouts.
5. Stir in the chicken broth. Sauté for 5 minutes until sprouts are tender. Add the bacon back in, and stir to combine and cook until sprouts start to brown on the edges, another 3-5 minutes. 
6. Create a slight well in the center of the pan. Add the butter if desired. Crack the eggs directly in the center and cook until the eggs are cooked through as desired. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

(Inspired by food for my family)

Yum I love Brussels sprouts! And I think we've established that everyone loves bacon. Maybe that's why one of the most classic ways to cook Brussels sprouts is with bacon! These Brussels sprouts are perfectly soft and the bacon adds great flavor.

• 5 slices bacon, chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed, small spouts left whole, larger spouts halved
• Salt and pepper, to your taste
• 1 cup chicken broth

1. Brown bacon in a medium skillet over medium high heat.
2. Remove bacon to a paper towel lined plate.  
3. Add Brussels spouts to bacon drippings. Season with salt and pepper.
4. Cook Brussels sprouts 2 to 3 minutes to begin to soften, then add broth.
5. Bring broth to a bubble, cover and reduce heat to medium low.
6. Cook 10 minutes, until tender.
7. Transfer sprouts to a serving dish with a slotted spoon and top with cooked bacon bits.

(Inspired by Food Network)

The Super Bowl was on Sunday, and while I'm not super in to football, I can definitely get in to the snacks. My contribution to the party? Candied bacon. I saw this recipe a while ago and I've been dying to try it. Plus, bacon just screams football watching, doesn't it? Simple enough, this is basically just bacon covered with brown sugar and thrown in the oven. I didn't even follow the recipe. It tastes like sin in the best possible way. Sweet and savory and oozing with bacon-y goodness (aka grease). I'm definitely going for a run tomorrow...but it was so worth it. Here are pictures of a test batch where I only made five pieces, but it'd be just as easy to make a larger batch.

(Inspired by Food & Wine)