Archive for February, 2012

Gloria’s Fantastic Banana Bread

Wednesday, February 29th, 2012 2 comments
Glorias banana bread Glorias Fantastic Banana Bread
Gloria’s Fantastic Banana Bread
 
 

I have been making banana bread for at least 40 years. And I always thought my banana bread was pretty good. Guess what? I have found one that is far superior! My neighbor Gloria, who doesn’t fancy herself as much of a cook (I disagree), brought over the very best that I have ever tasted. It appears that the secret is extra bananas (I used 5) and walnuts (I used 1 1/4 cups).
Here is the recipe:
3/4 cup sugar
1 stick butter (1/2 cup), softened
2 eggs
4-5 bananas (about 1/4 cups), mashed
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 1/4 cups chopped walnuts
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time.
Add vanilla and bananas.
Mix dry ingredients in a small bowl. Stir into creamed mixture.
Add walnuts and stir to combine.

Spoon mixture into greased and floured loaf pan. Bake for approx one hour at 350 degrees. Cool on wire rack.

Enjoy.

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Maddie Had a Party!

Wednesday, February 22nd, 2012 1 comment
Maddie Had a Party 300x199 Maddie Had a Party!
Maddie Had a Party!

Maddie had a birthday party for 20 of her friends.
She wanted to do something new, the best of latest trends.
So she picked a cooking party and asked all to “Cook the Part”
She provided them with aprons, but that was just the start.

Rolling pins and pizza pans were provided for each team
They rolled out dough and shaped it – not like pizzas we have seen
Lots of toppings were provided, including veggies plus lots more
Most topped them off with sauce and cheese, but who is keeping score?

Next they picked a cookie, a butterfly or heart
Which they decorated beautifully – another work of art.
They had multi-colored icing, jelly beans and more.
The kids could pick out anything, like from a candy store.

Maddie wore a cowboy hat instead of a princess crown
She wanted painted faces and her mom never lets her down
So all the girls were decorated in multi-colored masks
But that was not the end of it, there were many other tasks

They fed the ducks at Fairbanks lake and had a real fun time.
But all are wondering what’s up next year when Maddie will turn nine!




Birthday Party Menu

Maddie’s Favorite Snacks

Cheez Its
Cheese cubes
Apple slices
Carrot Sticks

Pizza toppings

Tomato sauce (add a little oregano and red pepper flakes, if desired)
Grated mozzarella cheese
Sautéed mushrooms Sautéed peppers (red, green and yellow for variety)
Pepperoni Pineapple wedges

While you can add many other toppings, you can also limit your offerings to sauce, cheese and pepperoni. Only a few of the others toppings were chosen by the 20 girls at Maddie’s party.

Pizza dough
Moms to make the dough or purchase ready-made pizza dough.  Each batch of dough will make four small pizzas Make ahead, lightly rub oil on dough and keep refrigerated in a zip lock bag until an hour before using.  Divide dough into 4 portions.  Recipe can be found at https://www.cookthepart.com/2010/09/02/pizza-dough-bread-machine/
Butterfly Sugar Cookies (or Heart cookies)
Moms to make one cookie per guest. Sugar cookie recipe can be found at https://www.cookthepart.com/2010/12/18/a-crown-for-juliet-best-sugar-cookies-and-icing-from-mrs-z/
Purchase icing in multiple colors, cake decorating gel for writing in multiple colors, jelly beans, and assorted candies for decorating.

Purchased Birthday Cake

 

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Keep on Truckin’

Friday, February 17th, 2012 2 comments


While visiting the Los Angeles County Museum of Art recently, we found as much art on the outside of the museum as we found inside. It was just a different kind of art. Artfully painted trucks with artfully designed food lined the street outside the museum for blocks and blocks. We could only sample a few of the offerings, but what we tasted was delicious, fresh, and original. The practice of this new culinary venue is to simply tweet their locations to their “followers” and the customers come to line up for the variety, the convenience and the experience. Customers can take treats or lunches back to their offices or find a nearby step or bench for a quick imromptu picnic. Quite a new experience for us since we were always a bit “put off” by the idea of eating from a food truck. The world is changing….this is a fun new food venue that brings convenience and diversity to the luncheon crowd. Have you seen these colorful trucks in your city yet? If so, don’t hesitate to give them a try!

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Say Cheese at Gary Danko!

Sunday, February 5th, 2012 No comments

The Annual JP Morgan Healthcare conference in San Francisco is viewed as the formal kick-off to each new year for the biotechnology industry.  We all congregate in the crowded halls of the Westin St. Francis and mingle with our colleagues from around the country or the world for three or four days, while we absorb news of progress in bringing drugs to the market or learning about new tools to help us change the healthcare landscape.  One of the big side-benefits of spending a few days in San Francisco for the foodies among us, is to experience the SF restaurant scene, which is a delight for most of us converging upon the city from less-culinary prized locations.  I had the good fortune to experience dining at Gary Danko this year, along with my friends from Cooley Godward.  What a delight. The atmosphere was warm, with a busy bustle, but not so loud as to preclude conversation.  The service was devine, with just the right attentiveness, but not bordering on intrusive.  Each course was a work of art as we examined each selection upon arrival at the table.
The prices on the menu were actually a pleasant surprise, offering you a selection of 3, 4 or 5 courses.

3 Courses $71       4 Courses $89       5 Courses $104

A few of the table favorites were:

Risotto with Lobster, Rock Shrimp, Shimeji Mushrooms, and Butternut Squash
Lobster Salad with Avocado, Citrus, Shaved Fennel, Baby Artichokes
and Mustard-Tarragon Vinaigrette
Seared Sea Scallops with Butternut Squash Purée, Shimeji Mushrooms, Apples, Caramelized Cauliflower and Tarragon

The highlight of the meal, however, was the cheese cart, offering you between sixteen and twenty selections from around the world.  Although all the courses were wonderful, these cheeses were a special treat and You must leave room for this course when visiting!

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