Yo-Yo-Yo...

Generally speaking, I've always been a little suspicious of low-fat desserts. In my experience, there is usually something off about them, whether it be the texture or the flavor itself. I kind of don't see the point; if dessert is supposed to be about indulging a craving, how does some vague approximation of the flavors in question satiate your desires? What is the point of being able to eat a huge serving of a low-fat dessert if it tastes like crap? Quality over quantity, I say.

Nonetheless, while I was flipping through the pages of an old issue of Food & Wine recently, I skimmed my way through an article on low-fat desserts and actually found my attention captured by a recipe for chocolate frozen yogurt. Though my attempts at making homemade frozen yogurt have been universally disastrous in the past, the flavor combination in this recipe were right in my wheelhouse: chocolate, banana, and caramel. Caramelized bananas are easily in my top five favorite desserts, so I figured that any dish that incorporated them had to be worth trying.

The recipe called for caramelizing the bananas in a bit of brown sugar before pureeing them and adding them to a simple, no-cook dairy base of Greek yogurt and milk. Though they smelled heavenly and I wanted to eat them straight out the pan, I saved all of them for the recipe and came to regret it. Though the banana flavor came through loud and clear in the finished product, the caramel was completely overwhelmed by the fruit and chocolate. Basically, it tasted like a straight-up chocolate banana frozen yogurt, but that was by no means a bad thing.

In fact, this was easily the best frozen yogurt to ever emerge from my kitchen. Despite being low-fat, the texture was much less icy and crystallized than my previous efforts. I enjoyed the chocolate chunks, which added a sense of indulgence in addition to providing a nice textural contrast. Though I initially found the characteristic tartness of the Greek yogurt to be off-putting, after repeated spoonfuls I came to appreciate the way it paired with the chocolate, and eventually, it came to be downright addictive.

I would definitely consider making this again, though in the future I would experiment with skipping the caramelization process. It's possible that the bananas need to be cooked, and it's also possible that they need that extra bit of sugar, but given that the caramel makes absolutely no difference in the taste of the finished product, I'd be interested in seeing if it can be left out. Still, I'm going to count this effort as a success, and take some pride in the fact that I was able to produce a low-fat dessert that was actually worth eating. I wouldn't count on this becoming a trend around here, but a change of pace is always a good thing...

Chocolate Frozen Yogurt with Caramelized Bananas

adapted from Food & Wine

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 large, ripe bananas cut into 1-inch rounds

2 tablespoons light brown sugar

1 tablespoon creme de cacao

1/2 c. plus 3 tablespoons 2% milk

2 1/2 tablespoons Dutch-process cocoa powder

2/3 c. granulated sugar

pinch of salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 1/4 c. Greek yogurt (2% or nonfat)

1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

1. In a nonstick skillet, melt the butter. Add the bananas in a single layer and sprinkle with the brown sugar. Cook over moderate heat, turning once, until caramelized, about 8 minutes. Off the heat, add the creme de cacao and swirl the pan to dissolve the sugar. Scrape the bananas into a food processor and add 3 tablespoons of the milk. Puree until smooth. Transfer the puree to a small bowl and freeze until chilled, 15 minutes.

2.  In another bowl, whisk the cocoa with the granulated sugar, salt, vanilla and the remaining 1/2 cup of milk. Whisk in the yogurt until smooth, then the banana puree.

3. Transfer the mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions until nearly frozen. Mix in the chopped chocolate. Scrape the frozen yogurt into an airtight container, cover and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.  

Tally Me Banana...

No matter how much kitchen experience I accumulate, no matter now many new techniques and new recipes I get under my belt, there are certain dishes that continue to elude me. I can make an excellent panini, for instance, but I can't seem to tackle a humble grilled cheese sandwich. I've never been able to make a decent stack of pancakes; they're either burnt on the outside and raw on the inside, or anemic all over and dried out. I've also never baked a decent loaf of banana bread.

I've tried many recipes over the years, including my mother's, which my friend Sarah fondly recalls from our shared childhood, but for some reason, whenever I try to replicate Mom's banana bread, it always comes out dry. Every recipe I try seems to have it's own problem -- too dry, moist to the point of being wet, lack of concentrated banana flavor -- you name it. Still, I'm reluctant to give up on banana bread the way that I have with pancakes (I've completely outsourced pancake cookery to Justin along with most breakfast foods). Not only is banana bread delicious, but it also provides a vehicle for disposing of uneaten fruit, and I always seem to run out of steam halfway through a bunch of bananas.

Lately, I've been craving a warm, comforting slice of banana bread, so I went out and purposely bought more bananas than I knew we could eat, and bided my time until they inevitably started to turn blackish-brown. For a recipe, I turned to Cook's Illustrated, who seldom let me down in baking matters, though I do prefer the famous chocolate chip cookie recipe from the New York Times to their brown-butter version. Given that their recipes are often overly fussy and complicated, this banana bread wasn't any more difficult to assemble than your standard loaf.

Even so, I think I went astray when I was making it. Wise bakers will tell you not to overwork a quick-bread dough, and I did just that. Instead of just barely folding the wet ingredients into the dry, I was forced to stir and stir again, as every subsequent agitation of the dough revealed a new, unincorporated pocket of flour. Unsurprisingly, I ended up with a loaf that was rubbery and tough.

The flavor of the banana bread was good, and it was sufficiently moist without being soggy. Aside from the texture (which I firmly believe was my own fault), my only complaint was that it could have used more nuts. Then again, I tend to think that about most desserts, so I've altered the recipe to reflect my own personal taste. I'm not ready to write off this recipe just yet. After all, it was still quite tasty after a brief trip through the microwave, complete with a slathering of butter. I have hope that this recipe has brought me one step closer to the end of my banana bread quest. With a little less stirring, I may just have a perfect banana bread...

Best Banana Bread

adapted from Cook's Illustrated

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour

3/4 c. granulated sugar

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon table salt

1 c. toasted walnuts, coarsely chopped (optional)

3 very ripe bananas, soft, darkly speckled, mashed well (about 1 1/2 c.)

1/3 c. plain yogurt

2 large eggs, beaten lightly

6  tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Grease bottom only of regular (not nonstick) 9-by-5 inch loaf pan, or grease and flour bottom and sides of nonstick 9-by-5-inch loaf pan; set aside.

2. Combine first five (flour through walnuts, if using) ingredients together in large bowl; set aside.

3. Mix mashed bananas, yogurt, eggs, butter, and vanilla with wooden spoon in medium bowl.

4. Lightly fold banana mixture into dry ingredients with rubber spatula until just combined and batter looks thick and chunky–it might look at first like there is too much dry ingredients and not enough liquid, but don’t fret! It will come together, just keep folding gently but consistently. Scrape batter into prepared loaf pan.

5. Bake until loaf is golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, about 55 minutes to an hour. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack.

B-A-N-A-N-A-S...

It seems that I've opened a Pandora's box. It used to be that my baking repertoire was limited to cookies and the occasional cake or batch of muffins, and life was relatively simple. Ever since I made that salted caramel apple pie for the 4th of July, though, not only have my eyes been opened to new possibilities, but I've started receiving requests for more pies, and even cobblers. While I wasn't quite ready to try my hand at another fruit pie so soon, my attention was grabbed by a cream pie I was actually linked to when I was researching recipes on the Cooking Channel website for my last pie project.

The recipe that caught my eye was for another pie featuring salted caramel (one of my favorite dessert components), this time paired with bananas and vanilla pastry cream. I immediately earmarked it on my new cooking to-do list, which I've relocated from an email draft in my Gmail inbox to a board on Pinterest, a site where users can pin inspirational photographs to digital bulletin boards. I find that it's a more effective tool for managing my recipe queue, because it's easy to forget things when the list comes in the form of a long series of links. It's easier to be inspired when you can actually see pictures of the dishes you might potentially make. I'm on Pinterest here, and if you're interested in joining, let me know and I can send you an invite. Follow me, and I'll follow you back.

The salted caramel banana cream pie did not linger long on my inspiration board though, as the perfect opportunity to make it quickly presented itself: tonight Justin and I hosted our friends Natasha and Travis for a low-key dinner party. Pie is Natasha's favorite dessert, and in a stroke of serendipity, when I served my pie as a surprise at the end of the meal, I discovered that both she and Travis apparently love banana desserts. (Also on the menu was the Boursin mac and cheese I made back in March, because I remembered that Natasha had commented on my blog that it looked delicious, my go-to salad with homemade dressing, and fried chicken from KFC, because, hey, I'm not Superwoman.)


Thankfully, this pie seemed to come together more quickly than my last effort, even though the humidity thwarted my first attempt at the requisite salted caramel sauce. The moisture in the air caused the sugar to clump together as it was melting, and I managed to burn it before I could coax the lumps into melting smoothly. At least sugar is cheap, and I had another suitable pan available to mount a more successful second try.

As with my last pie, I eschewed the recipe's crust instructions in favor of those from Alton Brown, since my last pie crust was widely praised and I accurately predicted that he wouldn't lead me astray a second time. I did find that the crust was slightly tougher when made with water, so in the future I might try a 50/50 vodka to water mix when making the pie, just to see if it cuts down on some of the gluten formation. Problematically, I only had a few dry beans on hand to weigh down my crust when I was blind-baking it, so it did bubble up and warp somewhat, but I was able to tamp it down with a glass after baking, which resolved some, but not all of the problem. At least it wasn't noticeable once the pie was filled.

The pastry cream was also simple enough, and I think it was much tastier than the Jello vanilla or banana pudding that most people use to fill their banana cream pies, especially because I added some vanilla bean paste that I had in the pantry instead of the vanilla extract called for in the original recipe. In fact, my general dislike of banana cream pies (I made this recipe because I wanted to see if I could make myself enjoy one by adding salted caramel to the mix) probably stems from my dislike of all boxed puddings that aren't chocolate. Still, even though this pie didn't take up quite as many hours of my life as the salted caramel apple pie, it was still labor-intensive, and I can understand why some people would go the time-saving route.

My only problem with Kelsey's recipe was that it didn't call for nearly enough bananas. She suggested that you buy three, but I went with four just because the bananas at my local store seem to run small and I've never had enough for any recipe I've ever made that called for them. Still, I ran out of bananas when I was assembling the layers of the pie, and could have easily used another, if not two.

When all was said and done, the pie turned out splendidly. It was by far the best banana cream pie I've ever had (and I'm convinced now that salted caramel has magical powers that make everything taste better), and my guests seemed suitably impressed and touched that I'd gone through the effort to make it for them. Being the apple pie fan that I am, I still liked my first pie the best, but other people who had the privilege of sampling both came down in favor of this salted caramel banana cream pie. To each his own, I say.


Banana Caramel Cream Pie
adapted from Kelsey's Essentials

Pie Crust (adapted from Alton Brown)
6 tablespoons very cold butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
3 tablespoons very cold lard, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
6 oz. all-purpose flour, chilled
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 c. ice water

In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Add the butter and pulse 5-6 times until it appears mealy. Add the lard and pulse another 3-4 times. Remove the lid and sprinkle with a few tablespoons of water. Replace lid and pulse another 5 times. Add more water and pulse a few more times until mixture holds together when squeezed. Turn out onto a piece of plastic wrap and knead a couple times until dough holds its shape. Form into a disc, wrap tightly, and chill at least 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425.

On a generously floured work surface, roll out the dough to a 10-11 inch circle. Transfer the dough to a pie plate, and decoratively crimp the edges. Prick the bottom of the crust all over with a fork. Refrigerate 15 minutes.

Place a piece of parchment paper on top of the dough, and fill with dried beans. Bake 10 minutes. Remove the parchment and beans and bake 10-15 minutes more, until golden in color. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely before filling.

Pie Filling
1/2 c. sugar
1/3 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons corn starch
1 tablespoon flour
2 1/2 c. whole milk
2 egg yolks
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1 recipe salted caramel sauce
5-6 bananas, sliced

In a medium sauce pan, combine the sugar, salt, corn starch, and flour. Over medium-low heat, gradually add the milk, then raise the temperature to medium high. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks. When the pastry cream comes to a boil, quickly whisk a 1/2 cup of the mixture into the egg yolks to temper them. Then add the eggs back to the sauce pan, whisking vigorously to prevent the eggs from scrambling. Continue whisking until the mixture coats the back of a spoon and is smooth and thick. Strain into a bowl, and whisk in the tablespoon of butter and vanilla. Stir in 1 cup of sliced bananas. Lay a piece of plastic wrap on the surface to prevent a skin from forming, and allow to cool before using.

When ready to assemble, place a layer of sliced bananas on the bottom of the pie crust. Drizzle 1/4 cup of salted caramel sauce over the bananas. Pour 1 cup of vanilla pastry cream over the bananas and caramel, smoothing to cover. Repeat layering with remaining bananas, caramel and pastry cream, making sure the last layer is one of pastry cream. Place in the refrigerator and chill until filling is set, at least two hours.

Top with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

Going Bananas...

I realize that basically the last thing anyone in their right mind would do when their air conditioning is broken is turn on the oven, but last week, when I was still occupying an artificially frosty apartment, I got it in my head that I needed to try a cookie recipe I'd spotted that employed bananas, so I dutifully went out to the store, bought the fruit, and left it on my counter to ripen. When I eat bananas out of hand, I like them to be just barely ripe, one or two days home from the store, max. I've never been much of a fan of fruit in general, particularly if it gets too sweet, like a very ripe banana, or a ripe melon. So there was really nothing I could do with my purchases once they were more than a few days old, besides turn them into the cookies for which they were intended.

Which is how, dear readers, I found myself baking tonight. Thankfully, the weather has been cooperating with my lack of air conditioning fairly well, and it's been unseasonably cool out, so far. Hence, it wasn't too much of an imposition to crank up the oven in the middle of June, even without a functioning HVAC system.

I was attracted to the recipe in the first place because it vaguely reminded me of one of my favorite childhood treats, the oatmeal banana cookies baked by the mother of a neighborhood boy I used to play with. They were dense and chewy, perfumed with ripe fruit, and adorned with festive multi-colored sprinkles on top -- the key to any child's heart. I'll never be able to get that recipe, but I've been on the lookout for a cookie that combines oatmeal and bananas for ages now in hopes of recreating at least part of that childhood memory.

The cookies I baked tonight were slightly more elaborate, but in a good way; they also featured walnuts and chocolate chunks. Honestly, what recipe isn't improved by the addition of chocolate? I chose to take the opportunity to use up the odds and ends of several different packages and varieties of chocolate that I had sitting around the kitchen: the end of a bag of Ghirardelli bittersweet chips, part of a bag of Tollhouse semisweet morsels, part of a bar of Ghirardelli baking chocolate that'd been hanging out in my cabinet a while, and a few milk chocolate chips, just to get the total up to seven ounces. It definitely felt nice to clear some of the clutter out of my baking supply hoard.

Ultimately, I was glad that all those bits of chocolate gave their lives to make these cookies, and that I risked heating up my apartment to make them, because they were really quite delicious. Imagine, if you will, the love child spawned by the seemingly unholy union of banana nut bread and chocolate chip cookies (two of my most frequent baked good cravings), and you're in the ballpark of what these cookies taste like. It wasn't quite the flavor profile I was going for, and they didn't remind me of those oatmeal banana cookies from my childhood, but I think I'll be adopting them as the favorite banana cookie of my adulthood...

My enormous cookie jar, from Target. We've been through a lot together...

Banana-Walnut Chocolate Chunk Cookies
adapted from Martha Stewart

1 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 c. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 large egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 c. mashed ripe banana
1 c. old-fashioned rolled oats
8 oz. semisweet chocolate (chips or 1/4 inch chunks)
1/2 c. coarsely chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 375.
1. Whisk together both flours, salt, and baking soda in a bowl.
2. Put butter and both sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Reduce speed to low. Add egg and vanilla; mix until combined. Mix in banana. Add flour mixture; mix until just combined. Stir in oats, chocolate, and walnuts.
3. Drop tablespoons of dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake cookies until golden brown and just set, 12-13 minutes. Let cool on sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks and allow to cool completely.