Banana Yogurt Cake for a Lunch Box Treat

For many, Labor Day weekend signifies the end of summer and a transition to the new school year. This past weekend was a fun last hurrah for us, a time to reflect on the relaxing summer months off while preparing to jump into a busy schedule. My sons do not return to school until tomorrow, but I have lunches on my mind today as I start planning what they’ll take.

Growing up, my mom packed school lunches for my brothers and me, and Bob’s mom did the same for him. I bought milk at school (5 cents for regular, 6 cents for chocolate!) and occasionally ate the hot lunch (usually on pizza days). When my sons were in elementary school, they went to a small school that did not serve a hot lunch program so lunches had to be brought from home. As they entered middle school and high school, though, buying lunch became an option for them, an option they quickly discarded.

Both Sam and Isaac prefer to bring food from home rather than eat what is in the school cafeteria and I can’t say I blame them. I’m in the middle of reading Free for All: Fixing School Food in America by Janet Poppendieck for the Slow Food Seattle Book Club and it is eye-opening. I highly recommend it if you have school-age children or an interest in nutrition in our schools.

Good nutrition is an important part of lunch, vital to refueling our children’s bodies so they can focus and learn during the day. In addition to the healthy food I pack for Sam and Isaac, I like to include a treat now and then. One of our favorites is this Banana Yogurt Cake. The original recipe comes from Cooking for a Healthy Family by Simon Hope. The cake is full of wholesome goodness from bananas, whole wheat flour and yogurt.

It’s a cake you can dress up with cream cheese frosting or toss in some chocolate chips or blueberries for a little decadence, but we usually enjoy it plain. It’s moist and flavorful and a nice alternative to banana bread when you have speckled bananas sitting on your counter (you can also freeze overly ripe bananas in their peel to keep on hand for baking). I usually double the recipe and bake it in a Bundt pan so it’s easy to slice a hunk and wrap up for lunch.

Cheers to a new school year! (And I can't resist sharing this pic of Boots and Bess hanging in the sun together.)

Banana Yogurt Cake
Adapted from Cooking for a Healthy Family
By Simon Hope
Makes an 8-inch cake or you can double the recipe for a Bundt cake

1/2 cup plain yogurt (I like to use Greek yogurt)
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 very ripe bananas, mashed
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8-inch cake pan or Bundt pan.

In a medium size bowl, stir the yogurt and brown sugar together. Whisk in the vegetable oil, followed by the bananas, eggs and vanilla. Slowly stir in the flour, baking powder and salt until mixed.

Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes, until firm to the touch (this is a moist cake, be careful not to over bake). If baking in a Bundt pan, increase the time to about 50 minutes. Let cool and remove from pan. The cake will keep, well wrapped, at room temperature for 2 days.

Holding On To Summer with a Fresh Blueberry Tart

This weekend we’re trying to grasp onto the last bits of summer here. My boys return to school next week (they’re both in high school this year ... where does the time go?) and before the whirl of a schedule begins we have a few days to savor. At the moment, I’m looking out the window at an overcast sky that promises to burn off and give us a sunny day. I love this early morning feeling of a glorious day ahead.

I’m also remembering last weekend when our family went over the mountains to Winthrop for a quick little get away. It was a fun blast of summer with lots of hot sun, stunning mountain views, Mexican food eaten by the river, dripping ice cream cones (again by the river), watching Hot Fuzz and relishing the lazy feelings of August.

Rather than driving back over the mountains, we wound our way home along the Columbia River and through acres and acres of beautiful orchards. Dotting the side of the road were farm stands selling peaches and apricots from the orchards, blueberries, sweet corn and tomatoes. It was dusk and the stands were closed, otherwise we’d have been making many stops. As we neared our house in Seattle, I asked Bob to slow down so I could read the hand-written sign posted on our neighborhood berry stand - would there still be blueberries this week? Yes! I gave a big sigh of happiness.

Knowing the season is nearing its end, I want the blueberries to shine. For the rest of the year, frozen blueberries can be substituted when baking muffins or tossed in to my morning oatmeal, but right now I want to taste these sweet berries in a dessert where they are fresh and pop in every bite I take.

With this in mind, I played around with a recipe clipped from Bon Appetit long ago to create a fresh pastry which satisfies this desire. This blueberry tart is a gorgeous way to showcase the end of summer and is quick to make. Indulge in a slice (or two) and soak up a few more moments of summer over Labor Day weekend.

Fresh Blueberry Tart
Adapted from Bon Appetit
Serves 8

Crust
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small cubes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a food processor, blend the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter and pulse until clumps form. Gather the dough into a ball and press it over the bottom and sides of a 10-inch tart pan with removable bottom. Pierce the bottom with a fork all over and bake for 25 minutes. Let cool completely.

Filling
1/2 cup agave syrup
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
6 cups fresh blueberries

Stir the agave syrup, cornstarch, salt and lemon juice in a medium saucepan to blend. Add butter and 2 cups of blueberries. Cook over medium heat until mixture thickens and boils a bit, stirring a few times. Remove from heat and gently mix the remaining 4 cups of blueberries in. Pour the filling into the prepared crust and spread evenly.

Chill the tart, uncovered, for at least an hour. (You can prepare the tart 1 day ahead, just cover loosely with foil and keep in the refrigerator.) When ready to serve, remove tart from pan and cut slices.

My Chocolate Chip Cookies

Do you love chocolate chip cookies? At the UW Hillel Café, chocolate chip cookies became my specialty. A few years ago, they were even referred to as “crack cookies” ... you have no idea how that warms my heart and makes me smile!

Chocolate chip cookies emerged as the most popular baked good in the café. In an effort to mix it up a bit over the years I’ve baked other treats, too, including brownies, oatmeal cookies, raspberry streusel bars, lemon bars, peanut butter cookies and cheesecake bars. While the UW students happily indulged in these goodies, nothing flew out of the pastry case faster than the chocolate chip cookies. I’ve baked tens of thousands of them at this point and I am incredibly happy while baking them. They are my signature cookie. I joke about going in to withdrawal if I haven’t baked for a while, and it’s quite true. I love to bake just about everything, but chocolate chip cookies top my list.

These cookies are quite thick, soft and gooey with chocolate chips. They are based on the classic Nestle Toll House recipe. In order to create the extra thick cookie, I experimented with different baking methods and times until I had the exact process down. Definitely a lot of fun experimenting!

In the Hillel kitchen, there is a professional convection oven and this is where the cookie originated. At home, though, I do not have a convection oven, and I want to be able to make the cookies in a home kitchen. In order to achieve this, I needed to (notice the need part!) bake individual cookies, varying the temperatures and times to recreate the convection experience. I’m happy to report success! I found that by freezing the scoops of cookie dough for at least an hour and baking at a higher temperature, the cookies stayed dense and soft, a chocolaty joy to sink your teeth into. An added benefit is that you can keep a stash of raw cookie balls wrapped in your freezer and pull them out to bake as desired (perfect when Sam and Isaac needed cookies for their high school orchestra potluck last night!).

This is the recipe that is most requested by the students and Hillel program staff and I’m happy to share it here with you.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted slightly from the Nestle Toll House recipe
Makes 21 cookies

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup vegetable shortening, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups chocolate chips or chopped semi-sweet chocolate

In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter and shortening and beat together with a mixer until smooth (you can use a hand mixer or stand mixer). Add the sugar and brown sugar and continue mixing until smooth. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix.

In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Slowly blend the flour mixture into the butter mixture. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the chocolate chips until combined.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drop 1/4 cup rounded scoops of the dough (I use a small ice cream scoop) on the baking sheet. If baking the same day, pop the tray uncovered in to your freezer for at least an hour until frozen. If baking at a later time, seal the tray well with plastic wrap (air is the enemy when freezing) and store in the freezer until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a second baking sheet with parchment paper. Place 8-9 scoops of frozen dough on the sheet (if you bake more at a time they tend to spread into flat cookies). Bake for 13 minutes, until golden. They will be very soft. Let cookies sit for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack. Continue baking the remainder of the cookie dough.

**If you have a convection oven, bake the frozen cookies at 350 degrees for 9 minutes.

A Ratatouille Gateau for Your Picnic

There’s still time for a summer picnic, which is good news since I have something rather shocking to tell you ... my family has not gone on one picnic yet this summer! Nope, not a one. We’ve had many al fresco meals in our backyard but for some reason haven’t pulled out the picnic basket. I’m rather bewildered thinking about this fact, but we’ll remedy it at once! I love our picnic basket. As I lift the lid to fill it, I see the perfectly arranged wine glasses, knives and forks strapped in to their spots (there’s even a cute little set of salt and pepper shakers) and recall fun memories of past picnics. Not that you need a basket to go on a picnic, just good food and a warm day. For our picnics, we enjoy heading to one of the beaches along Lake Washington. Trees and the sound of water provide a relaxing backdrop to our meal.

Our picnic food usually includes cheeses, breads, fruit, veggie sandwiches or quiche, perhaps deviled eggs and a sweet treat. Wanting a different type of veggie dish, I created this Ratatouille Gateau. Ratatouille, mixed veggies and basil mayo are layered between herbed crepes and stacked in a springform pan for easy transporting.

I am a big fan of ratatouille, especially since it's most flavorful if served room temperature (and tastes even better if made the day before). Lots of zucchini are growing right now, so this is a terrific way to use them. For this ratatouille, I roasted all the veggies in order to bring out more flavors. The crepes are adapted from a recipe in Gourmet magazine for homemade manicotti. I reverse the order of instructions for the ingredients (makes mixing easier and no need to push through a sieve) and add thyme.

All of the components can be prepared ahead of time and then the gateau assembled right before heading out the door. By the time you reach your picnic destination, the gateau will be room temperature and ready to enjoy. See you at the beach!

Ratatouille Gateau
Serves 6-8

Gateau Fillings (Ratatouille, Basil Mayo and Veggies)

Ratatouille
1 medium globe eggplant, cut into 1-inch pieces
3 zucchini, sliced lengthwise and chopped in 1-inch pieces
1 yellow pepper, roughly chopped
1 red pepper, roughly chopped
5 roma tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 red onion, chopped into 1-inch pieces
10 cloves garlic, sliced lenthwise
3 tablespoons olive oil, divided plus more to drizzle
1/2 cup tomato puree
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. On a rimmed baking sheet, drizzle a little olive oil and use a pastry brush or paper towel to coat bottom. Spread the eggplant in a single layer. Give a quick drizzle of olive oil over the eggplant and toss a bit (or use a Misto sprayer). Roast the eggplant for about 20 minutes, until it is browning on the edges and soft. Pour eggplant into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Add another light slick of olive oil to the bottom of the baking sheet and spread the peppers, zucchini and tomatoes on in a thick single layer. Drizzle a little olive oil and stir around. Roast the veggies for about 25 minutes, giving them a stir a couple of times. Add the veggies to the eggplant.

Again, add a little olive oil to coat the baking sheet and spread the onions and 10 sliced garlic cloves to pan. Roast for about 15-20 minutes, giving a stir and making sure garlic doesn't burn. Add to the mixing bowl with eggplant and other veggies.

Give all the ratatouille veggies a stir and mix in the tomato puree. Season with salt and pepper to taste. At this point, the ratatouille can be covered and chilled until ready to use.

Basil Mayo
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup mayonnaise (homemade is wonderful, but for this Vegenaise or Hellmans will do just fine)

To make the basil mayo, combine 2 tablespoons of olive oil, basil, lemon juice, 1 clove of garlic and salt in the bowl of a food processor. Whiz until smooth, scraping down the sides once. Add the mayo and pulse until combined. Chill until ready to use.

Veggies
1/2 pound mushrooms, sliced
1/2 pound asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces

In a medium saute pan, pour in 1 tablespoon of olive oil over medium high heat. Add the mushrooms, cover and steam for about 7 minutes until soft and liquid is released (turn down heat if mushrooms are sticking). Stir and add the asparagus. Stir, cover and steam for about 4-5 minutes until asparagus is soft. Remove from heat and set aside. You can chill these veggies, too, until ready to use.

Crepes
Adapted from Gourmet Magazine
Makes 6

1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 1/2 cup warm water
3 eggs, room temperature
Butter for making crepes

In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, salt and thyme and stir together. Slowly pour in warm water and stir until combined. Add the eggs one at a time and stir each one in until just combined.

Heat a 10-inch nonstick crepe pan or frying pan over medium high heat and brush with a little butter. Pour 1/2 cup measure of crepe batter in and tip pan to swirl and coat bottom. Cook for about 30 seconds until set then flip and cook the other side for about 30 seconds. Remove the crepe and make 5 more. Crepes can be stacked with parchment paper layered in between. Watch your heat while making and be prepared to turn down a little if the crepes are setting too quickly and you can't spread the batter thin enough.

To Assemble
Mix the basil mayo with the asparagus and mushrooms. Place a crepe in the bottom of a 10-inch springform pan. Spread 1/3 of the ratatouille on the bottom and top with a crepe. Spread 1/2 of the basil veggie mix on and top with a crepe. Spread the next 1/3 of ratatouille, top with crepe and then the last 1/2 of the basil mayo and veggies. Layer with a crepe, add the last 1/3 of the ratatouille and place final crepe on top. Wrap the springform pan tightly with foil to transport to your picnic. Once there, pop off the side, slice and serve.

The Sweetness of Chocolate Cake and Friendship

My dear friend, Julie, celebrated her birthday yesterday and I was honored to make a cake for her. Julie has been in my life for many years now. Bob and I met her and her husband, Mitch, when I was pregnant with my older son and soon after we bought houses on the same street. That was 16 years ago and since then we have raised children, taken vacations together, shared holidays and Shabbat dinners and become family. Their children, Sophie and Jake, are close with my children, almost like cousins. In fact, Julie and Sophie (5 months old at the time) were in the delivery room when my younger son, Isaac, was born. Sophie and Isaac like to say they’ve known each other since birth!

A special friend like Julie deserves a decadent cake to celebrate her birthday and it must be chocolate. My go-to chocolate cake for the past 10 years is one from Cook’s Illustrated. You can bake it in a 9x13 inch pan and take it on a picnic, no frosting needed. Or you can use two round cake pans, layer it with a rich filling and slather on frosting for a festive occasion.

Pondering a new cake idea is so much fun! I’ve been dying to try this chocolate bourbon whipped cream and thought it would provide a heavenly cake filling. It did, and I’ll admit to sneaking quite a few spoonfuls while assembling the cake. The icing on the cake was a tangy, rich one of chocolate and sour cream. Yum!

A balmy evening, tiki torches burning, sipping chilled wine, indulging in cake and ice cream and celebrating friendship.... just a few of life’s moments to savor. Cheers to a lovely friend!

Chocolate Sheet Cake
Adapted from Cook's Illustrated
Makes one 9x13 inch cake or two 9 inch round cakes

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus extra for buttering baking pan(s)
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar (a little less if using semi-sweet chocolate)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat bottom and sides of baking pan(s) with butter.

Sift together cocoa powder, flour and salt in a medium bowl. Heat chocolate and butter in a small saucepan over very low heat, stirring until melted and smooth (or you can use a microwave). Whisk together eggs, sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl.

Whisk chocolate into egg mixture until combined. Combine buttermilk and baking soda and whisk into chocolate mixture. Then whisk in dry ingredients until batter is smooth and glossy. Pour batter into prepared pan(s) and bake until firm in the center when lightly pressed, about 30 minutes for 9 inch cake pans and 40 minutes for 9x13 inch pan. Cool on wire rack for 1 hour. This cake freezes well, too. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and freeze up to one month.

If assembling a layered cake, set one cake on a serving plate. Layer with Chocolate Bourbon Whipped Cream, place second cake on top and ice with Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting (recipes follow).

Chocolate Bourbon Whipped Cream
From food52.com
Makes about 2 cups

1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon bourbon

Combine cream, cocoa, sugar and bourbon in a medium bowl and whisk to combine. Cover and refrigerate at least an hour to allow the cocoa to dissolve. Whisk by hand or beat with a hand-mixer until stiff peaks form. Take a taste (or two!). Chill until ready to use.

Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting
From Cooking for Mr. Latte by Amanda Hesser

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 cups sour cream, room temperature

Melt the chocolate chips over low heat or in a microwave. Let cool to room temperature. It’s very important that the chocolate and sour cream be the same temperature or the frosting will be gloppy and grainy (this has happened to me before ... still delicious but not as pretty). Stir the melted chocolate and sour cream together until smooth. Frost away!

Tomato Bread Pudding at the Block Party

Yes! I’m happy to report we have an amazingly gorgeous day with a cloudless blue sky. All the windows are open and the house is drenched in sunshine. Sitting at Isaac’s football practice this morning, I sipped my iced green tea and soaked up the warmth. I’ll need these memories when the rain and gray return later this year ... but we’re not thinking about that today. On our way home from the field, Isaac looked at me and said, “This is your kind of day." No truer words were ever spoken!

Tonight is our annual block party and we could not ask for a better evening to be outside. I love this tradition! We pull barbecues out on to the sidewalk, set up beach chairs and folding tables, flip on some music and chat and share food with our neighbors. We have lived on our block for 16 years and it’s a terrific one. When Bob and I moved here, Sam was a newborn baby and we marveled at how old the kids in elementary school looked. Now we’re the ones with two sons towering over the preschoolers. Big sigh ...

As we are in the midst of tomato season, and I am making as many tomato dishes as possible, I have another recipe I must share with you (and it happens to be perfect for a block party). Tomato Bread Pudding (Quajado de Tomate), a Sephardic dish, is part omelet, part bread pudding. Tomatoes are the star, so only local, ripe tomatoes will do here. Eggs, bread, cheese and herbs are supporting actors and when combined with the tomatoes you have a mouth–watering plate of silky custard, salty cheese and sweet tomatoes. This is sublime comfort food. You can vary the herbs and cheeses you use, so this is a fun dish to get creative with.

Bring it to your next potluck, serve out big scoops, relax in your beach chair and catch up on the latest.

P.S. No lemonade stand this year ... instead two neighborhood girls set up a nail parlor! I am so excited!

Tomato Bread Pudding (Quajado do Tomate)
Adapted from Sephardic Flavors by Joyce Goldstein
Serves 6-8

2 1/2 pounds ripe tomatoes, chopped
4 thick slices of rustic bread (about 12 ounces), soaked in water and squeezed dry
6 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup Italian parsley, chopped (feel free to use other fresh herbs)
3/4 pound cheese (about 3 cups), grated or crumbled (you can use a combination such as feta and mozzarella, or parmesan and mozzarella - just be sure one of your cheeses is a salty one)
Salt and pepper to taste

Place the chopped tomatoes in a colander, sprinkle with a little salt and let drain for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Oil a 9x12 inch baking dish.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, soaked bread, eggs, parlsey and all but 1/2 cup of the cheese. Mix well and season with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the mixture into the prepared baking dish, spread evenly and sprinkle remaining cheese on top.

Bake the pudding until golden and set, 40-45 minutes. Serve warm or room temperature.

Cracked Wheat Walnut Bread and News of a Baby

I have a new nephew! My brother, Tim, and sister-in-law, Kristen, just had their third beautiful child and I am delighted to be an auntie again. Babies = pure happiness. I can’t wait to meet this sweet bundle. Is there anything more delicious than kissing tiny baby feet?

In the meantime, I can’t think of a more appropriate time to bake bread than when celebrating a baby. When making bread, I think of new life bubbling up while watching the yeast and liquid react together. Kneading dough is cozy and comforting and it allows me to create a tangible sign of love with my hands. I want to nurture and strengthen my sleep deprived brother and sister-in-law. Sadly, I am not nearby to help with the baby, so until I can visit I will send my love in a freshly baked loaf of whole-grain goodness. (Spoiler alert, Tim and Kristen - guess what’s coming in the mail!)

Cracked Wheat and Walnut Bread is a hearty, nutritious bread and a favorite of ours. It combines bulgur, whole wheat flour, walnuts and a touch of honey to yield a flavorful loaf. I first had it at Macrina Bakery here in Seattle and when their cookbook was published I ran to pick it up and baked this bread immediately (as well as the brownies ... I promise I’ll tell you about those clouds of chocolate delight soon). This is a terrific all-purpose bread! Top a toasted slice with a poached egg, make a tuna salad sandwich (as I just did) or enjoy it warm out of the oven with honey butter. You really can’t go wrong. And I suggest you double the recipe so you have an extra loaf to share or stash in your freezer.

A toast to my new nephew! (Hee hee – I couldn’t resist.)

Cracked Wheat Walnut Bread
Adapted from Macrina Bakery and Café Cookbook by Leslie Mackie
Makes 1 loaf

3/4 cup cracked wheat bulgur
1 cup boiling water
1 1/4 cups warm water
1 1/2 teaspoons dried yeast
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup whole wheat flour (plus extra for sprinkling)
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 cup canola oil
1 1/2 cups walnut halves, toasted and chopped

Place the cracked wheat in a small bowl and cover with boiling water. Stir and let sit for 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed.

In a large mixing bowl, pour in warm water and add the yeast and honey. Stir and let sit until it bubbles up, about 5 minutes. Add the cracked wheat, 1 cup whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, salt and canola oil. Stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together. Using floured hands, knead for about 10 minutes. Add the walnuts and knead until they are mixed in. (This can all be done in a standing mixer with a dough hook, too, but sometimes I prefer to make bread completely by hand.)

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm area for about 2 hours. Punch the dough down and pull it out onto a floured surface. Form it into a rectangle and position it so the long side is facing you. Fold the 2 short ends onto the top so they meet in the middle. Roll the dough away from you to form a tight log.

Place the loaf in an oiled 9x5 loaf pan. Let rise for 1 hour. While the loaf is proofing, preheat the oven to 385 degrees.

Dust the top of the loaf with a little bit of whole wheat flour. Bake for about 50 minutes, until medium brown on top. Let cool for 30 minutes before removing from the pan. Slice and enjoy!