Tag Archives: Cooking

Double chocolate banana bread

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I have been seeing a lot of banana bread and nutella recipes. I decided to modify my banana bread recipe so it included chocolate chip and nutella. Boy, it was amazing – very rich though, one slice was enough 🙂

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Modifications to the Original Recipe:

Additional Ingredients

  • 1 cup semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips
  • 3/4 cup Nutella

Additional Directions

Follow the directions in the Original recipe but add the 1 cup of chocolate chips to the banana mix before adding the dry ingredients. Pour batter into tin as described.

Melt Nutella for 20 seconds on high in the Microwave. Pour the nutella on top of the batter. Use a knife to mix in the nutella slightly into the top of the loaf. Bake as stated in the original directions.

Serving suggestions: Serve warm with whip cream and a coffee

Goals for 2013: Factotum of Arts, Squeek Crafts

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All in all, I had a great last 4 months of 2012. For 2013, I would like to continue in much the same fashion. My goals are to:

  • Blog a minimum of 3 times a week.
  • Build up my stock in my Etsy store and sell $1000 worth of merchandise.
  • Participate in another craft fair.
  • Squeek Crafts section: Finish my four seasons quilt, a quilt for my son, and the orange and grey quilt for our room and my Christmas stocking.
  • Squeek Crafts section: Try 12 new sewing/quilt or patchwork projects e.g.. a weekender bag, something made from paper piecing.
  • Edible Delights section: Try three new recipes out per month and post them (36 in total for the year).
  • Framed section: Carve out some time to do some drawing and painting. I have 2 pieces in mind.
  • Home and Garden Design section: Finish our backyard, renovate our guest bathroom (as it desperately needs a lift).

Review of 2012: Squeek Crafts

  • I changed jobs to spend more time with my family (February)
  • Started my blog (September)
  • Opened my Etsy store – Squeek Crafts (October)
  • Participated in my first craft fair (December)
  • Sewing or Quilting Projects: Made chair bags (for my store), cushions/pillows, placemats, gift card pockets, Christmas stockings, lots and lots of coffee cup sleeves (for my store and craft fair), made my son a monster.
  • Craft Projects: Made recycled wine cork boards (for my store and craft fair), caterpillar wall display for a thank you gift at pre-school, and an Elmer growth chart (gift for a friend’s little girl), neck tie art piece (gift for my parents 40th wedding anniversary).

2012 Craft Collage

Review of 2012: Edible Delights

  • Shared some of my favorite recipes
  • Made pesto, bell pepper relish, bean salad from things in my first vegetable garden
  • Made Pies/Tarts – Bacon and egg pie, potato top pie, rhubarb apple pies, chocolate tarts, and pear tart
  • Stewed my first lot of fruit – cherries
  • Worked out to get the perfect chocolate coated strawberry without getting a flat edge
  • Got a new case of wine from my brothers vineyard – Moana Park

2012 Edible Delights Collage

Bell pepper relish – end of the summer crop

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So my bell peppers are now all finished. I had about 60 bell peppers (green and purple) to use. What can I do to store bell peppers??? I found a Sweet Bell Pepper Relish recipe which sounded interesting and went to work making it.

I plan on using the relish as Christmas gifts and also for ourselves as a condiment for meatloaf, pork and sandwiches.

Ingredients (taken from southern food about.com)

  • 20 large bell peppers, red, yellow, orange, green, stems and seeds removed, about 6 pounds
  • 1 1/2 pounds sweet onions
  • 1/4 cup kosher salt or pickling salt
  • 5 cups sugar
  • 2 cups white vinegar
  • 2 cups cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon yellow mustard seeds
  • 1 tablespoon sweet Hungarian paprika, optional
Wash peppers and cut in large chunks; you’ll have about 6 pounds of chunks. Finely chop about 1/2 to 2/3 of the peppers. Grind or finely chop the remaining peppers using a food grinder or food processor. Coarsely chop about half of the onions and add the remaining onions to the grinder or food processor. Combine in a large bowl with the salt; toss to mix thoroughly. Cover with ice and let stand for 3 hours.Drain peppers, squeezing to get as much moisture out as possible. In a large nonreactive kettle, combine the vinegars, sugar, mustard seeds, and paprika, if using. Add the well drained pepper mixture and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer, uncovered, for 50 to 60 minutes, until thickened. Stir occasionally.Meanwhile, fill a boiling water bath canner about half full. Add clean canning jars to the water and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and keep jars warm.

In a saucepan, bring water to a simmer, turn to low and add the flat lids. Keep the lids in the hot water until ready to use.

When the pepper mixture is finished cooking, ladle into the hot drained jars. With a damp clean cloth, wipe the rims of the jars. Using tongs, lift lids from the water and let excess drip off of them; place on the clean jar rims. Screw on the jar rings firmly. Lift jars into the canner. Bring to a boil, cover, and boil gently for 10 minutes.

Makes about 5 to 6 pints.