Chrissy Teigen's Banana Bread

The last couple of months I've had little interest in cooking. Even a sandwich or a frozen entree or scrambled eggs almost seemed like too much effort. I can't claim the spell is broken, but yesterday I made something from my dormant to-try list - Chrissy Teigen's banana bread.

I missed this recipe when it was all the rage around 2018, but it came to my attention a few months ago. Despite my long-time devotion to another banana bread recipe, I'm always willing to try something new. 

This recipe requires no creaming, which I like (and is one reason I like my usual recipe). It uses instant pudding mix, in common with some popular cake recipes. It has coconut, but shouldn't scare coconut haters. It has a LOT of sugar compared to the amount of flour, yet doesn't taste "too sweet." I'm not a fan of chocolate chips in banana bread, and I was wanting a nutty bread, so I swapped in chopped walnuts.

The top had a great very thin crackle layer day-of-baking, but after an overnight in the cake keeper that became a slightly sticky top.

It's excellent & I would make again.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2018/09/17/chrissy-teigens-famous-banana-bread-recipe/1283473002/

One-Bowl Banana Bread

This one-bowl Banana Bread recipe is what I call Banana Bread Without All The Fuss. I have been making this recipe since I purchased my first cookbook, The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, in the early 1980s. Unlike most recipes, this banana bread doesn't require a mixer, as it has no butter that needs to be creamed. In fact, it has no fat at all other than that provided by the eggs. This is not a banana cake, therefore, but a banana bread that has a compact crumb that is moist purely from the power of the bananas.

As with all banana breads, though, you want to use ripe bananas. The riper, the better. One common trick is that when you are down to that last banana that's riper than you prefer, let it continue to ripen until it is spotty brown, then stick it in the freezer. The skins will turn almost black, but that's OK. When you have collected 3 or 4, let them thaw to make the banana bread. You'll want to peel them over the mixing bowl. Depending on how ripe they were when they went into the freezer, they will be very soft, and there may even be a separated liquid. That's OK.

Lemon Blueberry Muffins

I've been making blueberry muffins for a long time, using various recipes over the years. I never had a particular favorite, though. I hadn't made any for a long time, but recently I needed an easy breakfast-y treat for a Meal Train and the idea of blueberry muffins struck. Looking for a new recipe, I checked Smitten Kitchen as I almost always do, and of course she had one that looked just the thing. It included lemon, which is my favorite flavoring for blueberry muffins, and called for yogurt or sour cream in place of the usual milk or buttermilk. Her recipe is an adaptation of other recipes, and so on, and so on .... Here's my take on it; I've even included a variation for Orange Cranberry Muffins.

Quickies, Part 2

Wrapping up reports from the Kellie & Leroy visitation last week ...

ChaChah

After the trip to Lynchburg & Jack Daniel with Mark & Barbara, we got back to Nashville and retreated to our various lodgings. Following a little refresh, we  reassembled at ChaChah, where we were joined by my friend Matt. I've mentioned ChaChah before; it's one of my favorite happy hour spots. One of four restaurants owned or co-owned by Top Chef contestant Arnold Myint, ChaCha specializes in Spanish-style food. Myint definitely spends time in the kitchen and restaurant in between media appearances and charity work, but day to day the kitchen is run by Francesco Vito.

We were not there in time for happy hour, but still took full advantage of the tapas options, passing plates around the table for tastes. Tapas are the Spanish version of appetizers; small portions that you can share or hoard, as desired. There's a daily menu of $5 and $7 tapas; many of these are standards, but a few seasonal specials rotate in and out. (The $5 tapas are half price at happy hour.) In addition, the regular menu has additional small plates -- slightly larger portions than most of the tapas -- plus the entrees. For me, a couple of tapas and/or small plate selections, plus perhaps a dessert, are plenty to make a meal.

There were enough of us to cut a wide swath through the menu. We ordered drinks, a round of tapas, then when that was done, another round, ending with desserts. ChaChah's food is creative, flavorful, and full of unexpected twists. Not every single dish may tickle your fancy, but there's enough variety to find something to please most everyone. If memory serves, between the six of us we sampled the macaroni & cheese, shrimp croustada, fried plantains, lamb balls, bacon & blue cheese dates, calamari, queso fundido, elotes, and hummus. We also tried some desserts -- of course Leroy got the special dessert of the day, a goat cheese flan with beet ice cream. He declared it good; the idea of beet ice cream wasn't appealing to most of us, although I did like the sound of goat cheese flan. I had the lemon coconut cake with lemon curd; the topping of a few leaves of micro basil was unusual but delicious with the lemon. Mark and Kellie got the chocolate cannoli and Barbara tried the ripe local berries with cream cheese ice cream.

We lingered and talked and laughed, enjoying a variety of cocktails, wine, and beer as well as the food. It was a fun evening, and it was nice to be able to sample such a wide variety of ChaChah's cuisine.

Fido

Fido is a mainstay of Hillsboro Village. Located in a space that was once actually a pet store (the outdoor sign proclaiming Jones Pet Store is still in place), it started as a coffee shop that was an outpost of Bongo Java on Belmont. It had its own personality, though -- the dog theme just being part of it. Over the years they have added more and more substantial food, and you can now eat 3 meals a day in this funky, bohemian restaurant. One bonus is that breakfast is served all day, and many of the breakfast offerings are savory and quite hearty. So, you can have eggs or a bagel at 2pm or a substantial breakfast sandwich at 9am. Since many of Fido's patrons are college students and musicians, both of whom can have unconventional schedules, this is a decided advantage. In addition, many dishes are vegetarian and even vegan, so there's something for everyone regardless of diet. Finally, not too long ago they started offering a small selection of beer and wine, making evening dining that much more attractive.

Kellie had been with me to Fido several times before but Leroy had not, so I suggested we visit there for their final meal in Nashville. We met mid-morning on Wednesday. The Bongo Java-roasted coffee was delicious as usual, and we all enjoyed our various types of eggs and trimmings. I also picked up a couple of dessert bars for later; that afternoon I enjoyed one of the best cream cheese brownies I think I've ever had.

Fido is a great spot for a beverage, a dessert, or a full meal any time of day. Follow them on Twitter if you'd like to get notifications of the daily lunch specials during the week, or visit their blog at http://www.fidospecials.blogspot.com. While the regular menu has a nice selection of solid, interesting selections, the specials are where they let their creative gourmet flag fly. For example, a few of the specials last week were:

• FRIED SHRIMP, POBLANO STONE GRITS, COCONUT SAUCE habanero, onion, garlic, curtido, mango hot
• RED & GOLD BEETS, ASPARAGUS, BROCCOLI CARAMEL VINAIGRETTE red onion, pistachio, chardonnay macerated raisins arugula, radish,goat cheese
• LINGUINE, SMOKED CHEDDAR SAUCE roasted carrot, oyster & shiitake mushroom, English peas, parmesan, toasted focaccia

For more info, you can also visit my review on Trip Advisor.

All in all, we did quite the tour. There are even more excellent restaurants and foodie activities in town, and more popping up every day, so I look forward to their next visit so we can continue to explore the expanding culinary opportunities.