"Recipes are for inspiration only!!"

The title of this entry is a quote from my mom...and it's an accurate one at that.  The other day, she told me my baby sister called her to ask for her waffle recipe...my mom's response was laughter.  Why, you ask??  Although my mom has been making us the same waffles since childhood, she can only tell you her "inspirational recipe" and then try to give you an estimation of what she "probably" does when she makes it.  I know I've written before about never being able to make the same thing twice because I rarely follow recipes...which, I obviously come by naturally!!!  Part of starting this blog was so that I could write down what I've made...and hopefully be able to make it again!

When I look at a recipe...I see the good in it...and get rid of the bad.  Whether I replace that bad with things I like..or just leave it out all together...I make recipes my own.  I can pick up any magazine or cookbook and find a recipe I can make into something I like...which is what I encourage you to do with what I post here.  When I write here about what I've made....it's usually an approximation for the amounts I used.  I rarely measure (unless I'm baking...which is why I don't like it much!!)...I've learned pretty quickly about how many handfuls is a cup and what a teaspoon of salt looks like in my palm...it's how my grandma cooks and how my mom cooks, so it's the way I learned to cook too.  So take liberties with the recipes here...if it's not salty enough, add more...need more sauce...add more tomatoes...you get the point.  Part of the fun with cooking is creating...so don't feel like you are stuck to the confines of a recipe!! 

That brings me to today's recipe.  My "inspiration" for this recipe came from an article I read about quick breads.  It had a very simple beginning ingredient list, followed by optional wet and dry mix ins...here's what I made..I'll elaborate more at the end!!


Chocolate Chip Banana Bread with Chocolate Glaze

1 1/4 c whole wheat flour
3/4 c sugar
1 t baking powder
2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t cinnamon
1 c rolled oats
3/4 c chocolate chips
2 eggs
1/2 c melted, cooled butter
1/2 c fat free plain Greek yogurt
1 t vanilla extract
3 bananas, mashed

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease one 9 by 5 inch loaf pan.  Mix dry ingredients, including chocolate chips in a medium bowl, set aside.   In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, butter, yogurt, vanilla and bananas.  Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients until just mixed.  Pour into loaf pan, bake about 55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Remove from pan and cool completely.

Chocolate Glaze

1 c powdered sugar
2 T cocoa powder
2 T milk
1/4 t vanilla
pinch of salt

Whisk all together and pour over cooled bread.  Let set 15 minutes before cutting. 

Glaze just poured on

I can assure you that it is delicious!!!!  In fact, I'm eating a large slice while I type this entry and it is good enough to replace any cake you've eaten!!  I bet if you double the recipe and shorten the cooking time, you could make this into a delicious cake for your next family get together!! 

The way this article was written was quite interesting.  It gave you five "flavor choices" pear, apple, zucchini (all shredded and squeezed dry), bananas, shredded carrots.  You add one cup of your choice of the flavor options.  Then you pick your dry mix ins....up to 1 3/4 cups of your choice of dried fruits, nuts, rolled oats, chocolate chips or coconut.  They recommended not using more than 3/4 cup of nuts.  They also had options for the glazes all using one cup of the powdered sugar, making a vanilla been by leaving out the cocoa, using one tablespoon of milk and the seeds from a vanilla bean.  A citrus glaze using 1 tablespoon each of milk and citrus juice and a teaspoon of citrus zest and a cream cheese glaze using 3 tablespoons of softened cream cheese, 2 tablespoons milk and 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract. 

It goes to show you, that with a simple starting point with a recipe...your possibilities are endless!!!  I'm sure there are many more options for this recipe...like replacing the sugar with stevia or granulated honey.  Maybe using toffee bits, rolled oats and carrots with a cream cheese glaze for your Easter brunch...or caramel bits, rolled oats and apples with vanilla glaze for a caramel apple bread...or pear with dried cranberries, rolled oats and white chocolate. The possibilities appear to be endless...so experiment, try different things and find what you like best...oh yeah...and let me know what it is!!!  Enjoy!