My kids wanted a snack of the chocolate persuasion yesterday, so this was one way of combining chocolate with some healthy apples.  However, the fonue was so good we started looking for more food items we could dip into this melty goodness.

Before you knew it strawberries and bananas were being dunked and then we moved onto pound cake, marshmallows and graham crackers.  It was all delicious.  And filling.  And probably fattening, but nothing a few hours at the vineyard won't burn off.

Anyway, if you are looking to satisfy a chocolate urge, this will do nicely.  Using sweetened condensed milk as the base made it easier to melt as some chocolate easily seizes and creates hardened bits in the fondue.  It was perfect!




Combine a can of sweetened condensed milk, 1 cup chocolate chips and 10 chopped peppermint patties.




Cook over low heat until melted. 




Serve with apple slices, strawberries, bananas, pound cake...whatever you like!

Chocolate Mint Apple Fondue
From Taste of Home

1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 cup chocolate chips
10 peppermint patties, chopped
Apple slices

Combine a can of sweetened condensed milk, 1 cup chocolate chips and 10 chopped peppermint patties.  Cook over low heat until melted.  Serve with apple slices, strawberries, bananas, pound cake...whatever you like!

        

Happy Father's Day to all the amazing Dad's out there!  We started our morning by making  this banana loaf into French toast.  It was fantastic!

The honey flavor really shines through and the topping is thick and crunchy, a perfect vehicle for warm, maple syrup.

My youngest son gave my husband a homemade Father's Day card with a coupon that read, "Dad, today everything is free!  Mom is paying for everything!"  Ha-ha.  I guess I better get my wallet out since I am buying today.

Anyway, enjoy your day and make this banana bread.  It's moist and full of flavor with a nice crunch.




First make the topping in a medium-sized bowl.  Blend together flour and butter with your fingertips.  Stir in nuts, honey and salt, then work mixture together with your hands to make crumbs (mixture will be moist).  Set aside.




In a large bowl, prepare banana loaf:  Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and nutmeg.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.  In a medium-size bowl, whisk eggs, honey, oil, mashed banana and vanilla.  Pour into well in flour with walnuts on top.  Stir until mixture is just combined.




Coat a 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan (make sure you are using the right size) with nonstick cooking spray and line it with parchment paper (if you do not line the pan with parchment you will lose a fair amount of your crumb topping when you have to dump the loaf out as opposed to being able to just lift it out with the parchment).  Coat the parchment with nonstick spray as well.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and sprinkle with the topping.  Place in a 350^o F oven for 55 minutes (for the first 40 minutes of baking, cover the loaf with a sheet of foil as honey browns very quickly).  If you lined the pan with parchment you can remove the loaf from the pan and place on a cooling rack as soon as you have removed it from the oven.  Otherwise, cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes before removing.




Look at that crunchy topping!!

Banana Honey Nut Loaf
From All You

Topping
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup finely chopped walnuts
1 Tablespoon honey
Pinch of salt

Banana Loaf
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs
2/3 cup honey
1 teaspoon vanilla
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large over-ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped

First make the topping in a medium-sized bowl.  Blend together flour and butter with your fingertips.  Stir in nuts, honey and salt, then work mixture together with your hands to make crumbs (mixture will be moist).  Set aside.

In a large bowl, prepare banana loaf:  Whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda and nutmeg.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.  In a medium-size bowl, whisk eggs, honey, oil, mashed banana and vanilla.  Pour into well in flour with walnuts on top.  Stir until mixture is just combined.

Coat a 9 x 5 x 3 loaf pan (make sure you are using the right size) with nonstick cooking spray and line it with parchment paper (if you do not line the pan with parchment you will lose a fair amount of your crumb topping when you have to dump the loaf out as opposed to being able to just lift it out with the parchment).  Coat the parchment with nonstick spray as well.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and sprinkle with the topping.  Place in a 350^o F oven for 55 minutes (for the first 40 minutes of baking, cover the loaf with a sheet of foil as honey browns very quickly).  If you lined the pan with parchment you can remove the loaf from the pan and place on a cooling rack as soon as you have removed it from the oven.  Otherwise, cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes before removing.

Other Banana Recipes You Might Enjoy:

Quick Banana-Lime Jam
Baked Banana Doughnuts
Oatmeal-Banana Bake
Crunchy Maple-Banana-Pecan Breakfast Muffins
Elvis Milkshakes
Banana Snickerdoodles
Banana-Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie
Banana-Blueberry Bread
Banana Cake with Cream Cheese-Sour Cream Frosting
Caramelized Chocolate, Banana and Marshmallow Sandwiches
Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

        

First day of summer vacation meant a day in the kitchen baking with my boys.  My youngest, as many of you know, is a Snickerdoodle fiend.  I was so excited when a reader sent me this recipe last week.  We are always up for Snickerdoodle anything.

I loved the Honey Nut Cheerio addition as well as the oats.  This cookie was crunchy and soft, the perfect change up in a favorite cookie.

The hardest part was waiting for the dough to chill before rolling it in the cinnamon-sugar mixture.

You'll have to give these a try, I think you'll love them.




Mix together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  Set aside.




Beat butter and both sugars together on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Add in the egg and vanilla beat for an additional minute.  Turn the mixer to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients until well blended.  Fold in cheerios.




Chill the dough for 2 hours, as dough will be too soft to roll in sugar without chilling.  Once chilled, roll dough into balls and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.  Bake for 12-14 minutes in a 375^o F oven (let them sit on the cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes before moving cookies to a cooling rack).




Absolutely loved these.

Snickerdoodle Cheerio Cookies
From Foodbuzz

1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1-3/4 cups Honey Nut Cheerios

For cinnamon-sugar:
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  Set aside.

Beat butter and both sugars together on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Add in the egg and vanilla beat for an additional minute.  Turn the mixer to low and slowly add in the dry ingredients until well blended.  Fold in cheerios.

Chill the dough for 2 hours, as dough will be too soft to roll in sugar without chilling.  Once chilled, roll dough into balls and roll in cinnamon sugar mixture.  Bake for 12-14 minutes in a 375^o F oven (let them sit on the cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes before moving cookies to a cooling rack).

Other Snickerdoodle recipes you might enjoy:

Snickerdoodle Pie
Banana Snickerdoodles   
Snickerdoodle Ice Cream
Snickerdoodle Muffins

        

This is so easy to make and will take breakfast to a whole new level, giving it some zing.  We had this on English muffins, then on peanut butter sandwiches for lunch and drizzled over ice cream for dessert.  Then we went to the vineyard and worked it all off.  What a day.

You'll want to use very ripe bananas, as they will be sweeter.  Remember that old saying, "Bananas like the climate of the very, very tropical equator, so you should never put bananas, in the refrigerator."  WRONG!!

Putting bananas in the refrigerator will cause their skins to turn dark brown in 24 hours, since the cold damages tissues in the peel, and these tissues then release browning enzymes.  But the dark skin won't affect the texture or flavor of the flesh, which in fact will ripen more slowly because of the enzymes that convert starch into sugar work more slowly in the cold.  So, if you have bananas that are already as ripe as you want them to be, go ahead and refrigerate them.

Anyway, you will love this jam, it's excellent and a great combination of flavors.




Combine brown sugar, granulated sugar and fresh lime juice in a saucepan; bring to a boil.




Add 3 medium peeled and sliced overripe bananas.  Reduce heat to medium-low; cook for 45 minutes or until slightly thick, mashing bananas occasionally with the back of a spoon.  Stir in butter.  The mixture will thicken as it cools.




I think it would have been incredible with cream cheese on the English muffins as well.

Quick Banana-Lime Jam
From Cooking Light

3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
3 overripe bananas, sliced
2 Tablespoons butter

Combine brown sugar, granulated sugar and fresh lime juice in a saucepan; bring to a boil.

Add 3 medium peeled and sliced overripe bananas.  Reduce heat to medium-low; cook for 45 minutes or until slightly thick, mashing bananas occasionally with the back of a spoon.  Stir in butter.  The mixture will thicken as it cools.