BANANA BREAD

On Sunday morning, as we were drinking coffee, and after I had finished painting my nails dark blue, I thumbed through a pile of books to find something to make for dinner, stopping eventually on a lamb, cardomam and cabbage pilav from the first Moro book and pointing it out to Chris. And while I had been thumbing, marking recipes for stews and braises, I was also marking rhubarb cake, muffins, chocolate chip cookies, and this, banana bread.

I didn't think I was going to post this, I've written about banana bread here more than enough times but then, on Monday, when I was sitting at work, I unwrapped my foil wrapped slice, took a bite, and... oops, here I am again.

Banana Bread
From How I Cook by Skye Gyngell

I used regular caster sugar instead of golden and skimmed milk instead of whole without any problems. I also used far less than 75g of muscovado sugar, maybe 30g. You're looking for a coating over the top of the batter, how much sugar you want to use to get that coating is up to you.

125g unsalted butter, softened, plus extra to grease
250g plain flour, plus extra to dust
4 ripe bananas, peeled
a few drops of lemon juice
300g golden caster sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
125ml whole milk
75g light muscovado sugar

Preheat the oven to 190°C. Butter and flour a loaf tin, measuring approximately 20x10cm, and line the base with baking parchment. Mash the bananas with the lemon juice in a bowl, using a fork.

Beat the butter and caster sugar together in a large bowl until pale and creamy. Beat in the eggs one by one, then incorporate the mashed bananas and vanilla extract.

Sift the flour, salt, bicarbonate of soda and cinnamon together over the mixture. Using a large metal spoon, fold in carefully, until evenly combined. Finally fold in the milk.

Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf tin, gently spread level and scatter the muscovado sugar evenly over the surface. Bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 45 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.

Leave the banana bread to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool further.

Make 8-9 slices.

PIZZA

I've been meaning to write about pizza for, well, for as long as I've been making it at home. Those first few times were sporadic. I would stand in our old Edinburgh flat kneading dough on the worktop and then we would sit at the table in the red walled kitchen, the table where we used to sit listening to the radio or to music that Chris would put on in the box room and which would reach us through the little high up window that connected the two rooms. I don't think I ever made pizza in London. I always meant to but maybe there wasn't enough space, maybe there were just other options.

Last Summer I decided to start again, using the recipe from Jamie's Italy that I had always used, making a half batch of dough for three pizzas, mixing the dough in my biggest bowl, topping them with tomato sauce, prosciutto, courgette slices, mozzarella and basil.

I made pizza when Brian came to stay, arriving on the train, tired, hungry, and thoroughly fed up after being forced to stand for too long, cheered by slices of pizza and a giant cookie. I went from making three pizzas to four much thinner ones with that same half batch of dough when we made dinner for friends. There were pizzas when Molly and Brian came to stay, followed by some oddly textured brownies, granular but edible. At New Year, pizzas and brownies again (the latter just because I needed to redeem myself).

And on Valentine's Day I made pizza for the two of us, one of them turning out wonkily heart shaped, by accident (sort of), the rest of the dough sitting in the freezer for next time.

FOR YOU

Happy Valentine's Day.

4TH FEBRUARY

When you're helping to organise a surprise 40th birthday party there are a few necessities...

Balloons.

Friends.

Dancing.

Cake.

Candles.

Happy birthday Sylvain!

TODAY

I'm in a quiet office working on spreadsheets and taking a very short (sshhh) break to post this. I'm thinking about the weekend, about the book that I am so very absorbed in, reading it when I get out of the shower, delaying dressing for as long as I can to have more time to read, I'm thinking about making granola, about the little bit of blue sky that has just appeared and hoping it stays around, about what we will do this evening. And while I think, and work, I'm listening.

To this.



To this.



To this.



To this.



Just a little insight into my day.

2012

I read 33 books last year.

Starting with Room, ending with A Christmas Carol and enjoying, along the way, Tove Jansson, Hans Fallada, Caitlin Moran, Jennifer Egan, and Peter Hill.

One of my mini resolutions in 2011 was to write down the books I read with the date I finished each one. I'm doing it again this year.

2012 started with Julian Barnes, I'm halfway through book two. I don't know why this small habit stuck but I'm glad it did, looking back, seeing the list rise and fall, some months with five or six books, some with just one, remembering why, where we were, what else was happening.

There were other resolutions, small ones, ones I wrote in my diary at the start of the year. Some have worked, some have fallen by the wayside, as these things will.

2011 was the first year in I don't want to think how long when I didn't start January telling myself I needed to lose weight, writing it at the top of the page on January 1st. 2011 was the first year in I don't want to think how long that I actually did lose weight. Maybe there's something to be said for quiet decisions made at the start of February, a gym membership beginning in March as the days get lighter. We've eaten a lot of vegetables, snacked on fruit. No drastic changes just small conscious choices. It felt good, it still feels good.

2011 was the year we took a deep breath and leapt into a dream. We're hoping for more of this in 2012, keep your fingers crossed for us.

And what else will 2012 hold? There are more mini resolutions, bake bread, tidy up, try new recipes, write things down. And for this first week? Now that we are back to work and the tree is coming down? Just this, two new recipes, remembering to be excited by new things, new combinations, new ways. Last night there was Melissa Clark's red lentil soup with lemon. The night before, roasted broccoli with prawns and basmati rice. I think this one will be on regular rotation in 2012.

Melissa Clark's Roasted Broccoli with Prawns

900g (2 lbs) broccoli, cut into bite-size florets
4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon whole coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon hot chili powder
450g (1 lb) large prawns, shelled and deveined
1 1/4 teaspoons lemon zest (from 1 large lemon)
Lemon wedges, for serving

Preheat the oven to 220°C (425°F). In a large bowl, toss the broccoli with 2 tablespoons of oil, the coriander, cumin, 1 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of pepper and the chili powder. In a separate bowl, combine the prawns, the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil, the lemon zest, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

Spread the broccoli in a single layer on a baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes. Add the prawns to the baking sheet and toss with the broccoli. Roast, tossing once halfway through, until the prawns are just opaque and the broccoli is tender and golden around edges, about 10 minutes more. Serve with lemon wedges, or squeeze lemon juice all over shrimp and broccoli just before serving.

Serves 4.

Happy New Year to you all.

MINCE PIE COOKIES

Last year I made three jars of mincemeat, I chopped apples and stirred them together with dried fruit, candied peel, chopped almonds, suet, citrus zest, juice and a slug of calvados. I love these quiet processes at Christmas, the smells that permeate the flat, turning the jars, waiting. But every year, there is still mincemeat to use and this year, conscious of the two jars sitting at the back of the cupboard, two jars that have been merrily sitting in their calvados coating for over a year now, I spotted a recipe for cookies. Cookies that would use up a large jar of mincemeat in one go, cookies that taste slightly boozy, like mince pies without the heft. I rolled the dough into a log and popped it in the freezer, there were cookies at the weekend, cookies to take to work, I think I'll bake the last of the cookies today.

Now I just have to use up those eleven bananas currently taking a lengthy residence in the freezer...