Banana Cookies

Today, after our flu shots, the weather looked kind of iffy, so we decided to make some banana cookies with our rather ripe bananas sitting on the counter.  Back in the day, before my boys, I used to cook and specifically bake a lot.  I loved trying new recipes.  Now, not so much.  I want a good, simple recipe that will allow my kids to help.  Some time ago, I purchased a book called Cake Mix Cookies by Camilla V. Saulsbury and it has become my cookie baking bible.  This is my go-to book when I need to bake cookies because 1) everything starts with a cake mix and 2) everything I’ve made from this book so far has been awesome!

Cake Mix Cookies by Camilla V. Saulsbury

Cake Mix Cookies by Camilla V. Saulsbury

The recipe begins with 1 medium, ripe banana that you need to mash.  Oh man did my kids have fun with this!

Mash That Banana!

Mash That Banana!

 

More Banana Mashing!

More Banana Mashing!

 You then add 1 large egg and 2 tablespoons of oil (we used canola).

Adding the oil

Adding the oil

Then, you add the cake mix.  The recipe calls for an 18.25 package of yellow cake mix.  I didn’t have yellow cake mix, so I used a carrot cake mix.  Our cookies came out like a banana spice cookie.  YUM!  And my kids didn’t even know they were eating a vegetable, too!  Sneaky Mommy!

Add the cake mix

Add the cake mix

Camilla’s recipe also includes 1/2 teaspoon of nutmeg and an optional cup of chopped nuts.  I really dislike the taste of nutmeg and I’m allergic to most nuts, so I opted to leave these out.  The recipe turned out fine without them.

Stir the batter

Stir the batter

 Stir everthing until all of the ingredients are moistened.  The batter will be sticky.

Drop by teaspoonfuls

Drop by teaspoonfuls

Drop by teaspoonfuls onto either a parchment covered or nonstick sprayed cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
Bake for 10-13 mins at 350 degrees

Bake for 10-13 mins at 350 degrees

Bake for 10-13 minutes at 350 degrees until set at edges and just barely set at center when lightly touched (ours took 11 minutes).

The Cookies Are Ready!

The Cookies Are Ready!

Cool the cookies 1 minute on the sheet and then transfer to wire racks.

Cool and Transfer

Cool and Transfer

Enjoy Your Cookies!

Enjoy Your Cookies!

Mamamamahoney can not be responsible for mess made by children while they wait for cookies!

Mamamamahoney can not be responsible for mess made by children while they wait for cookies!

 

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My Baby Is Starting School With a Schultuete

Tomorrow is CheezWaster’s first day of nursery school.  I’m sort of having a little mommy crisis.  My baby is off to school (sniff sniff)!  I don’t know who is going to have a harder time at drop off – him or me!  On my many trips to Germany as a child, I would see the stores filled with “Schultueten”.  These are cones filled with treats and school supplies that children in Germany receive on their first day of school.  I’ve seen some other moms that have created these for their children and I was inspired to do the same for CheezWaster.  I attempted to follow the directions by Alphamom but unfortunately, no measuring with a T-square could get our triangle into a cone shape.

We started with a square of posterboard.  You will have to cut some of the posterboard off to make a square.  I then covered it in wrapping paper (since I destroyed my very cool neon green posterboard attempting this with a triangle shape – note to self – fold before cutting next time!).  Roll into a cone shape and tape.  I used clear packaging tape as you will need something sturdy to hold the posterboard.

Wrapping Paper Covered Posterboard

Wrapping Paper Covered Posterboard

 I then cut around the top to make the cone shape.

Cut Off Top to Make a Cone Shape

Cut Off Top to Make a Cone Shape

 Next, you can either glue or tape in a piece of tissue paper.  I folded one piece in half and taped the edges together inside the cone again using clear packaging tape.

Adding Tissue Paper for Closure

Adding Tissue Paper for Closure

 You now have your basic Schultuete cone and are ready to decorate.

Basic Cone with Tissue Paper Closure

Basic Cone with Tissue Paper Closure

 I decorated CheezWaster’s cone with Star Wars stickers since he is a big fan and has a Star Wars backpack.  You could use stickers, stamps, markers or decorative wrapping paper.

Decorated Schultuete Cone

Decorated Schultuete Cone

This is what I enclosed in CheezWaster’s Schultuete – a Wow Wow Wubzy book about school, Sesame Street colored pencils, a Sesame Place pencil case with 2 Sesame Street pencils and a box of Candy Corn flavored Dots (which I picked up at Target tonight – also makes a great Halloween treat!)  You can’t go too crazy with the enclosures because 1) there isn’t much room in this cone and 2) it is just a piece of posterboard and not all that sturdy.
Schultuete Treats

Schultuete Treats

 Insert your Schultuete treats carefully as to not rip the tissue paper on top.

Treats in the Schultuete Cone

Treats in the Schultuete Cone

Finally, gather the tissue paper carefully and tie on a ribbon.  WA-LA – you’ve now got a super-cool, very unique gift to give your child on their first day of school.  I think we’ll be doing this EVERY year for the first day of school – or at least until CheezWaster and The Destroyer are old enough to tell me what a big dork I am.
The Finished Schultuete

The Finished Schultuete

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Banana Bell Pepper Jelly Recipe

This is the Banana Bell Pepper Jelly Recipe I used (see previous post on jelly).  The jelly came out GREAT.  We tried it on crackers and it was fabulous – sweet with a little zing.  I think it would taste even more amazing with a nice cream cheese or over a block of cheese.  I did make a few small changes which I have noted.  Given the number of peppers I have, I could probably make another 25 batches of this jelly.  If you know me personally, guess what you are getting for Xmas??? <wink wink>

MRS. SMITH’S BANANA PEPPER JELLY

6 large sweet banana peppers* [I used all banana bell and sweet paprika peppers - about 2 cups chopped]

2 large hot banana peppers* [I did not use any hot peppers!]

* (Be sure to get 1-2 red or orange peppers in the batch, this will give the
jelly a beautiful blush shade.)  [We used a mix of yellow, red and blush peppers and the shade is a beautiful orange red]

1 ½ cups apple cider vinegar

5 cups sugar [I used only 4 cups and this is plenty sweet]

1 package Certo (1/2 box)

[I also added a 1/2 of a tablespoon of crushed red pepper per the recipe in the certo box to give it some zing since I did not use any hot peppers]

  1.. Sterilize 6 pint jars. [there is no way this recipe can give off 6 pint jars.  I got  2 3/4 jars.  If you use 1/2 pint jars - the standard jelly jar size, you should get 6 jars.]
  2.. Cut the peppers in half and remove the seeds and the veins. Chop into
large chunks.
  3.. Put all of the peppers and ¾ cup vinegar in the blender and blend
until it is finely chopped (still with some small chunks in it, not pureed).
  4.. Pour the pepper-vinegar mixture into a pot and bring to a boil. Cook
for 2-3 minutes until it starts to look smooth.
  5.. Add the remaining ¾ cup vinegar and all of the sugar. Stir and bring
it to a rolling boil for 1 minute. [add in the crushed red pepper at this point]
  6.. Add 1 package certo, bring back to a rolling boil for 1 minute.
  7.. Remove from heat, skim off any foam and allow the mixture to sit for 5
minutes.
  8.. Fill and seal canning jars according to manufacturer’s directions.

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Banana Pepper Jelly

Just call me Susie Homemaker!  With all of the peppers that we having coming off of our 6 banana bell and 2 paprika plants, I hit the internet looking for something to do with them.  First, I thought about pickling them, but honestly, I’m not really sure what you do with pickled peppers.  I stumbled across some recipes for pepper jelly, but most of them included hot peppers.  I took a stab at a recipe today, using all paprika and bell peppers, rather than including a hot variety.  I followed the recipe to a T and unfortunately, I think the size of the jars were labelled incorrectly in the recipe considering it said you should get 6 and I only got 2 3/4.  So, I will showcase the steps here and in a few days, if the jelly actually tastes good, I’ll post the recipe with the noted change in jar size.
Ingredients for Banana Pepper Jelly

Ingredients for Banana Pepper Jelly

This is all you need to make Pepper Jelly – easy & simple – just the way I like my recipes.

Sterilizing the Jars

Sterilizing the Jars

First, you need to sterilize the jars before you make your jam/jelly.

Chopped Peppers (fresh from the Garden)

Chopped Peppers (fresh from the Garden)

Next, I chopped the peppers.  I used a mix of yellow and blush banana bell peppers and red and almost red paprika peppers.

Blending the Vinegar and the Peppers

Blending the Vinegar and the Peppers

I blended the vinegar and chopped peppers until there were only small bits of peppers left.

Boiling the Mixture

Boiling the Mixture

Next,  I boiled this mixture with the rest of the vinegar and added the sugar and certo.

Pepper Jelly in the Jar

Pepper Jelly in the Jar

Finally, I ladled the mixture into the jars and processed it in a hot water bath to seal the lids.  The 3/4 jar will be used as our tester jar to see how this recipe tastes.  It looks beautiful in the jars and I have high hopes for it.  However, last year we made a mustard recipe from the internet that had over 200 4 and 5 star ratings and it was complete crap and we wound up throwing it all out.  So…..I’m keeping my fingers crossed for this one.  If this works out, I can probably make this recipe another 25 times and still have peppers left over.  Seriously.

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Spongebob Cookies

Spongebob Cookies

Spongebob Cookies

 We found these Pre-Made, Decorate Your Own Spongebob Cookies near the bakery section of our grocery store (ShopRite).  The set contained 3 cookies, 3 sets of jelly eyes and teeth and green frosting for decorating.  The set was $3.  This would make a great birthday party craft or rainy day treat!

Jelly Eyes on Spongebob Cookies

Jelly Eyes on Spongebob Cookies

 CheezWaster couldn’t wait to pull off the gummy eyes and eat them!

Yum! Frosting on Spongebob Cookies

Yum! Frosting on Spongebob Cookies

 I don’t know if you can tell from this picture, but The Destroyer has a face full of frosting.  He put his face full on the cookie, animal style, to lick off the frosting!

Daddy Teaches CheezWaster that the Frosting is the Best Part!

Daddy Teaches CheezWaster that the Frosting is the Best Part!

Monkey See Monkey Do!

Monkey See Monkey Do!

Finger Lickin Good Spongebob Cookies

Finger Lickin Good Spongebob Cookies

Daddy Shows Off His Masterpiece!

Daddy Shows Off His Masterpiece!

 I’m not sure who had more fun – Daddy or the kids!  No cookie for mommy – not allowed on Weight Watchers!!!

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