The following forum posts comprise Abigail Drew's personal recipe book. Read to learn more about what the writer likes to eat. And maybe enjoy some for yourself!
The following recipe was developed over the course of several months, using my local Singles group as guinea pigs at our various potlucks. It always disappears quickly every time I make it. Goes great with a scoop of Cookies and Cream ice cream.
INGREDIENTS:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 cup butter or margarine
- 2 cups white sugar
- 2 cups mashed overripe bananas (or approximately)
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 1 cup chopped walnuts/other nuts *OR* small chunks of banana(optional)
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Grease and flour two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
3. Sift the flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg into a large bowl.
4. In a larger bowl, mix together the butter or margarine, sugar, bananas, and eggs until well blended.
5. Pour the dry mixture into the wet, and stir or blend thoroughly.
6. Optionally, fold in nuts or small banana chunks.
7. Divide the batter evenly between the two loaf pans.
8. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes in the preheated oven, until a knife inserted into the crown of the loaf comes out clean.
9. Let the loaves cool in the pans for at least 5 minutes, then turn out onto a cooling rack, and cool completely. Wrap in aluminum foil to keep in the moisture. Or paper towel and then seal in a plastic container/freezer bag.
10. Ideally, let the loaves sit for 2 hours or more before serving.
The following recipe makes a great balanced meal for on the go. I make the paste in large quantity and freeze most of it, getting out a weeks allotment at a time. The reason for using dry beans and soaking, cooking and then softening them for so long is, first, best results for pasting, second, elimination of the stereotypical gaseous components of the beans.
Ingredients:
Bean Paste:
2 lbs dry black beans
2 lbs dry pinto beans
1 lb peanuts (unsalted, dry roasted)
1 heaping cup minced garlic
1 diced sweet onion
4 cups apple cider
Ground bell peppers (enough to coat the top of the beans)
Ground cayenne pepper (enough to coat the top of the beans twice)
Ground Indian paprika (enough to coat the top of the beans twice)
- not usually labelled such, you can tell it from other varieties by the quality of the grind (finer) and the color (slightly more yellow)
(optional: some sort of preservatives... I tend to use potassium salts - ie: cream of tartar - instead of sodium salts - ie: table salt, personally)
Additional sandwich fixings:
2 slices of bread of your choice (goes particularly nicely on whole rye)
a slice of cheese of your choice (goes particularly nicely with extra/super sharp cheddar)
any other fixings of your choice (I generally don't bother, it's already a balanced meal by this point)
Preparation:
Bean Paste:
1) rinse and sort beans (I take the lazy way out on this and put them in a big container filled with water, mix it around a bit, pick out any floaters, strain, and rinse.)
2) Soak them for ~8 hours in cold water.
3) Strain and rinse.
4) Simmer just below boiling (150 degrees F) for ~8 hours.
5) Strain and rinse.
6) Add peanuts, garlic, onion, and cider in a large roaster oven.
7) Use electric hand mixer to thoroughly combine and start breaking the beans.
7) Boil at 300 degrees F for ~8 hours.
8) Turn heat down to 200 degrees F.
9) Coat the top of the beans with ground bell peppers and use electric hand mixer to paste the mixture.
10) Coat the top of the beans with ground cayenne pepper and use electric hand mixer to paste the mixture. Repeat.
11) Coat the top of the beans with ground Indian paprika and use electric hand mixer to paste the mixture. Repeat.
12) Leave the lid to roaster slightly open and let the paste dry out.
13) Package it up and freeze/refrigerate to keep it for a while.
Sandwich:
1) Use a knife to spread the paste on both slices of bread.
2) Put slice of cheese and any additional fixings between the two coated slices of bread.
3) Put in toaster oven to desired toastiness.