New Year

*administers CPR*
Live, blog, live!
Let's get this baby rolling again.... here we go.

Happy New Year!
Here in Tennessee we're entrenched in an "Arctic blast", as the weathermen are prone to say. It is definitely frigid. The low was 13F this morning. I ventured out to see the nifty ice crystals forming around the yard:












Why does everyone in the neighborhood drive by when I've gone out in my PJs?
Back inside... a snotty, frozen mess.



The cure?
Steaming hot tea and a warm apple-banana muffin.

I used this recipe with a few modifications to make one tasty loaf and 6 yummy muffins.

Here's my version:

To prepare the apples:
2 tbsp margarine/butter
3 tbsp firmly packed brown sugar
1 apple (peeled, cored, and cut into 1/4-inch pieces
½ tsp ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract

To prepare the banana bread:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter/margarine
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
¼ cup skim milk
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 very ripe bananas, mashed

Directions for the Apples:
Preheat a medium skillet at medium-high heat.
Add butter and brown sugar and heat till it bubbles.
Add in cinnamon and apples, saute until golden and tender, about five minutes.
Stir in the vanilla and allow the mix to cool.

Directions for the Banana Bread:
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / gas mark 4 and grease a small loaf pan and a muffin pan with butter.
In a bowl, mix flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.
In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well after each. In a cup, combine the milk and vanilla.
Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in three batches, alternating with the milk/vanilla mixture. Stir well after each addition.
Add the mashed bananas and mix well.
Finally, stir in the apple mix prepared earlier.
Pour into the loaf and muffin tins.
Muffins bake about 25-30 minutes.
Loaf bakes around 55 to 60 minutes.
They're done when a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

The muffins will be (are being) eaten now *munch munch*. The loaf will be sliced *nibble nibble* and frozen.
The frozen slices will later be thawed, toasted and possibly buttered *unbuttons jeans*.