Bananaberry Bread

One night as I was tucking my twins into bed, Master H very randomly said "I want banana bread please". I did what most mothers would do to settle the kids and get them to bed, I simply said "ok, tomorrow, go to bed or you won't get it". When tomorrow came I of course had completely forgotten about the banana bread request BUT Master H did not. He kept harping on and on about it and I knew there was no shutting this one down.

My problem that day was I was actually working from home. I couldn't afford to spend heaps of time in the kitchen pretending to be a lady of leisure who didn't have a job and who had all the time in the world. So I Googled (of course) the simplest recipe I could fine with ingredients that were already in my pantry and got to it as quickly as possible.

This recipe was fabulous as I didn't even need an electric mixer, just a bowl and a wooden spoon. In 15 minutes flat the cake was in the oven. Master H was happy his request was baking away. I could go back in my office and work with a smile as the house was starting to smell heavenly.

Bananaberry Bread

3 ripe bananas
a handful of blueberries
half a cup of diced strawberries
1/3 cup melted butter
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 and 1/2 cup plain flour
pinch of salt

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees and line a loaf tin.

2. In a bowl add all wet ingredients. Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Add fruit to mix and stir.

3. Then add dry ingredients and mix well.

4. Pop in loaf tin, shove in oven for 1 hour.

5. Serve warm with butter melting all over it!

Caramelised Banana Cheesecake

Last week I was chatting to a girlfriend about caramel cheesecakes. Everyday since that chat all I could think off was caramel cheesecake. So when twingroup rolled around it was my perfect excuse to make one. I am normally a fan of quick and easy but effective and delicious. This recipe is a bit more involved than what I would normally do as there are several parts to it and it does span over 2 days as there's a lot of time needed to let the cake chill. But for all the time and effort required, I promise you, definitely worth it.

I had never made it before so I looked online at several recipes and used bits that I liked from 2 recipes. One was from Yummly and the other by Anna Olson at the recommendation of my Mom. My mother simply adores her.

So after many hours of fun fun fun here is my version of a Caramelised Banana Cheesecake.

For the pastry
13 digestive biscuits
1/2 cup pecan nuts
1/4 cup melted butter

For the caramelised banana
3 firm bananas
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon lemon juice

For the cheesecake filling
500g cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup caster sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg, beaten
1 extra yolk
2 egg whites,lightly beaten

For the caramel sauce
1 1/2 cup caster sugar
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon lemon juice

PASTRY
1. Wrap a greased 23cm springform tin in foil. It will be immersed in a water bath later. Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
2. Blitz pecans and biscuits until fine. Then add melted butter and blitz until well combine.
3. Press onto bottom of pan (not up the sides) and bake for 12 minutes and see aside
to cool.

                    

BANANAS
1. Melt butter and add brown sugar until melted and bubbly. Add lemon juice and sliced bananas.
2. Warm bananas through the hot caramel until well coated. Pour onto cooled crust and set aside.


CHEESECAKE FILLING
1. Beat cream cheese until fluffy. It must be soft to begin with or you'll get a lumpy filling.
2. Add sugar then sour cream and eggs.
3. Combine well and top the caramelised banana in the springform tin. Put tin in a deep baking dish and pour hot water half way up the tin.
4. Put in oven for 30 minutes at 180 degrees and then another 30-40 minutes at 160 degrees. The cake should be puffed but still jiggly. Remove from water and completely cool before letting it chill in fridge overnight.







CARAMEL TOPPING
1. In a pan combine water, sugar and lemon juice. Don't stir. Let it boil until it reaches a golden colour.
2. Remove from heat and add cream. Be careful as it will be quite sputtering and bubbly. Return to heat for another 5 minutes or so to let it reduce a little. Stir occasionally.
3. Let caramel sauce cool. I cool it in the fridge until it thickens but can still pour and flow.
    4. Pour sauce on cake and chill completely.

FINALLY
1. Loosen and remove pan. The sauce will start to slowly ooze down the sides so think about what you use as a plate or serving dish as if it's not deep or big enough caramel will ooze everywhere (learn that the hard way)

2. Have the strength to share cake with friends because it really is delicious!!