Tag Archives: banana

Under the blanket

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So I have been hiding under a blanket. A cigarette burnt, sweat smelling, bittersweet memories filled blanket.

There is much to do under a blanket, besides the obvious obviously : crumb collecting, wall staring, ancient persia recollecting.

Yep I got busy under a blanket and must admit that it is rather dim under there. You can try and blog, but your eyes quickly tire. You can cook amazing raw foods, but the smell of the slime ends up overpowering the smell of the sweat. In short, if you’re very determined, you can blog and cook under a thick dusty beige blanket, but you definitely cannot shoot. Here’s the proof.

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So after months of self-indulging in the sweet darkness of my sweet blanket, I sort of went overboard/overbored and tasted the blanket. I experienced a slightly salty nuttiness with a dreamy dash of nutmeg. Then I got up from under my beloved blanket and baked it into these yummy banana muffins. Indulge!

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vegan banana pecan muffins (print)

recipe adapted from everybody likes sandwiches

(12 small muffins)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup oats

1/4 cup quinoa flakes

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1 pinch of cinnamon

1/3 cup raw sugar

1/3 cup oil

3 ripe bananas, mashed

1/4 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 375. Coat a muffin tin with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, quinoa flakes, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix the sugar and oil together until blended. Stir in the mashed bananas. Then slowly add the dry mixture along with the pecans, making sure not to overmix the batter.

Spoon batter into muffin tin and bake for 15-20 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.

nutrition facts : 172 calories; 8.2 g fat; 1.6 g dietary fibers; 9.5 g sugars; 2.2 g protein

muffins végétaliens aux bananes et aux pacanes (imprimer)

recette adaptée de everybody likes sandwiches

(12 petits muffins)

1tasse de farine de blé entier

1/4 tasse de flocons d’avoine

1/4 tasse de flocons de quinoa

1 c. à thé de poudre à pâte

1 c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude

1/2 c. à thé de sel

1/4 c. à thé de muscade

1 pincée de cannelle

1/3 tasse de sucre brut

1/3 tasse d’huile

3 bananes mûres, écrasées

1/4 tasse de pacanes

Préchauffer le four à 375. Vaporiser de l’enduit à cuisson sur un moule à muffin.

Dans un bol, mélanger la farine, l’avoine, le quinoa, la poudre à pâte, le bicarbonate de soude, le sel, la muscade et la cannelle. Réserver.

Dans un grand bol, mélanger le sucre et l’huile. Ajouter les bananes écrasées. Puis, incorporer doucement les ingrédients secs et les pacanes. Ne pas trop mélanger.

Répartir le mélanger dans le moule à muffins et enfourner de 15 à 20 minutes. Laisser refroidir sur une grille.

valeur nutritive : 172 calories;  8,2 g de lipides; 1,6 g de fibres; 9,5 g de sucres; 2,2 g de protéines

 

Pretty on the inside

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Do you ever feel cursed?

Do you ever feel that no matter how hard you try, you never get it right?

Let’s say you’re a food blogger. Because food is your thing. Duh.

So you’re a food blogger. You are simply copycating your favorite recipes, but you feel that’s okay. Because you’re just starting off. And you’re a full-time teacher. And you’re busy 24/7 being wife to a prince and mother to a king. You don’t have time for recipe testing.

Then, one day, out of the blue, you come up with this amazing banana bread recipe. All on your own. It’s vegan and delicious. Dense and moist. Healthy and filling. It’s the banana bread recipe you’ve been looking for all your life and you own its copyright!

This banana bread is filled with yumminess, healthiness and… green spots! Ugly green spots all over its twelve slices! And there’s nothing you can do about it!

You feel cursed. And crappy. You feel like nothing you ever do is good enough. You’ll never be the next joy the baker so why bother?

So you take a bite. And a sip of coffee. Then you take another bite. And a third bite.

Suddenly, you don’t feel so cursed anymore.

Green is a beautiful color, right?

This bread is pretty on the inside, isn’t it?

They say love is blind, don’t they?

After a few slices and two cups of coffee, you find that this cursed bread is actually a cure for hopelessness and self-pity. You start believing that you might become the french canadian joy the baker after all. You feel that if you actually eat the whole loaf, you’ll be unstoppable! So you do…

vegan banana bread (print)

(12 servings)

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup finely grated coconut, unsweetened

3 bananas, mashed

1/4 cup oil

1/4 cup soymilk

1/4 cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon flax seeds, grinded

1 tablespoon chia seeds, grinded

2 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup walnuts

1/4 cup pecans

Preheat oven at 350.

Roast the sunflower seeds in the oven for about 5 minute. Grind in a coffee grinder. Set aside.

Roast the grated coconut in the oven for about 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a bowl, blend together the bananas, oil, soymilk, maple syrup, vanilla, flax seeds and chia seeds. Set aside for 5 minutes.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

Add the dry mix to the wet mix a little at a time using a wooden spoon. Fold in sunflower seeds, coconut, walnuts and pecans.

Bake for about 50 minutes.

nutrition facts : 231 calories; 11.4 g fat; 5.5 g dietary fibers; 7.8 g sugars; 4.7 g protein

pain aux bananes végétalien (imprimer)

(12 portions)

1/4 tasse de graines de tournesol

1/4 tasse de noix de coco râpée finement, non sucrée

3 bananes, écrasées

1/4 tasse d’huile

1/4 tasse de lait de soya

1/4 tasse de sirop d’érable

1 c. à thé d’extrait de vanille

1 c. à soupe de graines de lin, moulues

1 c. à soupe de graines de chia. moulues

2 tasses de farine de blé entier à pâtisserie

1 c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude

1/2 c. à thé de cannelle

1/2 c. à thé de sel

1/4 tasse de noix de grenoble

1/4 tasse de pacanes

Préchauffer le four à 350.

Griller les graines de tournesol au four pendant environ 5 minutes. Broyer à l’aide d’un moulin à café et réserver.

Griller la noix de coco au four environ 3 minutes. Réserver.

Dans un bol, mélanger les bananes, l’huile, le lait de soya, le sirop d’érable, la vanille, les graines de lin et les graines de chia. Laisser reposer 5 minutes.

Dans un autre bol, mélanger la farine, le bicarbonate de soude, la cannelle et le sel.

Ajouter graduellement le mélange sec au mélange liquide à l’aide d’une cuillère de bois. Incorporer les graines de tournesol, la noix de coco, les noix de grenoble et les pacanes.

Enfourner environ 50 minutes.

valeur nutritive : 231 calories;  11,4 g de lipides; 5,5 g de fibres; 7,8 g de sucres; 4,7 g de protéines

Ready to conquer

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Today is PMS day…I mean FMP day.

Alissa, from big eats…tiny kitchen (by the way, I think her AMAZING blog is the next big thing), has chosen this week’s recipe : five quick salsas for chips, dips, and other stuff. You’ll find Bittman’s original recipe in Alissa’s post. If you want some salsa inspiration, check out FMP members’ creations.

But I won’t be making salsa.

I can’t make salsa.

Because I’d have to buy tortilla chips.

And then I’d have to eat the whole bag.

And then I’d have to feel starchy and bloated.

Of course, I’d feel satisfied and happily sleepy from all that endorphin running through my veins, but I’d spend all night dreaming of a morbidly obese long-hair brunette swallowing down tons of deliciously greasy bacon…

So I made a simple green apple-cucumber smoothie.

And it turned out freakin’ delicious.

And I drank the whole recipe.

And I felt energized, happy and ready to conquer.

Cheers!

green apple-cucumber smoothie (print)

recipe inspired by mark bittman

(2 servings)

1/2 cup frozen english cucumber (seeded and roughly peeled) chunks

1 cored, peeled, roughly chopped and frozen green apple

1 banana

1 1/2 cup soy milk

squeeze of lemon

fresh mint leaves, to taste

Drop all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend until silky smooth.

nutrition facts : 203 calories; 3.6 g fat; 4.9 g dietary fibers; 24.4 g sugars; 7.1 g protein

smoothie à la pomme verte et au concombre (imprimer)

recette inspirée par mark bittman

(2 portions)

1/2 tasse de cubes de concombre (épépiné et grossièrement pelé), congelés

cubes d’une pomme verte (épépinée et pelée), congelés

1 banane

1 1/2 tasse de lait de soya

un peu de jus de citron

feuilles de menthe, au goût

Mettre tous les ingrédients dans un robot culinaire et pulser jusqu’à l’obtention de la texture désirée.

valeur nutritive : 203 calories;  3,6 g de lipides; 4,9 g de fibres; 24,4 g de sucres; 7,1 g de protéines

5 K

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J’ai couru ce matin.

Une jolie course bien officielle dans la pittoresque ville Saint-Laurent.

5 kilomètres de route parce que mes deux jambes ont quelque chose à se prouver.

De l’asphalte mur à mur pour sortir mon métabolisme de l’hiver.

Une distance pour m’élever au statut de coureuse intrépide.

La coureuse intrépide, plutôt mal entraînée et franchement têtue, voulait s’offrir un petit dèj de championne, histoire de donner un peu de courage à ses quadriceps. Levée à six heures, elle s’est improvisé un smoothie vert et l’a accompagné d’un café au lait légèrement sucré et d’une bonne portion de pancakes. Et quels pancakes!

Une combinaison de saveurs improbable, mais irrésistible : sarrasin, banane, sirop d’érable et lime! Ces pancakes sont sucrés à souhait, mais c’est le zing de la lime qui leur donne un goût unique et équilibré. Moelleux et rassasiants, ces pancakes combleront intrépides et champions du dimanche en tous genres.

pancakes de sarrasin à la banane et à la lime (imprimer)

recette adaptée de the indolent cook

(4 portions – ou 2 déjeuners de championne)

1 tasse de farine de sarrasin

1 1/2 c. à thé de poudre à pâte

1/4 c. à thé de sel

2 bananes bien mûres

2 c. à soupe de jus de lime

1 ou 2 pincées de zeste de lime

1 tasse de lait de soya

sirop d’érable et quartiers de lime

Mélanger la farine de sarrasin, la poudre à pâte et le sel dans un bol moyen. Réserver.

Dans un autre bol, écraser la banane avec le jus et le zeste de lime. Ajouter le lait de soya et mélanger.

Verser les ingrédients liquides sur les ingrédients secs et incorporer en mélangeant au minimum doucement avec une cuillère de bois.

Chauffer une poêle à feu moyen et l’asperger d’enduit végétal. À l’aide d’une louche, verser une grosse cuillérée de préparation à pancake dans la poêle et cuire environ 2 minutes. Retourner le pancake et cuire l’autre côté environ une minute. Répéter avec le reste de la préparation. Vous devriez obtenir 8 crêpes relativement épaisses.

Servir avec du sirop d’érable et des quartiers de lime.

valeur nutritive : 190 calories;  2,2 g de lipides; 5 g de fibres; 10,6 g de sucres; 6,4 g de protéines

buckwheat banana-lime pancakes (print)

recipe adapted from the indolent cook

(4 servings – or 2 victory breakfasts)

1 cup buckwheat flour

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 overripe bananas

2 tablespoons lime juice

1 or 2 pinches of lime zest

1 cup soy milk

maple syrup and wedges of lime

Mix buckwheat flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl and set aside.

In another bowl, mash up banana flesh with lime juice and zest. Then stir in soy milk.

Pour the wet mix into the dry mix and stir gently with a wooden spoon until just combined.

Heat up frying pan over medium heat and cover it with cooking spray. Drop a big dollop of batter into the frying pan and cook for about 2 minutes. Flip and cook the other side for about 1 minute. Repeat with the remaining batter. You should end up with 8 fat pancakes.

Serve with maple syrup and lime wedges to squeeze.

nutrition facts : 190 calories; 2.2 g fat; 5 g dietary fibers; 10,6 g sugars; 6,4 g protein

From geek to food geek

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Geek : a person often of an intellectual bent who is disliked.

I’m a natural born geek.

Growing up, I had a hard time making and keeping friends. Even imaginary friends never tagged along for long.

I always was top of my class, but I never was the teacher’s pet. I guess even my teachers thought I was too geeky.

I was into boardgames, collecting live ants and slugs, and digging to China.

Once, I even went to golf camp.

I was a typical bookworm. I used to think that books were a reflection of reality. No wonder I felt out of place in the real world.

If I had found a magic lamp, conveniently rubbed it and met a genie who would have granted me three wishes, I would have asked for a treehouse, for the courage to run away and for a best friend.

I never got to have a treehouse (I guess single moms have other priorities), though I had lots of trees to climb in, which is better than nothing, I guess.

I never ran away. I was way to scared of my mom’s temper. Plus, how was I gonna explain why I ran away? “Mr. officer, I ranaway because that’s what little girls do in books”.

When I turned 12, some supernatural invisible magic force granted me one wish : I met a filly who’d eventually become my best friend in the whole wide world. She was stunningly gorgeous and witty. She was no geek. Not to mention that she was a redhead : I had found my very own Anne of Green Gables! I never knew why we got along so well, sometimes I still wonder why she loved me back, but she help me deal with the truth : books don’t reflect reality, they distort it to make it tantalizing.

In high school, not only did I want to fit in, I wanted to be cool. My pretty redhead of a best friend did the best she could to help me through the process with some fashion tips, reverse psychology and constant support. But being cool was out of my reach, no matter how hard I tried, no matter what color my hair was, no matter how low I tried to keep my grades.

After high school, as an attempt to blend my geeky nature and my clumsy coolness, I traveled to ancient persia on an archeology internship. As I was digging up stolen scrolls and flying carpets, the prince of persia walked by and fell for my moony stares, my inept conversation and my black kurt cobain wannabe glasses. He found all of my geeky traits enticing and told me so. Somehow, I was freed : someone (a boy!!!) loved me for who I was, maybe I could do the same.

I came back home and proudly aced my way through college. Then, my life took a rather homey turn. I could’ve become the perfect housewife, or the perfect cook, or even the perfect party host. But I went from geek to food geek instead. I know everything there is to know about food : I know that strawberries and chocolate don’t share the same aromatic profile, I know that instant oats contain as much fiber as old-fashioned oats, I know that you have to use a large pot and a good amount of salt to properly cook pasta.

And I know how to make the perfect breakfast out of chickpea flour.

Just like the prince of persia looked beyond my geeky ways, you must look beyond the chickpea and bake this bread. It is moist, and tasty, and good for you. But don’t eat to much of it, you might magically turn into a geek…

chickpea breakfast bread (print)

recipe adapted from dinners & dreams

3 eggs

1/4 cup honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3/4 cup chickpea flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

1 banana, mashed

1 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup chopped dates

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

1/2 cup grated carrots

Preheat the oven to 350. Coat a loaf pan with cooking spray.

Using an electric mixer or hand whisk, mix the eggs, honey and vanilla until well combined.

Combine the chickpea flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a separate bowl. Add them to the wet ingredients. Mix again until the batter is smooth and homogeneous.

Fold in the banana, nuts, dates, raisins, coconut and carrots.

Pour the batter in the prepared pan. Bake until the cake is set and slightly browned, 35 to 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool before unmolding.

nutrition facts : 210 calories; 9.2 g fat; 4.4 g dietary fibers; 17.3 g sugars; 7 g protein

pain-déjeuner à la farine de pois chiche (imprimer)

recette adaptée de dinners & dreams

3 œufs

1/4 tasse de miel

1 c. à thé d’extrait de vanille

3/4 tasse de farine de pois chiche

1 c. à thé de bicarbonate de soude

1/2 c. à thé de cannelle

1/4 c. à thé de sel

1 banane, en purée

1 tasse de noix de grenoble, grossièrement hachées

1/2 tasse de dattes, hachées

1/2 tasse de raisins secs

1/2 tasse de noix de coco râpée, non sucrée

1/2 tasse de carottes râpées

Préchauffer le four à 350. Vaporiser un moule à pain d’enduit à cuisson.

Battre les œufs, le miel et la vanille à l’aide d’un fouet ou d’un batteur électrique.

Mélanger la farine de pois chiche, le bicarbonate de soude, la canelle et le sel dans un autre bol. Ajouter les ingrédients secs aux ingrédients liquides et battre à nouveau.

Incorporer la banane, les noix de grenoble, les dattes, les raisins secs, la noix de coco et les carottes.

Verser la préparation dans le moule à pain. Cuire de 35 à 40 minutes. Laisser refroidir avant de démouler.

valeur nutritive : 210 calories;  9,2 g de lipides; 4,4 g de fibres; 17,3 g de sucres; 7 g de protéines