Betty's Banana Bread

Got a couple of old bananas around? Don't throw them away, Betty would tell you that's wasteful, so make a banana bread. The aroma from your oven will make you happy, knowing something yummy and delicious is just waiting for young mouths to consume. Mama liked cream cheese on her banana bread but I like mine with nice soft butter. Yummy!

1 egg
1 cup of sugar
2-3 mashed bananas
1/4 cup of oil
1 cup and 1/2 cup of white flour
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teasoon of baking soda(very important)

Combined all ingredients in a large bowl, oil or spray your loaf pan and bake for 1 hour at 350.
Insert toothpick after 45 minutes to see if it is done, if it comes out wet it is not done, when it comes out dry it is!
My son Douglas loved my Mama's banana bread and I repeated the recipe hundreds of times since he was a little boy. He makes it better than I do now,well he's a chef now so that is to be expected!

My Summer Kitchen

If I can cook in this tiny airstream kitchen,anybody can cook! The trick, fresh summer salads, veggies from the Farmer's Market and grilled meats and fish.

Winter in New England

How do you get through those long days of winter? Through food of course. Remember what my Mama told me, " We are not judge by the number on the scale. It does not define who we are or what we think. It is just a number." Was she right or what?
But we do define ourselves by what size we wear, how much we weigh and how often we work out. To me, that is so much pressure to put on ourselves, not that I don't think about it everyday!
But shouldn't food be one of the greatest joys in life? Think of all it does for the body! I have a friend who says,"I am going to eat that brownie," what if I got hit by a bus tomorrow?" So true and spoken like a real foodie!
So, cook. Cook for yourself, your children, your husband; cook for friends and family. Celebrate food as a gift from God. How fortunate we are to have a full belly when we want one.And I will tell you a little secret, when your children are older and they think back to their childhood, it won't be what size Mama was, it will be thoughts about all the delicious food you prepared for them. It is love!

The Way to A Man's Heart!

Mama always said," cook for your husband and your marriage will be easy." Well, I don't think that is true but I do know that the smell of something yummy from the oven will always win over a man's heart, and that man doesn't have to be your husband; a brother, a friend, any man who appreciates a good cook.
I cook for Andy most every week night. I love to think about the week's menu and what we can consume with a bottle of wine. It keeps me centered and makes me think often about the food I will prepare. Now, I don't have little ones anymore so I know how hard it can be getting everything on the table.So if you don't have time every night to cook for your man, do it a couple times a week and then tell him to cook for you.

Andy is always smiling when his tummy is full!

Betty's Meatballs

You know that meatloaf you just made? Now repeat the process and make some meatballs. Bake at 350   for twenty minutes or until done. Cook some pasta or freeze for another night. My Mama always put her meatballs in a large skillet after they were baked and added her sauce while the pasta was cookin'. Keep on low so you won't splatter the sauce all over the stove. A salad and Italian bread always was served with my Mama's meatballs. Sorry to disappoint you though, her sauce was not homemade. But hey, who has time to make homemade sauce!
My sister loves my mama's meatballs.

A Celebration of Food