Costco Connection - February 2012

creative cooking

Salted Peanut ’n’ Caramel
Banana Bread
Marrying banana bread with the upbeat flavor
duo of salty and sweet (peanuts and caramel)
demonstrates how classic baking can become
cutting edge with a few twists and tweaks.

½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature 1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/3 cup plain yogurt

1 cup mashed very ripe bananas

3½ cups all-purpose flour ¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder ½ teaspoon baking soda ½ cup shredded coconut

2/3 cup chopped salted peanuts ½ cup toffee bits, or caramel or butterscotch chips

Eat your veggies and have your cake too

SALTED PEANUT CARAMEL TOPPING

¼ cup shredded sweetened coconut
½ cup chopped salted peanuts
¼ cup toffee bits, or caramel or
butterscotch chips

2 tablespoons caramel sundae topping

By Marcy Goldman

FOR MANY PEOPLE, quick breads and rustic muffins with grated or puréed fruit or vegetables are defined by either classic banana bread or the wunderkind of the first wave of ’70s California cuisine, carrot cake. But there are so many other variations and twists on these classics that an adventure into this genre of baking is irresistible.

The possibilities are unlimited as the health benefits spiral up. You don’t have to be Dr. Oz to know that the more fiber, roughage and deep-hued, vitamin-rich fruits and vegetables you can pack into your daily diet, the better. To my baker’s mind, that translates into taking the harvest of ingredients most of us have in our kitchens, such as carrots, bananas, squash and beets, and using them in main-event desserts, breakfast breads and snacky treats, instead of their usual roles as side dishes.

Who said vegetables can’t be recast in
appetizing ways? Sweet potatoes take on a
whole new guise tucked inside a spicy sweet
potato Bundt cake. Or how about taking
some bright A-list carrots, zucchini and tart
apples for a new spin in a coffee klatch loaf
or zesty morning muffin? Nutrition never
tasted so good. Root vegetables, starchy sweet
potatoes and squash of every variety also
tend to add moisture to cakes and breads.

Marcy Goldman is the host of BetterBaking.com and the author of several cookbooks.

JUPI TER IMAGES

Preheat oven to 350 F. Generously spray a 12-cup Bundt pan or two 9 x 5-inch loaf pans. Place on a parchment-paper-lined baking sheet. In a mixer bowl, cream the butter with the sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, then vanilla, yogurt and mashed bananas, scraping down often to blend batter evenly.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet batter. Fold in coconut, peanuts, and toffee, caramel or butterscotch chips, making sure ingredients are well blended, 1 to 2 minutes. Spoon into baking pan.

MEDIA BAKERY/CHRIS A RUSNAK

To make the Salted Peanut Caramel Topping, mix coconut, peanuts, and toffee, caramel or butterscotch chips in a small bowl. Sprinkle on top of cake. Drizzle on caramel.

e done. Cool 10 minutes before re-MORE MORE ORE RECIPES ON PAGE 70

Bake 50 to 55 minutes, until cake tests done. Cool 10 minutes before removing from pan, and drizzle on more caramel, if desired. Makes 8 to 10 servings.