Baking frenzy! – Chocolate Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

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Well, I’ve come a long way with this site in the past few days.  I now own my own domain name and I’m beginning to understand how this whole blog thing works a little bit better.  Also, (and more importantly) I have been in baking mode for the past week!  I’ve experimented with tons of new recipes and kitchen tools, which is fantastic because now I have a lot of new recipes to roll out for the site!

I wasn’t quite sure what to make after my muffin craze so I decided to ask my boyfriend what he would be most likely to eat.  That’s the thing that I’ve discovered about baking, you need to have people willing to eat the final product or else you may find yourself up to your ears in cookies, cakes, and scones!

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Although, now that I think of it that wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world…

Back to my boyfriend, he’s a pretty typical boy – meaning that he can eat A LOT and not seem to have it effect him whatsoever!  (lucky young men and their superhuman metabolisms!)  So I decided he would be the perfect recipient of whatever I would bake.  He did not have any problem with that!  He told me he loved anything with chocolate in it, but that banana bread was one of his favorites.  With that information in mind I decided to combine the two and create a super chocolatey banana bread that he’d be sure to love.

CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHIP BANANA BREAD

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The Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, beaten
1 stick butter, melted
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips

The method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. In one bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt
3. In a separate bowl stir the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla
4. Carefully fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture until just combined
5. Mix in the chocolate chips
6. Pour into a greased loaf pan. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes until the bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean

After having one slice, my boyfriend took three quarters of the loaf home with him.  I took the rest in to work and people were upset that I didn’t bring more!  It was gone within 30 minutes.  I had a slice myself and found it quite delicious,  It tastes like a mix of a brownie and banana bread.  People who love classic banana bread may not like the twist, but those who have a special place for chocolate in their hearts will be sure to love this!

Let’s jump right in! – Raspberry Oatmeal Muffins

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Hey there! My name is Rachel, welcome to my newest adventure!  I have decided to really learn to cook and bake like a real live human adult!  I have just turned 21 and because I only have one more year of school to go, I decided it would be in my best interest to start figuring out what all of those other contraptions were in that room with the microwave and fridge.

what is this?
what is this?

Right now I am home from school for the summer, working at a summer camp in New Hampshire and enjoying what little time I have left in the comfort of my parent’s home with a big kitchen and tons of space for my experiments.

The whole idea for this adventure began the other day when I decided to drag the whole family to a day of blueberry picking.  “What fun!” I thought to myself, and it was!  That is until we had four quarts of blueberries in our fridge and not enough time to consume them all!  I was throwing blueberries in my oatmeal, my salads, mixing it with yogurt, and smoothies, but we simply had too many!  So then I decided to make some muffins.  From scratch.  Which was a big endeavor for me as I’m typically the first person to reach for the box mix recipes when baked goods are needed.  I went online and used the first recipe I found and within minutes I had whipped some up!

can't you just smell the delicious desperation?
can’t you just smell the delicious desperation?

To my extreme astonishment, they were a huge hit!  I found that I had enjoyed making them so much that I wanted to make more!  There was something so gratifying in making delicious treats from scratch and watching as they brought joy to those around me!

That all brings me to where I am now.  I decided to start a baking blog in order to keep my new hobby interesting and alive.  As for where the name “ladle by ladle” comes from, I literally just walked around the kitchen picking up various utensils and coming up with puns for them until I found one that wasn’t already in use on wordpress.  It’s supposed to sound like “little by little” which is appropriate for me and this blog I think since I’m going to be learning slowly!

My first recipe is for a different type of muffin.  I made them the day after I made the blueberry ones and they were an even bigger hit!  my Raspberry Oatmeal Muffins were denser than your average muffin, but if you like oatmeal in your baked goods (and raspberries of course) then these are the muffins for you!  Plus they’re pink and pretty (and pretty is very important!)

RASPBERRY OATMEAL MUFFINS

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The ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashioned oats
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup raspberries, chopped

The method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Mix dry ingredients (flour, oats, baking powder, and salt)
3. Mix together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a separate bowl and then add eggs and vanilla
4. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and once they’re combined, add in the raspberries
5. Put muffin cups into a muffin tin (makes 12 muffins) and fill them each evenly with the batter
6. Bake for 20 minutes!

These muffin were well received by my family, friends, and co-workers.  I was concerned that maybe they were just being nice, but I ate three in one sitting so I’m inclined to think that they were actually pretty delicious!

Until next time!