Sunday, January 17, 2010

Homemaker Monday: One of the best ideas I've ever had...SERIOUSLY!

Welcome to the 76th weekly edition of...


Thank you for joining us! If you're new to this carnival and would like to enter your post, please check HERE for the rules and regs.

YOURS:
Today's "YOURS" goes to Single Mormon Chick at "The Law of Chasitiy and the Modern Mormon Girl. Am I the only one?" Here's a unique tip from a unique chic, and not only did I want to share it with you, I wanted to introduce you to Single Mormon Chic's blog, because she is so cool!

So her tip is a trick on how to destroy a zit before it becomes unsightly. I loved this it because with all of these weird pregnancy hormones coursing through my body, sometimes a nice big zit on my already gargantuan nose is the way they manifest themselves. I am SOOO going to try this. Check out her post HERE.

Thanks so much, Single Mormon Chic, for linking up with us and please feel free to take the "I Was Featured" button from my left sidebar!


MINE: When I was pregnant with the twins, although my dream of 20 years had come true, to be receiving the gift of two babies at once, I was also filled with trepidation and anxiety, wondering how I would care for two newborns and 6 older children with a husband who was out of town on business most days.

When a good friend offered to give me a baby shower, I was flattered, but since we had already purchased most of what we needed for the twins, I developed the brilliant idea that instead of gifts, each invitee could bring a frozen dinner I could store in my chest freezer in preparation for the long-awaited births. I was to have a c-seciton, and since I knew it would take longer to recover, I had no doubt that this would be the most valuable gift my friends and family could give me.

On the day of the shower, my friend prepared for the freezer fare by having a huge ice chest set up in her kitchen, and as each guest arrived, she placed the food in the chest. We then sat in her living room, partook of the delectable delights she had prepared, someone shared fun facts about twins and multiples, and we had a wonderful time. During the shower, my son and his friend came over to pick up the ice chest, took it to our home, and unloaded the contents into our freezer. When all was said and done, my chest freezer was completely filled with pre-prepared homemade meals and when the twins arrived, we didn't have to cook for over two months. The kids were quite saddened when we had consumed the last casserole, and so was I, and I will never forget the generosity of my friends and family for providing for us in this manner.

Now that I'm expecting only one baby, due in 7 weeks, I'm just a regular person with regular problems, so perhaps no big freezer food shower. However, I'm taking matters into my own hands and have begun to prepare and freeze food in preparation for the big day. Even though I won't be caring for twin newborns, I now have twin toddlers, a 3-year-old who acts like a toddler, still 6 older kids and with even just one newborn to care for, I could begin to feel overwhelmed.

With that introduction, here is the first dish I've prepared to welcome the arrival of our new little boy...

Spiced Banana Cake



(Yes, I know, this is a dessert, but dessert is my favorite, so why not start out with the best? This recipe has been quadrupled from it's original version. If you'd like the regular-family recipe, go to this link at allrecipes.com.)

Ingredients:

* 2 cups butter, softened
* 4 cups packed light brown sugar
* 2 cups white sugar
* 5 teaspoons ground allspice
* 4 teaspoons ground nutmeg
* 8 eggs
* 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
* 5 cups all-purpose flour
* 3 cup rolled oats
* 1 tablespoon baking soda
* 1 tablespoon teaspoon baking powder
* 1 teaspoon salt
* 1 1/3 cup sour cream
* 4 cups mashed bananas
* Your favorite frosting or icing recipe

Directions:

Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, then, in a large bowl, cream butter until fluffy.

Step 2: Add sugar and beat until smooth.

Step 3: Add in spices, eggs and vanilla, and beat until well-blended.

Step 4: In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Step 5: To this mixture, add the butter mixture.

Step 6: Add smashed bananas and combine. We used a 20 quart restaurant-style mixing bowl for the job...



Love this bowl!

Step 7: Pour into prepared pans, bake for 20 to 35 minutes, depending on your pan size, let cool, then frost or glaze. Here's how many pans we filled with the batter...



One quick note:
Did you know you can freeze overripe bananas for later use? We did and here's what they look like when you remove them from the freezer...



My kids are often appalled that I am actually going to put these in our food, especially when they see how they look after I let them thaw and squeeze them out of their peels...



...but they certainly don't complain when I serve them the final product...



Enjoy!

The following are links to products I used in this recipe...



(As per the new FTC blogging regs, I'm letting you know that if you click on any of these icons, and purchase anything at all from Amazon.com, you are helping to send my 10 kids to college, so thank you!)

OURS:
Can't wait to see what all of our wonderful homemakers have for us today! Have a happy Homemaker Monday!

21 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nice dispatch and this fill someone in on helped me alot in my college assignement. Say thank you you on your information.

singlemormonchick said...

thanks so much for doing this. its so fun!

Cheryl B. said...

While your kids might like the looks better if you just used fresh, all yellow bananas, in your baking ... they would be amazed how flat the end result tasted!!!!

Have you ever considered an institutional sized walk in freezer? The old fashioned farmhouse long closet styled ones really do hold a whole lot of stuff!!!

Or, you could go with the small room sized ones ... your house, your choice :-}

alessandra said...

I always knew you are ingenious ;-)

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

Thanks, Ale! Now if only my family would know it!

Windthicket Fables said...

What a great blog!!! I only have 3 now, but I'm working on a big family (hoping for a 4th soon!) There are some really reallygood ideas in here! thanks for sharing.

Now following- thanks for following me!

Lynn said...

My family use to get queazy at the sight of frozen bananas in their peels as well, until someone told me to just peel them BEFORE I froze them. I buy over ripe bananas or buy them on sale in large quantities and let them over ripe, just so I can freeze them (about 6 -10 per ziplock freezer bag). You are so right......They make the BEST flavor for any recipe requiring bananas.

Thanks for the recipe! This one looks SO yummy!

Yaya' s Home said...

This looks sooooo good. I have gotta' try it. Thank you.

~ Yaya
Yaya's Changing World

Unknown said...

I love babana bread and just this morning picked 6 bananas out of the fruit bowl to throw into the freezer until I have time to make it.

I wish I lived closer to you and could bring meals over every night for the family, but Seattle is a little far :(

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

Aww, Thorney, that is so sweet! But yes, Seattle is about as far away as you can get! Except for maybe Maine!

annies home said...

wow loved the recipe and the teens will love the zit information shared a post of my own as well

Emily said...

That (your shower you had when expecting twins) is such a great idea!!

I found your blog while hopping from one to another.

Peace.

Maria said...

I LOVE your shower idea! I might have to borrow it! Thanks again!

Cassie said...

Preparing food in preparation for a birth is an excellent idea. You are almost always exhausted from the toll on your body, the breastfeeding and all the visitors! This cake looked delicious, I will definitely try it when I next have overripe bananas.

Anonymous said...

I do the same thing with bananas and my kids have the very same reaction yours do! :)

Rhonda said...

That shower idea was brilliant! What a great idea to prepare and make things easier while recovering and getting to know your baby(ies) lol

Muliebrity said...

about how many bananas is 4 cups?

Muliebrity said...

Also, what can you substitute for butter? My babies have milk protein issues, so if you can suggest some mostly vegan freezer foods that would help this momma out. Expecting #3 in June and husband is deploying next month, so I'm trying to get my ducks in a row!

alessandra said...

Send them to me, I will show all the evidences in my possess:D

Muliebrity said...

Ok, NOT vegan. I mean dairy free. My brain hurts.

Mom2my10 @ 11th Heaven said...

Muliebrity, Earth Balance is dairy-free AND vegan! Best of both worlds!