Coffee Cake Banana Bread

Coffee Cake Banana Bread

Coffee Cake Banana Bread

I don’t know if it is an age thing or a mom thing, but I tend to forget. I make lists and set reminders and own a large stock in post-its of every color and size to compensate for this, but the truth is, if I don’t write it down, I forget. I tell my kids to remind me when I am older that I did this when I was in my forties to make me feel better.

I forget the ingredient that I specifically went to the grocery store for, even though I buy other stuff I forgot to write down. I forget to put the card in the mail even though I bought it two weeks ago just so it wouldn’t be late (I am the worst auntie ever, sorry kids for the late birthday cards…).

I remember to pay my bills and feed and clothe my children and keep a house that’s clean and my yard is nice. I am kind to the dog and I do my job at work to the very best of my ability. So, for the most part, the forgetting is the other stuff.

Which includes myself. I forget to remember that exercise is important. That rest is necessary. That self-care is not only a priority but is essential to the people around me. I get caught up in not wanting to be selfish but the truth is, sometimes, in order to survive, we need to not forget ourselves.

Like anything you let slide, getting back into the remembering is hard at first. Remembering how good it feels to leave the gym after a workout. Remembering that meal prep and eating healthy is actually not as hard as you thought it was. Remembering how writing resonates deep within after not being able to string along sentences for a while. That taking the time to stop and enjoy life around you is worth remembering to do.

I would like to say I have found perfect balance and have achieved whatever zen I am looking for in my life, my kitchen, my table. I haven’t. I still want to eat a slice of banana bread or a cookie after I eat my salad with a protein. It is what it is. I am trying to remember balance, and kindness to myself, and indulge without going overboard. Like this Coffee Cake Banana Bread. (Creative stretch to segue into the recipe? Maybe?) It’s a stretch…but I’ll take it.

Banana bread is beautiful on its own. But combine it with a Coffee Cake Crumble topping and you have a healthy base with an indulgent flare that says, “YES PLEASE!” It is a moist tender bread with the crumbly crunch of cinnamon and sugar. It is worth the freezing of the ripe bananas. It is worth the effort to bake from scratch. It reminds me to stop. Sip the coffee. Eat the banana bread. Enjoy the view.

While I will continue to write post it notes and lists for myself, I will also remember to feed my soul, in whatever form that takes. Because healthy is important, as well as a generous portion of crumble topping.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe!

Print

Coffee Cake Banana Bread

Coffee Cake Banana Bread
Print Recipe

This moist banana bread is topped with a buttery crumb topping. Original recipe from www.alattefood.com.

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • ½ Cup Butter, softened
  • 1 Cup White Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
  • 1 ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 2 Eggs
  • ½ Teaspoon Cinnamon
  • 2 Cups Flour
  • 3–4 Mashed Ripe Bananas
  • 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
  • ¼ Teaspoon Salt
  • 2 Tablespoons Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt

Crumb Topping:

  • 1 Cup Flour
  • 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
  • 1 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 6 Tablespoons Butter, Cold and cubed

Instructions

To prepared the Crumb Topping:

  1. Combine cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour.
  2. Cut in butter until crumbly in texture.

To Prepare Banana Bread:

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Spray two 8 x 4 pans with non-stick spray, butter, or oil of choice. (I also make these in the smaller loaf pans and it makes approximately five loaves.
  3. In a mixer, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
  4. Add in eggs, vanilla extract, and sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
  5. Add in mashed bananas until combined.
  6. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
  7. Add dry ingredients until incorporated.
  8. Divide batter between two prepared pans.
  9. Sprinkle Crumb topping generously over both pans.
  10. Bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes until tester comes out clean.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Print

Coffee Cake Banana Bread

Coffee Cake Banana Bread
Print Recipe
  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • ½ Cup Butter, softened
  • 1 Cup White Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
  • 1 ½ Teaspoon Vanilla Extract
  • 2 Eggs
  • ½ Teaspoon Cinnamon
  • 2 Cups Flour
  • 3–4 Mashed Ripe Bananas
  • 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
  • ¼ Teaspoon Salt
  • 2 Tablespoons Sour Cream or Plain Greek Yogurt

Crumb Topping:

  • 1 Cup Flour
  • 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
  • 1 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 6 Tablespoons Butter, Cold and cubed

Instructions

To prepared the Crumb Topping:

  1. Combine cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour.
  2. Cut in butter until crumbly in texture.

 

To Prepare Banana Bread:

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Spray two 8 x 4 pans with non-stick spray, butter, or oil of choice. (I also make these in the smaller loaf pans and it makes approximately five loaves.
  3. In a mixer, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
  4. Add in eggs, vanilla extract, and sour cream (or Greek yogurt)
  5. Add in mashed bananas until combined.
  6. Combine dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
  7. Add dry ingredients until incorporated.
  8. Divide batter between two prepared pans.
  9. Sprinkle Crumb topping generously over both pans.
  10. Bake at 350* for 35-40 minutes until tester comes out clean.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Golden Raisins, Dried Cranberries, Chocolate Chunks, and Walnuts

It begins with the table. Whether it is the family you are born into, or the family you make on your own, I am convinced the table is where a family evolves.

For some of us, the joy is in prepping and serving. For others, there is no joy in the cooking, but the gift resides sitting next to people you love and talking about whatever topic arises.

For me, the best times around a table are potluck. Where everyone brings something. We share. It isn’t as stressful or scary or overwhelming, and it somehow all comes together

Potluck suppers have been my last week. We spent a whole week in the glorious Outer Banks: four families, varying supper plans. Only for me, the one with no grill or stove, I was the one who made due. I was welcomed at the table regardless.

(I brought the cookies).

This week held meals around pop up tables, picnic tables, poolside tables, bay side beach chair on your lap tables, and at each, we were family. Some topics dinner appropriate. Some topics…not. But, we laughed, and shared, and sat in silence. It was perfect.

All week-long I thought, “it all starts at the table.” We teach our children, we feed our elderly, we welcome the hurting. We provide, and we ever so humbly receive. We learn to sit. To listen. To share. We learn to respect and to be kind. We learn to laugh at ourselves. We all clean up together, and there is joy in that as well.

If you are lucky, the table is sacred. You take the time to stop the world, put down your electronics, and not just look at but see the people around you. And your heart becomes even more thankful.

For every time I complained about my father’s staunch five o’ clock supper time, I would give anything to sit at his table. When we eat as a family, it is almost always a joint decision as to where. Inside? Outside? But mostly…together.

For every crumpled napkin, shared plate, “try this,” forkful or sip of a drink, every “would you please pass…” or “Anybody want anything else before we clean up?” Our lives are connected. We are family…and it happens at the table.

For this cookie you can think it’s healthy and it is… but it really isn’t. Oatmeal, dried cranberries, dark chocolate chunks, orange zest, walnuts, and golden raisins all dance around with brown sugar and molasses. Chewy, filled with jam like dried fruit, and that little kick of orange balances it all out.

Yes, these went to the table. To the beach, to the bay, to the pool. Because life is just sweeter on vacation with dessert. Cookies need no plate. These were the healthiest of the cookies I brought, and they got eaten just like the others…and I am thankful. Ever so thankful, for the family I got to share for the week.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

For a printable recipe, click below!

Print

Chewy Oatmeal Cookies with Golden Raisins, Dried Cranberries, Chocolate Chunks, and Walnuts

Print Recipe
  • 1 Cup Butter
  • 1 Cup Brown Sugar (I like to use dark)
  • ½ Cup White Sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 2 Tablespoons (generous) Molasses
  • 3 Cups Rolled Oats (Can be Gluten Free)
  • 1 ½ Cup Flour
  • 2 Teaspoons Cinnamon
  • 1 Teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1 Teaspoon Salt
  • 4 Teaspoons Corn Starch
  • 1 ½ Cups Dried Cherries
  • 1 ½ Cups Golden Raisins
  • 2 Tablespoons Orange Zest
  • 1 Cup Dark Chocolate Chunks/Chips
  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

  1. Dough can be made ahead of time and refrigerated for up to a few days but can be mixed and baked.
  2. Preheat oven to 325*
  3. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or Silicone mats.
  4. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, combine butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
  5. Add in eggs and molasses and combine until smooth.
  6. In a separate bowl combine flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cornstarch, and cinnamon.
  7. Add dry ingredients to butter mixer until combined.
  8. Stir in dried cherries, zest, raisins, chocolate chunks.
  9. Scoop dough onto prepared cookie sheets.
  10. Bake for approx. 12 minutes. Allow to cool.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Being the Beacon and Cherry Cheesecake Dip

Cherry Cheesecake Dip

We’ve always had a sign.

Cherry Cheesecake Dip

Cherry Cheesecake Dip

When you are a mom with child(ren) at the beach, even with a group of friends, you are ever watching, monitoring, counting heads.

I have two children. One who loves the waves, the other who does not. Both adventurous. Both fun seeking, but one in the water and one in the sand. It is inevitable at some point you have to decide which one leaves your side to have their version of fun. Even though you have back up people to go with them, or stay with them…it is hard to let go.

When my son would boogie board or ride the waves, and we would watch as the tide would  pull him this way or that, we had a sign. I would raise my arm, he would see it, and he would raise his arm in the same fashion. Without words, this was the conversation:

“I’m here! You OK? Don’t let the tide drag you much farther!”

“I’m OK mom! I see you!”

And I would watch and do it all over again.

The older he got, the less frequently I would raise my arm, but the eyes are always watching. That’s what moms do.

This year I watched that boy walk across the stage and get his diploma, which is a pretty big deal. Not every kid loves school, just like not every kid likes to stay on the beach. Some kids take the honors courses and write the papers last-minute. Some kids plan out their papers for weeks in advance. As an educator, and a mom, I see all different kinds of learners. I have changed as a learner myself.

This year my son wrapped up High School and I could not be more proud. (and relieved…it wasn’t without several “Come to Jesus” meetings in the last decade).

If life has taught me anything, it is that, like the ocean, things are always changing. You can count on the tide, but the grains of sand it kicks up get shifted and move over and settle in new places. Constantly.

I have a pick-up-the-smoothest-stone-and-stick-it-in-your-pocket issue. As in, the stones that you can hold in your hand and are so soft they feel like velvet, come home with me. (Not all, just a couple). They remind me that life can smooth out any edges in time. They also remind me that no matter what you start out as…you end up differently if you choose to stay in the water and let the waves do their work.

My son has so many life stories to encounter, and so many plans to make and evolve. He already has transformed so much from that new baby who wouldn’t sleep. That sweet boy who loved to dig up worms, the teenager who liked video games as much as possible. Even with what he’s handled so far I know there is more to come. Things I can’t protect him from, prevent, or fix.

He’s a young man. Hopefully the momma wisdom I have tried to pour into his life has roots and will guide him along the way.

Graduation was a blur and filled with family and friends and life, loud and ready.

So imagine my pure bittersweet joy, when in a sea of people on the steps of the graduation ceremony, trying to let my boy know where we were waiting…I automatically raised my arm.

He saw me, smiled, and did the same.

Oh precious child of my heart. I am here. I am here.

We are imperfect and tired and sometimes lost in the sea of this life we call motherhood. Days where it is spot on and days when we wonder if we are enough.

If nothing else, I hope my children know beyond all things…that they are loved just as they are and I am the beacon to call them home. I will raise my arm, and they can find me from wherever they go.

Every. Day. A. Gift.

Now to the recipe: If you want an easy so yummy summer dessert, this is your recipe. It’s cheesecake like, no bake, covered in canned pie filling and served up with Nilla Wafers. The recipe I used is from www.cincyshopper.com

Blend together cream cheese, marshmallow creme (in New England it is FLUFF), Cool Whip, and spread in a pie plate. Top with cherry pie filling. Put back in the refrigerator until you need it. EASY? YES. DELICIOUS? YES. Can I hear summer potluck? YES.

Much love to you my readers. We are on the sand or in the waves of this life together.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe!

Print

Being the Beacon and Cherry Cheesecake Dip

Cherry Cheesecake Dip
Print Recipe

Simple and delicious cherry cheesecake dip served with the cracker or cookie of your choosing! Original recipe from www.cincyshopper.com.

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 8 ounces (one package) cream cheese, softened
  • 8 ounces (1/2 Jar of Fluff-I used the big plastic 16 ounce container)
  • 8 ounces Cool Whip -thawed
  • One Can (2 Cup) Cherry Pie Filling
  • One Box Nilla Wafers or Chocolate Grahams or Cookie of Choice

Instructions

  1. Whip together softened cream cheese and Fluff until blended together and smooth.
  2. Incorporate thawed cool whip and combine with the mixer until light and fluffy.
  3. Spread mixture into a pie plate or glass dish of choice.
  4. Top with canned pie filling.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

 

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins with Pecan Streusel

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

Well, spring just arrived, sort of. Some days feel like summer, some days feel like I need to build an ark, and finally, finally, the world is blooming. Allergies are not happy, but my heart and my camera lens are. I think the habit I have made for myself of going outside and taking pictures of the flowers in my yard is just one step in making sure I appreciate the world around me. I am pretty faithful in trying to capture one beautiful thing a day. That feeds my soul.

One of my favorite things of the summer is the farmer’s markets. It seems to have rained every day ours is open but we are there anyway. Lately, the rhubarb is ready and even though my own strawberries aren’t ready for picking, there are strawberries available at the grocery store. Bring on the strawberry rhubarb everything.

I will be making strawberry rhubarb preserves soon, but for now, I am experimenting with crisps and these muffins. Using a combination of greek yogurt, sour cream, apple sauce, and a little bit of oil, the muffins are dense and moist and yet not heavy. Using brown sugar, they are not too sweet, but the sugar could actually be reduced if you choose.

This recipe yields 24 -30 generous muffins, but I also tried making mini muffins with my leftover batter and found they are actually even better. I like the idea of morsels of sweet and a little crunchy of the streusel topping. I even made some of these muffins without the streusel (for the non nut eaters in my life) and they were yummy too.Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins

This recipe is a combination of sweet, tangy, and the colors of the rhubarb and strawberry are the perfect combination for early summer. The little bit of orange zest brings out the flavor of the strawberry and the rhubarb. The streusel has a combination of melted margarine that is looser and it doesn’t need to have a lot per muffin to balance out the cinnamon crunch with the tender fruit-filled muffins.

The best part of watching winter disappear is… wait, my list is too long and I have no favorites when it comes to why I am glad to see winter go, except now I can dig in the dirt, photograph everything that blooms, and make recipes that embrace all of the fresh produce available through local farmers.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe!

Print

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins with Pecan Streusel

Strawberry Rhubarb Muffins
Print Recipe

This delicious muffin recipe combines the delightful early summer flavors of strawberry and rhubarb with just a hint of orange and the cinnamon streusel topping with a cinnamon crunch!

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com
  • Yield: 24 -30 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 3/4 Cup Greek Yogurt
  • 3/4 Cup Sour Cream
  • 1/2 Cup Applesauce
  • 3 Eggs
  • 1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
  • 2 1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons Orange Zest
  • 2 Teaspoons Baking Soda
  • 2 Cups Diced Rhubarb
  • 2 Cups Sliced Strawberries (I sliced and then halved the slices so they weren’t too big)

For Topping:

  • 1 Stick Margarine (melted)
  • 1/2 Cup Pecans
  • 1/2 Cup Walnuts
  • 1/2 Cup Old Fashioned Oats
  • 1 Tablespoon Cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Combine streusel ingredients and set aside.
  3. Line muffin tins with liners and set aside.
  4. Combine yogurt, sour cream, applesauce in a mixer with a paddle attachment.
  5. Add eggs and oil and combine.
  6. Add in dry ingredients and mix until incorporated.
  7. Add in strawberries and rhubarb until combined.
  8. Scoop muffin batter into prepared muffin tins until 3/4 full.
  9. Top muffin batter with streusel topping.
  10. Bake for 20-25 minutes.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

If ever there was a personal ad for food, it would read; “Fresh Rhubarb looking for a sweet time with a sexy strawberry. Warm crunchy topping essential, vanilla ice cream optional.”

Ok, I can’t honestly say I have ever read a personal ad, or written one for that matter, but what a match you have when you pair the tart of rhubarb with the sweet of strawberry. This recipe has a touch of cinnamon in the crunch topping, and orange juice and zest in the filling. It’s addictive. It’s the quintessential spring dessert, and the minute I spy rhubarb my wheels spin with dreams of crisps and pies and preserves. This crisp was the first. It won’t be the last.

Crisps are amazing because they bake up and reduce to a point where the juices thicken and bubble under a blanket of crunch and crumble that not only meets the texture but also the flavor of the dessert. It hits all of the senses, and it really does deliver. So many times I am able to talk myself out of a processed dessert because, it never really tastes the way you think it should. This is a dessert that appeals to the eye as well as the taste buds.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

The funny thing is, as a kid I never understood the love for rhubarb. It has the look of red celery and it’s tart, tart, tart. I love citrus, but rhubarb has a level of tart all its own.

This dessert is based on Ina Garten’s recipe. I have a colossal baking dish especially for this type of recipe, so I changed the proportions, added cinnamon to the crisp, and a little more zest than the original…because I love orange zest. End of story.

Slice the strawberries, chop the rhubarb, and set aside. Mix your orange juice, sugar, and cornstarch and coat the berry mixture.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

I use a box grater to grate my cold butter and find it cuts into the flour/oat/sugar mixture easily. Top your berries and bake. So simple, and absolutely delicious.

When it comes to baking, I am not a fan of runny pies or crisps. I love that the cornstarch thickens the filling. I also bake it until it bubbles and the smell of cinnamon and strawberry rhubarb is so overwhelming you have to take it out of the oven.

In this window of time where rhubarb and strawberry growing season is just emerging and overlapping, take advantage and bake something delicious!

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe.

Print

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
Print Recipe

Delicious strawberry rhubarb filling with a cinnamon crumble topping. Original recipe from Ina Garden.

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 6 Cups fresh rhubarb, cut into 1 inch dice
  • 6 Cups fresh strawberries, sliced
  • 1 3/4 Cups white granulated sugar
  • 1 1/2 Tablespoons grated orange zest
  • 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
  • 3/4–7/8 Cup orange juice
  • 1 3/4 Cup all purpose flour
  • 3/4 Cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 3/4 Cup quick-cooking (not instant) oats
  • 16 Tablespoons cold butter, grated
  • 2 Generous teaspoons of cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Slice strawberries and cut up rhubarb. Mix 1 Cup of white sugar and orange zest.
  3. In a measuring cup, dissolve cornstarch into orange juice, combine with sugar and zest.
  4. Pour mixture over berries and rhubarb and toss.
  5. Pour the mixture into the baking dish.
  6. Grate butter and set aside.
  7. Combine flour, remaining white sugar, brown sugar, salt, and oatmeal.
  8. Add grated butter and mix until the dry ingredients are crumbly and butter is evenly distributed.
  9. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit, covering it completely.
  10. Bake for 60-80 minutes, until the fruit is bubbling and the topping is golden brown.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

 

 

 

Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

Some recipes are so easy they don’t need to be written up, but I love a new spin on any vegetable, and we have suddenly leapt from winter to summer it seems here in New England. While I will grill in the winter if the need for something grilled is strong, I typically save the grilling for this type of weather. Yay! Finally the days where we can think about eating outside have arrived…for the day anyway (who knows what the next day holds).Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

This recipe is adapted from Parmesan Potato Wedges all over the Pinterest. For zucchini, I selected slender, young looking zucchini, about a half-dollar size in circumference (1 1/2″-2″).

Slice into quarters, then into sticks about three inches long. Place zucchini in a plastic gallon sized bag or container and drizzle with oil. I used plain old vegetable oil, but you can use olive oil as well. Season with salt, pepper, garlic powder, and then toss. Once the zucchini is coated, add 1/2 -1 Cup of grated parmesan cheese (I actually used grated pecorino Romano cheese). Coat the zucchini with all of that cheesey goodness!Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

Preheat your oven to 400* and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Pop them in the oven. I set the timer for 15 minutes, but ended up cooking them longer, I wanted to see if I could get them to go from melty to golden. In total, the zucchini cooked for approx. 25 minutes but I would watch them. Nothing in this world smells like burned cheese, and that isn’t a good thing. I started the grill, started the zucchini, and magically everything was done at the same time.

This is a simple side dish, but they are tasty enough to be considered a main dish, especially if you are looking for a veggie that has a little extra.

Parmesan Zucchini SticksNow, the variables…you could mix up the cheese, add different spices (think smoked paprika, chili powder, dill, you see where I am going with this).

In a season where I am now working outside digging in the dirt and pulling up weeds and mowing lawns, I want simple. This delivers and your guests are never going to know (unless you tell them)!

As always, I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe!

Print

Parmesan Zucchini Sticks

Parmesan Zucchini Sticks
Print Recipe

Simple, baked zucchini sticks with a melty, crunchy parmesan coating. This side dish is sure to please!

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 5 small zuchinni quartered and cut into approximately 3 inch lengths.
  • 2 Tablespoons of oil
  • 1 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper
  • 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • 1/2–1 Cup Grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano Cheese (to taste)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 400* and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Slice and cut zucchini.
  3. Place zucchini, oil, spices in ziplock bag or container and toss.
  4. Add grated cheese to bag and coat each piece of zucchini.
  5. Arrange zucchini on parchment lined paper and place in the oven.
  6. Bake initially for 15-20 minutes, additional time to make the cheese go from melty to golden.
  7. Serve!

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Chockey, Chockey, Chockey. I love you so.

Dark chocolate biscotti with dark chocolate chips bring this sweet cookie to life that makes all things better.

I know, enough with the biscotti already. But seriously. It is a cookie this gal has some serious affection for. It has flavor and texture and shelf life. It can be dipped into a hot beverage and not fall apart like an Oreo (I hereby proclaim soggy Oreos to be exceptional at the right time and place).

This dough is, for all intents and purposes, a dream. It comes off the mixer in one lump, is divided, baked, sliced, and baked again. It needs no garnish but will take one with pride. It has dark chocolate chunks, but the potential for this dough…add in slivered almonds, dried cherries, cranberries, orange zest, pistachios…the ideas are endless.

For this cookie, I kept it simple. Dark chocolate cocoa powder, dark chocolate chunks, need I say more? I did indulge and dip half of the batter into melted chocolate because, yes please.

Today’s blog is short and sweet, pun intended. These cookies need no elaboration. If you don’t bake them as long the second round, they will have a soft crunch. Which, if you are going to have hard edges, you should have a soft center. In personality as well as a cookie, am I right?

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe!

Print

Double Chocolate Biscotti

Print Recipe

Delicious dark chocolate biscotti with dark chocolate chunks.

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/2 Cup Butter
  • 1 Cup Sugar
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1 Teaspoon Vanilla extract
  • 1/2 Cup Dark Cocoa Powder
  • 1 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder
  • 2 Cups AP Flour
  • 1 Cup Dark Chocolate Chunks/Chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. In a mixer with a paddle, combine butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
  3. Add eggs and vanilla extract and combine.
  4. Add Dark Cocoa powder, baking powder, and salt.
  5. Add flour, and incorporate until it makes a dough an add dark chocolate chips.
  6. Form dough into two logs onto a Silpat or parchment lined cookie sheet.
  7. Bake for 30 minutes.
  8. Remove from oven and cool for ten minutes.
  9. Slice biscotti into one inch slices.
  10. Place slice side up onto cookie sheet and return to the oven for an additional 10-15 minutes.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

Welcome to the Circus and Dark Chocolate Chunk Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins

Dark Chocolate Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins

Dark Chocolate Chunk Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins

My Spring Break is coming to a close, and while I did a ton of cleaning and purging and moving furniture around, etc… I am only now settling in to write. Why is it that the writing part is the hardest part?

Do you ever walk around composing in your brain? Letters you need to write or cards to send, emails to respond to, and for me, blog posts as well. It is what it is. If I am lucky, I get an opportunity to write it down. If I am not, I place a post it note somewhere and come back to it thinking, “huh?”

One of the best parts of my week off, besides the opportunity to stay at the Cape for a few days, (Thanks Aunty Cathy) was the chance to walk with friends. I mean early morning, after work, lunch break walks with people I don’t get to see in daily life. Walk, and listen, and share, and all while filling my lungs with fresh air and moving my body. To me, that is a gift. I did my first set of pull-ups this week as well (Thank you Erika) so hey, rock on. Forty-six, here I come.

We have been a predominantly vegetarian household for almost a month, and yet, I still have a list of recipes to share that are not necessarily super-healthy, but are in the works. The blog is about two weeks behind my real life. So when I post a batch of cookies, chances are they are long gone and the crumbs are already swept of the teacher’s lunch room table at school. It’s just reality.

We work. We have family. We have outside responsibilities. We feed and nurture and take care of our circle. So, the extra stuff waits for most of us. We don’t really get the chance to be selfish. It isn’t who we are.

I had the chance to grab coffee with a precious friend this week who shared some things, and she said, “Thanks for letting me look into your life.” My response was, “My life is a Sh8t Show!” and her response was, “But it makes me think I can do it too.”

To which I say, AMEN and YES. YES YOU CAN. Our lives are imperfect. We have kid issues and work issues. We have addictions and illnesses and death and loss. We have messy. We have step-over-this-part-of-my- life-and-no-one-needs-to-see-it stuff. We have the stuff we won’t put on Facebook.

You will never see me post my children’s report cards on social media. Not because they aren’t worthy. But because, it’s not my thing. You will see me post a picture of them laughing together, or playing their ukuleles together, because while I love that my children are smart, I love that my children have the capacity to be kind. Not to shame those who do. Like Amy Poehler says in her book, “Good for you, not for me.” I realize my parenting style is not the same. I am not raising free-range chickens or lab rats. I am not raising super heroes. I am raising children (technically young adults). I am sure they will need therapy for something. It won’t be because I didn’t try.

Yesterday I asked my son, “Do I stress too much and act really cranky when we travel?” He looked at me and said (carefully and only slightly sarcastically), “Ahhhh, yeah?” Point well taken. My response? “I’m really sorry. I’m working on it.” I’d rather they remember me identifying and apologizing and changing as a mom. At least they know I am trying and willing to work on stuff.

Truthfully, I suck at the circus. I can do this or that really well and the rest I am trying my best. Sometimes my best is not good enough for my standards. Sometimes my best still rocks but it isn’t enough. That’s where grace comes in.

No one has it all together. No one has a Facebook perfect life. We can’t compare or it will kill us slowly from the inside. Comparing is as bad as cancer in my book.

In the last year, I have slowly learned to unfold from years of this mindset of being the good parent, or the adult, or the martyr in some situations. I am not done. I am so not done. Every day I am trying to love this body and this soul inside my skin and forgive myself of all the shortcomings. This is hard. It is hard because I am great at finding the good outside of myself but not necessarily inside of myself.

What a slow process. I have said it before, I wish I wanted all the good for myself that my mom would want for me or I want for my kids. That I would breathe and say, “Chrissy, you’ve got this,” more. I am learning.

I am changing habits and while I think of cookies (recipe not posted yet) while I do pull ups for the first time, I am realizing that cookies are lovely and therapeutic to make, but not the only option.

Still, give me all the chocolate. (I am working on this too).

So. This recipe. It is a dark chocolate muffin and it uses banana, coconut oil, greek style yogurt, and it is still a muffin but it is a better choice muffin.Dark Chocolate Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins

For the banana haters of the world…yes, it still does have a slight banana smell but it is not a banana muffin, if you get me. It also has dark chocolate chunks and is delicious. It has sugar but not a ton. It is decadent enough to be a cupcake- but it is dense. So it really is a muffin. I chose dark chocolate cocoa powder because it is my personal preference, but regular cocoa powder will work too.

My only wish for these muffins is that they would last longer, you need to share them and eat them within a few days or they toughen up. So make these and bless those around you with a healthier version of a breakfast treat. You can pop them in the microwave or a few seconds to heat them up and they are even better.

As for a glimpse into my circus. It is what it is. Hopefully it makes you think you can tame the tigers, unload the clowns out of the small car, hang from the trapeze, eat the popcorn and ride the camel too. We do the best we can, and take it one day at a time. We need to look at ourselves with kindness. We need to fall in love with ourselves a little bit more every day. Because, we are worth it. I’ll say it to you now, and tuck it into your heart: You’ve got this.

I hope you enjoy this recipe, and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe.

Print

Dark Chocolate Chunk Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins

Dark Chocolate Greek Yogurt Banana Muffins
Print Recipe
  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 Cup extremely ripe mashed bananas (2–4 depending on banana size)
  • 1/2 Cup Plain Greek Yogurt
  • 1 Large Egg
  • 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
  • 1/4 Cup melted coconut oil, cooled
  • 1/2 Cup Dark Brown Sugar
  • 4 Heaping Tablespoons Dark Cocoa Powder
  • 1 Cup Dark Chocolate Chips
  • 1 Cup Flour
  • 1 Tablespoon Corn starch
  • 1/2 Teaspoon Baking Soda
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Line a muffin tin with paper liners. If you want the added protection from muffin sticking to liner, lightly spray muffin liners with baking spray. You can dust liners with additional cocoa powder.
  3. Mix dry ingredients and chocolate chips.
  4. Mash bananas and combine with yogurt and egg.
  5. Add melted and cooled coconut oil, brown sugar, and vanilla extract.
  6. Add in brown sugar.
  7. Combine wet ingredients and dry ingredients, mixing until just combined, not overworking the batter.
  8. Divide batter into muffin tins, this yielded 12 regular sized muffins.
  9. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until tester comes out clean.
  10. Allow to cool and store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

On Tootie’s Pickled Beets and the Stuff We Do Right

This is a story about pickled beets, but mostly, not. 

I am meal planning for Easter. I realize that my table will not be filled except for my essential peeps, there will be leftovers to share and people can drop in for dessert as the day allows, but still, the planning and the prepping are all part of the joy for me. It’s like vacation; the planning part is almost as much fun as the going part. I’m a fan of anticipation and delayed gratification. For the most part, anyways.

I have been brewing a post about one year anniversaries of loss and navigating a year of parenting children who have lost their Dad, and how to write about it…but the things in my head and my heart don’t always mean I have the words to say them, or that anyone would want to read them, so they stay put.

Then, I come across a recipe from a lifetime ago, and I can hear his voice,

“Hey, do you have that recipe from those people out in the country? The Beet Recipe? I just got my hands on a ton of beets and want to try to make it.”

And there it is, all the good and the bad and the life that was and is. A woman named Tootie gave us her beet recipe when our son was just a baby…and it has stayed with me ever since. And yes, I shared the recipe, and he made a batch of these beets all of those years later.

So, I thought, instead of remembering all of the things we didn’t do the best, I would write about the things we did right.

We cooked, and made meals, and fed people. We loved people. We loved each other.

Even when it was ugly ugly. Even when it all fell apart. Even when all the things you think are safe and protected aren’t. Even when the worst happens and the bottom falls out. We had grace and respect. Sometimes better-late-than-never grace and respect, but it showed up eventually.

We did disagreeing until it was appropriate right. We did long distance parenting as best as we could. We did making sure as much of their lives was accessible to you to celebrate and participate in could happen. Made it so you were there for the every day ear-piercing stuff as well as the end of the year concert stuff. They talk to your parents at least once a week.

We had two great kids.

They are such a blend. They have a drive for adventure. They love to eat and cook new foods. They find a reverence in the cool old things one finds along the journey. They like competition, they see the best in people.

They flow. They wear ball caps, like you. They sing along to country music. These are just some their Dad’s qualities.

They have chosen to remember both the good and the bad things.

They have chosen to hold their questions for you, until they see you again.

And, even when you disappeared, we were there when you came back. We did a lot of it right. Or, at least the best “right” we could.

I don’t even begin to know what it is to wrestle with addiction, other than to have lived it from the outside. I know it doesn’t respect race or religion or socio-economic status. Addiction touches more people than we realize. I know there can be so much shame associated with addiction, for all who are touched by it.

Even though the world is changing, even though there is help out there, many people stay silent. It’s destructive and devastating and exhausting. It’s smoke and mirrors, weeding through to get to the real story, and building gut-wrenching boundaries.

I’ve read that addiction is the only illness that convinces you that you can cure yourself.

For those on the outside, it’s a briar patch of wanting to help and protecting what you can. There is no one-size-fits-all hand book for it. There is no easy way for anyone involved.

I wish I knew how to do more. I wish I knew how to do things the right way. Or how to have gotten through.  I will always wish these things, I think.

We did as much “right,” for the space of time and life that we were given. The things we didn’t do right shape my point of view for the rest of my days as well as the stuff we did.

Some days, I just sort through it. Some days, the fact that you are gone is still an elusive, shimmering truth that I can’t wrap myself around just yet.

He got into college. He made it to States. He got the Most Improved Award for the second year in a row. She makes honor roll every quarter. She won the Italian competition. She played field hockey all fall and winter long. They are sarcastic and funny and kind. They are amazing. They work together and laugh and play their ukuleles and guitars. They protect each other.

Photo courtesy of Larry White Jr. Photography

And you are missing all of it.

The list of stuff you are missing is overwhelming if I allow myself the time to think it.

Then I think, no. You aren’t. And maybe, from where you are, a safer, quieter place, where you don’t battle anymore, you can see them better. You can really see all of the things that perhaps, you wouldn’t have if things ended differently.  I don’t have the answers.

We did not do all things right, but these two kids, we did.

Sometimes my blog is all about the recipe, and this has one too, but sometimes, it’s about the stuff the recipe holds that doesn’t involve ingredient lists or cooking time. It’s about the other parts of life. Which is all a part of being welcome to come to the table.

I hope you enjoy it, and as always, thank you for coming to the table.

Chrissy

Print

Tootie’s Pickled Beets

Print Recipe

This pickled beet recipe came from a woman in Pennsylvania from a lifetime ago. The cloves, cinnamon, and allspice bring a different flavor to the pickled beets you may not encounter regularly!

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 4 Pounds cooked, peeled, and sliced beets.
  • 3 Cups sliced onions
  • 2 1/2 Cups Apple Cider Vinegar
  • 1 1/2 Cups Water
  • 1 Teaspoon Salt (Kosher)
  • 2 Cups White Sugar
  • 1 Tablespoon Mustard Seed
  • 1 Teaspoon Whole Allspice
  • 1 Teaspoon Whole Cloves
  • 3 Sticks of Cinnamon, broken

Instructions

  1. Boil liquids and spices and then reduce to a simmer for 5 minutes.
  2. Add beets and Onions and cook in simmering liquid for approx. 10 more minutes.
  3. Remove cinnamon sticks from cooking liquid.
  4. Using sterilized mason jars, pack beets and onions, leaving 1/4 inch remaining space in canning jar.
  5. Ladle hot liquid over beets and onions.
  6. Finish canning process with a water bath or allow to cool and refrigerate.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!

 

Cranberry Orange Biscotti

Cranberry Orange Biscotti

Cranberry Orange Biscotti

So, I’m a New England Girl, through and through. Give me your white steepled churches and ancient graveyards, lighthouses, glorious autumns, and all of the goodness that comes with the history of our great nation.

With that, and I’ve blogged about this before, is the amazing tradition of taking a perfectly healthy berry and plunking it down in a dessert. Now, if peanut butter and chocolate are a culinary “Bachelor”, cranberry and orange are the “Bachelorette.” Disclaimer: I don’t watch either show. However, this match of cranberry and orange just work so well together. I am all about being a resident of Massachusetts. We be the cranberry kings. Bring on the cranberries. 

In my endeavor to make all of the biscotti, it was inevitable I would find this recipe and attempt it.

Now, in my defense and love of citrus…I did really amp up the orange zest. How does one end up with 1/4 a cup of zest? Easy. You buy a bag of clementines, your mom brings over more clementines, and then, you see Satsumas with their little green leaves at the grocery store and you just have to buy them. Citrus overload. I can’t say I am sorry. We eat a lot of citrus. I need my vitamin C. I work with small children. My teaching table is a Petri dish.

Cranberry Orange BiscottiWell, if a clementine gets past it’s freshness it gets hard and almost field hockey ball like. But guess what? That zest is perfect. I also just bought a masticating cold press juicer (who knew this was a thing? it is). Enter more use for citrus but not it’s peel. Aha! Zesting has become pretty regular and normal around my kitchen.

This recipe combines easily and bakes in two stages. It keeps forever in an airtight container. Even though I don’t love white chocolate I think it adds just a little sweet and pretty on the finished cookie. I might make these again with white chocolate chips on the inside of the cookie; give the batter a bonus, and not dip them. Mix it up a bit. I might also make an orange glaze with citrus zest and confectioner’s sugar next time around.Cranberry Orange Biscotti

I will be honest and say I do love these biscotti, they are one of the best cranberry orange cookies I have ever had.

If you are a New Englander, you need to make yourself these cookies because they embrace everything that our history holds, (cranberries were even at the first Thanksgiving, remember). If you aren’t a New Englander, you should grab yourself a bag of dried cranberries and try this recipe. I promise, you won’t be disappointed.

I hope you enjoy this recipe and as always, thank you for coming to the table!

Chrissy

Click below for a printable recipe.

Print

Cranberry Orange Biscotti

Cranberry Orange Biscotti
Print Recipe

This combination of cranberry and orange biscotti with a white chocolate dip makes for the perfect New England biscotti. Recipe adapted from www.yourhomebasedmom.com

  • Author: chrissy@mythankfultable.com

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/2 Cup Butter
  • 6 ounce package of Dried Cranberries (I used Craisins)
  • 3 Tablespoons Orange Juice
  • 3/4 Cup Sugar
  • 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
  • 2 Eggs
  • 1/4 Cup Grated Orange Zest
  • 2 1/2 Cup AP Flour
  • 1/4 Teaspoon Salt
  • 1 Cup White Chocolate Chips

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350*
  2. Place dried cranberries in a bowl and add boiling water. Let sit for five minutes. Drain well and set aside.
  3. In a mixer with a paddle attachment, combine butter and sugar and orange zest and mix until light and fluffy.
  4. Add eggs, one at a time and incorporate.
  5. Add Orange Juice, Baking Powder and Salt.
  6. Add flour until mixed.
  7. Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape into two 4″ x 8″ rectangles with softly rounded edges.
  8. Place on parchment lined or silicone mat lined cookie sheet.
  9. Bake for 25 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
  10. Allow to cool for ten minutes.
  11. Slice baked logs into one inch slices, on the diagonal, if you desire.
  12. Return cookies to the cookie sheet sliced side up and continue to bake for an additional 25 minutes.
  13. Allow cookies to cool.
  14. Microwave white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl, checking frequently to not scorch the white chocolate.
  15. Dip each biscotti into the white chocolate (or drizzle on top) and allow to cool.

Did you make this recipe?

Share a photo and tag us — we can't wait to see what you've made!