Foodie Friday-Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread

My kids have been asking me to make some banana bread for a while now.  I think they quit eating the bananas we had at home so I would be forced to make a loaf.  Thinking about banana bread brings to mind all the times my mom made it when I was quite small.  This was really special since (sorry mom) she's not much of a cook.  To me banana bread is a classic comfort foods that tastes so good warm with a bit of butter on it. 

Since I like to try new recipes I went through all my bread pins to see if I had anything pinned that looked good.  Up popped a recipe for Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread.  Umm what?  Yes please! 

The bread is just as easy to make as regular banana bread.  The cinnamon and sugar kick up the flavor quite a bit making this more of a dessert bread than a snacking bread.  My son actually said it was the best bread he has ever had!

 

 

So if you have a few brown bananas laying around you should give this bread a try.  You won't regret it!

Recipe from Lovin' From the Oven

Shy Girl & Boy

In my previous post I showed you what I got from sheepBlue in our personal swap.  

 

This pair of hooplas are part of what I sent to her.  She had the pattern pinned and I thought I would give it a go.  These are actually much more detailed then what I normally stitch what with all the hair and wrinkles but I love how they turned out.  I also think it's safe to say I have finally mastered the art of the French Knot!  It's actually really easy!

I was very happy to hear that sheepBlue liked these hoops and was happy with the color choices I made!  Always warms my heart a bit when someone enjoys what I have created for them.

The pattern purchased from Sublime Stitching and was stitched up using the back stitch, a straight stitch, and some French knots.

Manic Monday

I received these amazing goodies in a personal swap with the super talented sheepBlue who blogs over at QuirkieCraft

I was super spoiled by her!  She made me this amazing screen printed Doctor Who shirt.

 

A "junk" necklace and earrings

 

And a second screen printed shirt featuring Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead.

 

Finally something I have been wanting forever!  A silverware windchime!  Love it!!

Foodie Friday-Sesame Noodles

 

We enjoy making homemade lettuce wraps at home but I am sometimes left wanting something else on my plate.  I am not much of a white rice eater so these noodles were a must try.  They came together very quickly and I had just about everything I needed already at home except for the sesame oil. I just subbed in some regular oil and it worked out fine.  The recipe does call for a small amount of Sriracha and you can definitely add more if you prefer things to be a bit spicier.  Our house is split with half thinking the spicier the better and the other half being weenies.  So to be nice I followed the recipe and then just added more Sriracha to my own wraps and noodles. 

If you want to make the lettuce wraps you can try one of the recipes that I have used before or of you are short on time just pick up a bag of lettuce wrap mix in the aisle that sells the Asian food in your local store.  

Recipes:

Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce Wraps 2.0

Sesame Noodles