Gluten Free Banana Cake

I hate bragging, but when you do something soooo right you just have to bask in the moment. That is how I feel about the banana cake I made last week. It wasn't pretty, but ohhhh the taste, it had my tongue dancing the waltz around the moist banana flavor and doing flips over the sweet banana glaze and crunchy walnuts. All this and gluten free too! I started with a home made gluten free All-Purpose flour mix;

3 1/2 c. rice flour
1 c. corn flour(not corn meal)
1 c. tapioca starch
1/2 c. potato starch
3T. xanthan gum

Mix all ingredients and store in a ziplock bag.

GF Banana Cake

1 c. all-purpose gf flour
1 scant c. sugar
1/2 t. cream of tartar(to substitute decrease the soda to 1/2 t. and add 1 t. of baking powder)
1/2 t. salt
3/4 t. baking soda
2 bananas whipped with an immersion blender till creamy
1/3 c. butter milk (to substitute add 1/2 t. vinegar to regular milk)
1/3 c. butter softened
2 eggs at room temp.
1/3 c. chopped nuts

Heat oven to 350*F. Grease and lightly flour bottom of a 8x12 glass casserole dish.
Blend all ingredients except eggs and nuts until moist. Beat on low for 2 minutes. Add eggs and beat 2 minutes more. Stir in nuts then pour batter into prepared pan and bake for about 35 minutes. Check with toothpick until it comes out clean. Eat warm or cool completely and drizzle with Banana glaze.

Banana Glaze

1 fresh banana (unless you like them brown) whipped 'till creamy
1 T. butter*optional
1/2 t. vanilla extract
enough powdered sugar to bring to desired consistency, approx. 1 lb.

Whip all ingredients until smooth.

This cake was so good that even my family members who aren't gluten intolerant loved it.

SUNFLOWERS

As my sunflowers go to seed I can't help but dream of the birds that will soon visit for a quick nibble. It is so enjoyable and often comical to watch them hold on tight while waving in the breeze and pecking for a treat.

Sunflowers Shine

S outh of the garden

U nder the yellow orbed sun

N uggets of gold glitter

F or the joy of everyone

L eaves of green are staggered

O ver slender seven foot stalks

W aving at all visitors

E ncouraging nature walks

R usty browns and lemon yellows

S teal our hearts away

S hining golden saucers

H anging down to bid ‘good day’

I n the light of the summer moon

N ear the midnight hour

E very single pedal glows, releasing nature’s power

........................................................by Robin Moynihan

My pretty girl

I love my dog. I got her when I was extremely sad. She brightened my world and reminded me love is still all around me. God gives all good gifts, and when love is involved it is a great gift indeed.

update 8/6/10: Still love my pretty girl. We now go for walks around lake, she goes in for a dip or two, often trying to catch the ducks, we are both very happy now. Isn't she pretty, from her mixed up eyes to the tip of her curly tail? She is also very sweet, she allows my grandsons to crawl, hug, kiss, well what ever they wish to do to her, she allows it. She may give me a pleading look now and then "REALLY mom, can't you control these kids?" But when they come over she wiggles all over and picks up whatever she can find to offer as a gift. Did I mention she talks? She uses body language when I'm not understanding her vocals. She is truly the best dog I have ever owned, though I have loved them all, she has a very special place in my heart.

cooking up trouble!

Being troubled by gluten and finally deciding to eat properly, I purchased a pkg of gluten free flour to make blueberry muffins. If I had read the pkg I would have known that I needed Xantham gum to replace the gluten. If I had read the pkg though, I wouldn't have discovered that plain geletan added helps give a better texture. Now I know! I will be driving out to the Whole Foods mrkt today to get what I need and tonight I shall have blueberry muffins!
Blueberry Muffins
On a different note, yesterday was my last day babysitting Caleb and Connor after over 7 years. We shall now have them for weekend visits as grandparents not as sitters! Wahoo! No more getting up at 5am Monday mornings! Now I'm going to work on getting healthy, which sounds like a distant dream but one I feel I can reach, reducing my fibro myalgia symptoms, loosing weight, and building up my stamina. Starting today!
Getting Healthy!

Rain, rain go away!

It has been raining today, not that that is a bad thing. We need our little pond to fill up so the ducks will return...the ground needs greening up...the flowers need perking up...and the winter muck needs to be washed away! Of course we couldn't burn the brush today, but there will always be next weekend for that.

It was, however, a perfect day for cuddling with a grandchild and watching a movie. We watched Nim's Island. I loved it more that he did, of course he is only 3. As I watched the neurotic writer, Alex, deal with her issues, I had to ask if all of us writers are like that? It seems most of us are rather shy and are more comfortable with our own company than that of other humans, the exception being close family members. She even has a germ phobia, I am working very hard at correcting mine. I'm trying to remember that a little dirt is a good thing! Germs in small numbers are our friends! After all I wasn't always like this, there was a time when it wouldn't bother me to eat off the floor, now I cringe if I'm not the one who washed the plate!

Eating out is a definite no-no, tales of waiters spitting where they hadn't aught to fixed that for me. I even have trouble with ground meat and have to tell myself that if I cook it to a high temp. it will kill what ever has been added that shouldn't have been added. Fruits and veggies seem safe enough, if you wash them well and eat organic. If it comes from a package I don't seem to mind. Except there are the dangers of chemicals to consider, so again organic is best.

There is so much to worry about that it becomes exhausting at times. I guess that's where faith comes in. "Trust in Jehovah with all your Heart, and do not lean upon your own understanding." Sometimes that is easy enough, it is when you let your guard down, let that first little worry in, then the next one creeps in and before you know it you're bringing a bottle of sanitizer everywhere you go...oh yeah....I have one in my purse!

My son just got a lesson from His son!

My dear sweet 3 yr. old grandson, Aiden, was watchting cartoons with his dad when a comerical for dolls came on. Aiden says to his dad "I don't want that, it's girl stuff". My son, trying to reinforce masculinity replied "Yeah, that stuff is stupid!". Aiden turned to his dad and looked at him, shook his head and said "No, not stupid, just girl stuff". Way to go Aiden!
Is it any wonder we love these little guys sooooo much?

Writers Block

I haven't written an article for 3 weeks. I have written 3 poems, but what good is that? They did make me feel good, so that is something. I love poetry. It is so fulfilling to take a thought and follow it along to completion, never knowing how it will end, but happy to go for the ride. I have discovered that I really love to write acrostic poems. My favorite acrostic thus far is my "Ribbons Flutter", it gives me a warm glowing feeling, and makes me smile.
I don't even know how I do it, other than to say it is truly a gift,
and when I get an inspiration something gets turned on and the
words skip out. See if this poem doesn't bring a smile and a warm fuzzy feeling!

RIBBONS FLUTTER

R ibbons flutter soft on the breeze
I mpish little girl dances to please
B ouncing here and there she goes
B ouncing high upon her toes
O bliging us our visual treat
N ever faltering on steady feet
S ails to me for kisses sweet

F lickering sunlight on golden mane
L aughing twirling 'round again
U tter delight this afternoon dance
T ime stands still in blissful trance
T ottering now her dance complete
E xhausted dancer rest your feet
R un to me for kisses sweet