Banana Pecan Torte

I know it's been awhile, and I apologize to those of you who like to take the time to come here and look for new recipes! It's great to be back, baking something new to share with everyone!

To start off, as mentioned in my earlier banana-related posts, I'm sure there's many of us out there who seem to have ripening bananas that we can't get rid of any faster. And I'm also pretty sure there are many of us out there who are sick of using them to make banana bread!

Well, I was going through one of my recipe books, The Taste of Home Baking Book, and went through the index looking for all things starting with banana to try and change things up. When I turned to the page of this recipe, the first thing that caught my eye was the picture of the 3-layer cake. Anything with layers and frosting makes me excited because it looks impressive. Well I'm happy to say, that it not only looks good, it tastes good too! The torte turned out to be moist and there were just the right amount of pecans. The cream cheese frosting was not so strong because it was mixed with butter, and the frosting really complemented the banana flavor of the cake. If you're not a fan of pecans or you don't have any, you can always substitute with walnuts and it would taste just as amazing!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup  butter, softened
• 2 1/2 cups sugar
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups mashed ripe bananas (about 3-4 medium)
• 2 tsp vanilla flavoring
• 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Frosting:

• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, softened
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla flavoring

Topping:

• Toasted chopped pecans

1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

2. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.

3. Beat in bananas and vanilla.

You may need to use more or less bananas depending on their size. Make sure you  have 2 cups! I had to use about 4  medium sized bananas.

4. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately  with buttermilk. 

5. Stir in pecans.

Make sure to toast your pecans for a few minutes in the oven  at about 300 degrees F. Do not  leave them any longer than a few minutes because nuts get burned very quickly!

6. Pour into three greased and floured 9-inch round baking pans. Bake at 350 degrees F for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. 

These have been greased with butter and lightly floured. 

Make sure you fill all 3 cake pans evenly!

7. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to wire racks to cool completely.

8. For the frosting, beat the cream cheese, butter, and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Add vanilla. Spread between the layers and over the top of the cake. Sprinkle with pecans. Store in the refrigerator.

Apple Crisp Cupcakes

One of the best cupcakes I've made thus far...no need for frosting. They are soft, moist, and have the perfect delicious balance between the bits of apple and rich flavor of brown sugar and cinnamon making up the streusel. Great to eat on a cold winter night with a cup of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate =) This recipe is from my favorite cupcake book 125 Best Cupcake Recipes.

Ingredients:

Batter -

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (melted and cooled slightly)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 apple (peeled, cored, and diced)

Streusel -

• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• Pinch of salt

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a muffin pan with paper liners. For the batter, in a small bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.

3. Alternately whisk in flour mixture and milk, making three additions of flour mixture and two of milk, beating until smooth.

4. Stir in the apple.

5. For the streusel, in a bowl, whisk together brown sugar and cinnamon. Add the butter and rub in with fingertips until moisture holds together in small, moist clumps.

6. Scoop about half of the batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle streusel over the batter. Scoop remaining batter over streusel.

7. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and tops of cupcakes spring back when lightly touched. Let cool in pan on rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on rack. Top cooled cupcakes with frosting if desired.