Mini Banana-Peach Cakes

Let me just start out by saying that Alton Brown is a genius. I don't necessarily think he's the best chef out there, but he knows how to teach about cooking in a way that grabs your attention and sucks you in. His show Good Eats is unique, fast paced, and full of interesting information about food. The depth of his food knowledge is also demonstrated weekly when he hosts Iron Chef America. He's got to be the smartest person on the Food Network today.

There are also things about his philosophy on food that resonate with me. For example, let me share my favorite Alton Brown quote with you:
"You know we fixate on the food so much itself: 'Oh, the ultimate brownie or the ultimate this or that' -- well, let me tell you something: It’s all poop in about 12 hours, okay? The real power that food has is its ability to connect human beings to each other -- that’s the stuff right there and, to me, everything else is secondary to that."
Amen. I have to agree that this is exactly why food is such a powerful thing.

Anyway, back to the recipe. This cake is based on Alton Brown's Individual Peach Upside-Down Cake, a recipe that I picked up from an episode of Good Eats. I like it because it's really easy, but it looks great and it's pretty healthy for a dessert. Each cake is an individual serving, cooked in a ramekin. After baking, the ramekin is flipped upside down, and the vibrant orange of the peach makes for a pretty top to the dessert.

The juicy peach sits on top of a fluffy vanilla flavored cake. In my version, I added banana as a second layer of fruit under the peach, to add a bit more variety. I also used cinnamon instead of candied ginger, since its an ingredient I'm more likely to have around the house.

Another substitution I made was using yogurt and milk instead of buttermilk. I rarely use buttermilk in my cooking, and it's always annoying to have to buy an ingredient just for one recipe. So, after a little searching online I found that yogurt, thinned with a bit of milk can be a buttermilk substitute. I had some yogurt leftover from making pancakes so I decided to give it a try. It made the batter a little thicker, but worked great!

I like to eat the cake by itself, but it would also be great with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Mini Banana-Peach Cakes
(makes 4 cakes)

Fruit layer:
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 peach, peeled and cut into 1/3 inch slices
1/2 tsp cinnamon, or enough to generously sprinkle each ramekin
1 banana, sliced into 1/3 inch thick rounds

Cake layer:
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/8 tsp baking soda
1/8 tsp salt
1/3 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. butter, melted
3 Tbsp milk
5 Tbsp yogurt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Divide 2 Tbsp. of the butter evenly between 4 ramekins, cutting into small pieces to cover the bottom. Sprinkle brown sugar on top of the butter, dividing evenly between the ramekins.

Lay peach slices on top of the sugar, forming a layer of peach on the bottom. Remember that the peach slices will shrink when cooked, so make it a generous layer, overlapping as necessary. On top of this, sprinkle some cinnamon into each ramekin. Then add the banana on top, forming another layer.

For the cake, in a large bowl mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl (I usually just use a liquid cup measure), mix together sugar, melted butter, milk, yogurt, and vanilla. Add the wet to the dry and mix until just combined. At this point, the batter should be relatively thick, but thin enough to pour. If it seems too thick, add some more milk until it's the right consistency. Pour evenly into the ramekins, filling just up to the top.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until top is beginning to brown and juices are bubbling. Warning: be sure to put something under the ramekins, since they are likely to leak fruit juice. I like to use a piece of tin foil on the rack below.

Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Run a knife around the outside edge to loosen and flip upside down on a plate. Enjoy alone, or with ice cream.

Featherlight Yogurt Pancakes

I'm not generally someone who craves a pancake in the morning. Oh, don't act all shocked. It's not that I don't like pancakes. It's just that many times I feel that pancakes are too heavy and have no substance besides bread.

However, last time I was home visiting my parents I discovered a pancake recipe that works for me. I could tell immediately that these pancakes were lighter than the average pancake. They were thick and airy, and the blueberries and bananas gave them more substance.

My mom got this recipe from a Breyers mailing advertising their yogurt. That's right, these pancakes have yogurt in them! I think it's the combination of the yogurt and a ton of baking soda/powder that makes them thick and fluffy.

One reason that I'm glad I discovered this recipe is that it makes me want to give pancakes another chance. I generally shy away from making pancakes because I expect them to be a certain way. This recipe reminded me that there are a ton of variations to experiment with, and many of them may be lighter and more complex than the average pancake.

One modification to this recipe that I'd like to explore next time is to add bananas and chocolate chips, instead of blueberries and bananas.

This is what it looks like:


And here is the recipe:

Featherlight Yogurt Pancakes
(makes about 9 4.5-inch pancakes)

1 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 Tbsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup yogurt, about 4 ounces
1/2 to 2/3 cup milk, start with 1/2 cup and add more as necessary to thin batter
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 small package of fresh blueberries, about 1 cup
1 banana, cut into slices, then quarter each slice.

Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.

In a separate bowl combine yogurt, milk (start with 1/2 cup), egg, and vanilla extract. Stir in melted butter.

Pour liquids into flour mixture, mixing just until dampened. Do not over mix or the pancakes will be tough. If there are still some lumps in the batter don't worry, they will disappear during cooking.

Add blueberries and bananas. Alternatively, if you want to make sure that the fruit is evenly spread between the pancakes, you can add the fruit to each pancake after pouring the batter onto the griddle (a tip from this post).

Heat a pan or griddle on medium heat. No butter is necessary as long as your pan is non-stick. Pour 1/4 cup batter for each pancake. You want a thick batter consistency so that it only spreads out a little when it hits the pan, but not so thick that it's difficult to pour out of the 1/4 cup measure. If the batter is too thick, add some more milk.

After a few minutes, when the top begins to bubble, flip to the other side. Let it cook on this side for a couple more minutes before removing.

Dad's Kifta Kebabs

This is one of the dishes that I beg for when I visit my parent's house in New Jersey. My dad is from Syria and I grew up enjoying many Arabic dishes that he cooked, like this one. This year I grilled these kebabs on my balcony in San Francisco for the fourth of July.

Kifta kebab is made with ground meat, usually lamb, which is mixed with spices, onions, and parsley for flavor. Do not confuse this with shish kebab, which is more common in the US and usually consists of chunks of meat and vegetables on a skewer. In my opinion, often the marinade used to make shish kebabs never quite penetrates to the center of the meat, and as a result they are far inferior to kifta kebab.

Usually the meat for kifta kebab is wrapped around a skewer for grilling. However, relatively recently my dad started making them in the same shape, without the skewer, like a fat hot dog or sausage. I've been told that the meat stays together better this way. There is also less cleanup, and as far as I can tell no compromise on taste, so I prefer this method.

The spices in kifta have a generally mild flavor, but they compliment the lamb perfectly. My dad serves with pita bread, a garlic yogurt sauce, and parsley or cilantro for sprinkling on top. (Actually he likes to sprinkle parsley and cilantro on top of pretty much everything but I think it works well in this case :-) ) I like to make a little pita bread sandwich out of it all.

Replicating a recipe from my dad is always interesting, as he has been cooking these dishes for years on feel, without actually measuring how much of each ingredient is added. I've estimated the amounts that I used when barbecuing last Wednesday, but feel free to experiment and add more or less of whichever ingredient is your favorite.

We enjoyed the kifta with a pilaf from one of my favorite food blogs and a tomato and cucumber salad

Here is what the kifta looks like:


And here is the recipe:

Dad's Kifta Kebabs

(Serves 4)

Kifta:
2 lbs. fatty ground lamb (or 50/50 ground beef and ground lamb), either way is delicious
1 Tablespoon allspice
1 Tablespoon paprika
1/4 cup parsley, cut very fine
1/4 cup onion, cut very fine
salt and pepper

Garlic Yogurt Sauce:
1 16 ounce tub of yogurt
1/4 cup cucumber, peeled and diced
1 garlic clove, crushed in a garlic press or very finely diced

Whole wheat pita bread
Chopped parsley or cilantro to garnish

For the yogurt sauce, mix the yogurt, cucumber, and garlic, and set aside for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to blend.

Mix the lamb and spices and form into kebabs, approximately 5 inches long and just over 1 inch wide. Grill until the outer surface just begins to blacken, or until cooked through.

Heat the pita bread on the grill during the last minute of cooking. Then place the warm bread on a serving plate. Remove the kifta from the grill and place immediately on top of the warm bread, to allow the bread to absorb any excess juices from the meat.

Serve with the yogurt sauce and extra parsley or cilantro for garnish.