Banana Tea Bread

This is the best banana bread recipe I've ever tried, and I have been making it for years. Friends and family always ask for this recipe when I make it and I make loaves at Christmastime for those who enjoy it. This is a Craig Claiborne recipe from my ancient "The New York Times Cookbook" from 1961. (I hadn't even been born when it was published.)

Ingredients:
1-3/4 cup sifted flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/3 cup shortening
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1 cup mashed ripe bananas (2 to 3 bananas)

~Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
~Sift together the flour, baking powder, soda, and salt.
~Cream the shortening and add the sugar gradually; continue working until light and fluffy. Add the eggs and beat well. Add the flour mixture alternately with the bananas, a small amount at a time, beating after each addition until smooth.
~Turn into a well greased bread pan and bake about 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Variations:
For raisin, nut, or date banana bread, add one cup of seedless raisins, one half cup of coursely broken nut meats, or one cup finely chopped dates to the batter.

Stuffed Eggplant

A fabulous vegetarian dish, for vegetarians and those who love them. I've had people who claim to dislike eggplant change their mind after tasting this.

This is a Turkish dish called Imam Bayildi (Swooning Imam). The story is that when an imam came home from the mosque, his wife had prepared this for his lunch. Upon tasting it, he fainted. Some think it was because he was so delighted with the dish; others think that his reaction was more due to the high cost of the olive oil it contained.

Ingredients:
6 Italian eggplants, each about 6 inch. long (about 2 lbs)
3/4 cup virgin olive oil, divided
4 medium Spanish onions, sliced thinly (about 2 cups)
12 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 large tomatoes, peeled and chopped (about 1-1/2 cups)
1 bunch fresh Italian parsley, trimmed and coursely chopped
2 teaspoons sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup light olive or vegetable oil
3 small Italian green peppers, seeded and cut in half

~Heat the over to 350 degrees
~Peel off lengthwise strips of eggplant to make a striped effect. Leave stems intact. Make a deep slit lengthwise along each eggplant (do NOT cut all the way through to the ends). Place eggplants in a bowl, sprinkle generously with salt, and cover them with cold water. Let them soak for about 20 minutes.
~Heat 1/2 cups of virgin olive oil in deep skillet over medium heat. Stir on onions, garlic, tomatoes, parsley, and sugar. Season with salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup of cold water and stir the mixture well. Lower the heat, cover the skillet, and simmer for about 12 minutes stirring occasionally until the onions are soft but not browned. Take cover off and let mixture cool.
~Rinse eggplants under cold running water. Gently squeeze out excess water and pat the eggplants dry with paper towels.
~ Heat 1 cup of light olive or vegetable oil in another deep skillet. Fry the eggplants until they're lightly browned all around, then remove from skillet with slotted spoon. Add the green peppers to the pan and fry them for about 2 minutes.
~ Place the eggplants side by side in a baking dish, open-side up. Sprinkle the insides with salt, then stuff each one with the onion mixture. Lay half a green pepper on top of each eggplant. Pour 1/2 cup cold water and the remaining virgin olive oil over eggplants. Cover the eggplants with parchment paper bake for about 40 minutes. Let the dish cool and serve at room temperature.

Turkish Style Baklava

Description:

This is a recipe for Turkish style baklava, which is very different from other Middle Eastern baklavas made with honey. I find that the honey is too rich and leaves a bitter aftertaste. This version is lighter and crispywith a soft nutty center. It is not difficult to make.

Tips:

~ After opening the package of phyllo dough, dampen a tea towel or some paper towels and leave them draped over the dough while you work. This will prevent itfrom drying out while you work.

~ You can find phyllo dough nowadays in most supermarkets in the refridgerated or freezer section. Be sure to check the date and get the freshest package possible.

~Baklava will keep for one week in a cool dry place. Personally I've never had a pan of baklava last that long, it's always eaten by the second day.

~Recipe is from Ozcan Ozan's "The Sultan's Kitchen", a Turkish cookbook and one of my all time favorites.

Ingredients:

Syrup:

2-1/2 cups cold water

3-1/2 cups sugar

2 tablespoons of lemon juice

3 cups walnuts

Ground Turkish pistachios for sprinkling (optional)

2 tablespoons sugar

1-1/2 cups clarified butter (see below)

2 packages phyllo dough, each containing 20 - 22 sheets of dough

Clarified butter: (You can use regular butter if you like; however, clarified butter lacks the impurities that cause butter to burn easily and turn black, and pastries made with clarified butter keep longer at room temperature.) To make 1-1/2 cups of clarified butter, melt a pound of butter in a saucepan over low heat until a white foam appears on thesurface. Skim and discard the foam. Slowly pour the clarified butterinto a bowl, leaving behind and discarding the milk solids that have collected at the bottom of the pan. OR use a baster to draw the clear butter up out of the pan.

Directions:~Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

~Tomake the syrup, combine the water and sugar in a medium saucepan. Boil the mixture for five minutes, then lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir the lemon juice into the syrup and let it cool.

~Place the walnuts and sugar in a food processor and process until medium ground (do not ground too finely). Set aside.

~Brush the insides of 14x18x1 inch baking pan all over with a little of the clarified butter. Place one sheet of dough in the pan. With a pastry brush, lightly brush the dough with a little of the butter. Continue layering the dough and brushing with butter until one package of dough is used. ~Spread the walnuts over the dough and lightly sprinkle it with water (or use a plant mister) to help the next layer of dough stick. Using the second package of dough, layer the phyllo over the walnuts, brushing each sheet with a little clarified butter. Trim the edges to fit neatly in the pan. Brush the top layer and edges with clarified butter.

~Using a sharp knife dipped in hot water, cut through the dough halfway down the height of the pan. To make 48 pieces, make 4 lengthwise cuts and 12 crosswise cuts.

~Bake the baklava in the center of the oven for 30 minutes. Lower the heat to 325 degrees and bake for an additional 30 minutes until the top is light gold. Remove the baklava from the oven and let sit for about 10 minutes (no more than that!) Recut the pastries along the lines all the way to the bottom of the pan and pour the cooled syrup evenly over the cutlines. Sprinkle the baklava with ground Turkish pistachios if desired and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

~Serving suggestion: Serve pieces of baklava with a scoop of vanilla ice cream (my Turkish friends would probably faint at the thought but it's VERY good).~Enjoy with a cup of tea, coffee, or better yet, a glass of Turkish tea.