this sh*t is bananas, b-a-n-a-n-a-s!

banana cake with chocolate

i admit it. and it is so wrong on so many different levels. but i've got a problem. with rotting fruit and veggies. i always try to stock up my grocery cart with the good stuff from the produce aisle. but inevitably what i think i'm craving while i'm shopping ends up forlorn in the fruit bowl, pale and overripe, or shriveled up in the crisper. i have all good intentions, but i leave the house at 8am and usually don't get back until 9pm and i'm soooo bad about bringing food to work or school. i know that is just a poor excuse, but it's not like i'm intentional about this wanton wastefulness.

but to my defense, some things are just tricky! i always buy organic bananas. but they seem to ripen on a weirder schedule than conventional ones. it's like hard green ... green ... green ... soft brown! so here i am, stuck with three lonesome bananas, brown on the outside, mushy on the inside. but this time, i was not going to let them go to waste!!

many moons ago mr. mimi baked a banana bread for his work. it was just another one of his work-related creations but i found it scrumptious. of course at that time the kitchen was the last place you'd ever find me, unless you wanted a burnt pierogi for dinner (true story).

but now that i'm on a baking bonanza, i keep bugging him for that recipe. all i get is a pathetic "i don't remember" ... wahhh! i'm sure he could re-create it for me if he *tried* but i figure this one isn't worth fighting for. so i settle on searching around my google reader and see what i can find.


david lebovitz to the rescue with his banana cake. yes, that's cake, not bread. you can read all about the whole nomenclature issue and find his lovely recipe on his website. i followed his recipe, minus the espresso because i absolutely hate the taste and smell of coffea arabica. but trust me, it wasn't missing a thing! it didn't rise as well, because i was having trouble with the temp in my oven and kept opening/closing the door to adjust. but looks aren't everything!



ps: yes, that title is from gwen, and yes i did rock karaoke night with that song!