Baking Adventure- Banana Cake

Today's cooking recipe comes from Martha Stewart's baking cook book. This is the second time I have made banana cake. Please note that all these pictures come from the second bake experiment.





This time I took my time and sifted the flower into the batter slowly batch by batch. I doubled the recipe for my mom, who asked me to make her a loaf when I borrowed some cook ware.

Here's what I learned:

Experiment #1


What started me on the path to making banana bread is that my husband, Adym wanted me to
make it for his friend, Brhon. He is an ex chief. And for the life of me can not understand why he doesn't like any kind of cheese frosting! So I made his with butter cream icing. On a side note: The recipe calls for an expensive cheese frosting. You don't have to use what the recipe calls for in a case like this. So I used a cream cheese frosting instead.

After tasting both versions, a cheese frosting is the best choice for banana cake. It really compliments the flavor of the banana. The buttercream is too strong of a taste for the cake.
To me, it seemed like all I could taste was butter and sweetness from the cake.

I followed Martha's recipe exactly. The bananas were so ripe I could really taste it in the batter. And when I got it out of the oven, It was excellent. Martha Stewart tells you to refridgerate your cake because of the cream cheese frosting. The cake got hard sitting in the fridge. So I had to pour a bit of milk on it and microwave it for 20- 30 seconds to regain it's moistness prior to serving.

I didn't throw away my cake scraps. (I leveled the cake and prepped it for frosting) I decide to leave it out in tupperware containers. That stayed good for a week. We ate it all.

I had left over bananas that were becoming too ripe so I froze them for the next run.

Experiment #2

This time I defrosted bananas under warm running water. Then under the running water rub the skins off and dispose of them. That was the best method I found to get the skin off.
What I did different this time was that I put the peeled bananas in a large plastic zip lock bag to mash them. This was much easier for me than mashing it in a bowl. If you have a meat tenderizer, this would be helpful in mashing the bananas.

The bananas I froze seemed to shrink in size so I don't recommend using this method.
Also, my bananas were not ripe enough this time. So I did not get the same flavor in my bread.
When I buy bananas at the grocery store they are really yellow with green at the ends. The recipe calls for really ripe bananas. So next time I will wait three days prior to making banana cake. Why? You may ask. Because the riper the bananas, the higher the sugar content which also changes the flavor of the banana.

I have made banana cake but not banana bread. I honestly don't know the difference yet.
But I don't like the nuts in banana bread so that's why I aim more twoards the cake.

If you are low on tupperware or don't want to give away your plastic containers, you can always wrap your goods like this. (see image below)

I first wrapped my cake in saran wrap. Then in parchment paper. A beautiful bow to top it off. I am sure my mom will be pleased. I'll let you know what she says in my next post. I know my dad, brother and his boys will eat it. But I think they don't dig bows like my mom and I do. :)

Baking Adventure- Meringue Cookies

The first time I tried to hand whip it. Let me tell you this is pure torture.
If you are interested in building up the muscles in your arm this is the way to go.
Else, you are better off going with an electric mixer.

If you ever watch Alton Brown on the Food network I am sure he can tell you what to use. But I have to admit I went to Walmart and bought the cheapest mixer my pocket could afford and it was seven bucks. Yey!

Learning from my meringue cookie mistakes

Tools: Stainless Steel Bowl, electric mixer, Pam butter flavored cooking spray, cookie sheet, piping bag
Recipe called for: Sugar, egg whites, vanilla extract (or you can use grand mariner), Cream of tartar

Meringue Cooking experiment #1


I used someone’s recipe online. It was a disaster. Plus, I tried to whip my egg whites into shape by hand. Don’t do it as I mentioned earlier. I ran out of patience and my arm got so tired. I had to take a break, which is a bad idea when trying to whip egg whites.

Why? Because you need to whip continuously to increase the air pockets in the egg whites. Taking a break will cause the air bubbles to pop when you take a break. Thus, undoing all your hard work.

So basically, my mistake was taking a break in the middle of whipping the egg whites.

During this same session I tried again but I was so tired (it was late saturday night) that I spooned my batter into the cupcake tins. It took forever to cook, that I threw them away.


Meringue Cooking experiment #2

Cooking with a recipe is not a new thing to me. But when you are in a family of chiefs they memorize everything. Once you learn “your” recipe, you will have it memorized and it will become second nature to you. That’s when you have mastered it.

It is an experience to finally find out which recipe you like best.
If you realize that the recipe you like doesn’t exist, you have to create it for yourself. Luckily I didn’t have to make up my own recipe with the Meringue Cookies.

Still using the first recipe, I put my meringue in my piping bag with no end on it.
I sprayed pam on my cookie sheet. Wiped it down with a paper towel as I learned in my baking class. Filled the piping bag and piped my merainge into sprials no larger than a small sized cookie. No larger than three inches in diameter works best for me. I put meringue in the oven. My oven was set to 350 degrees as the recipe called for. The recipe said to cook it for 15mins.

They were browning. My husband is worried that I would burn them as he is my official taste tester. So I was in a scramble. I thought to myself who is well known for baked goods? Martha Stewart. So from my cook book library I grabbed Martha Stewart’s baking cook book. I adjusted the oven to 150 to cook for one hour and thirty minuets as Martha says. We managed to save my meringues but they were not professional.

What the recipe may not tell you when you make meringue cookies.
The center is a bit chewy when you take it out. When you bite it off you can feel the sugar start to cool off. When your cookies are completely cooled, they will be consistently crispy all the way through.

Meringue Cooking experiment #3

Now that I had the right recipe I thought I have it memorized by heart.
But my biggest mistake here is that I put twice as much sugar as the recipe called for. Thus, it took twice as long to whip and twice as long to bake. I did not use grand mariner this time. I used pure vanilla extract.

I have to say they came out beautiful! The cookies were extra sweet but very delicious.

Take it or leave it: Suggestions

Cooking for the first time. Get to know your kitchen

I used to have access to my parents professional kitchen where everything cooked evenly. You could bake on all three shelves at one time and the temperature remained consistent. I can still go over there and cook when ever I want but I love to stink my apartment up with the smell of baked goods.

If you are experienced in your kitchen, you may want to test your oven temperatures. A good investment would be to get an electric food thermometer and an oven thermometer.

I am an apartment dweller, so my oven doesn’t cook evenly. I have to place everything in the middle rack for everything to cook consistently. For the first time I try out a new recipie, I have to test the temperature and probably fail a few times. For instance, I preheat the oven on 350, put the thermometer on the each rack and record the thermometer temperature. Then every time I bake, I know how much to subtract from each rack. I honestly don’t sit and do the math each time. But I know how to gage it. Always keep a close watch on your food to make it yum and not burnt.

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Reading recipes and prepare ingredients. Taste the sugar to see if it’s salt

When you bring home ingredients from the store, label everything and put it away. Clean your kitchen area. If you like to use antibacterial wipes or spray, follow it up with a paper towel wipe thrice. Two water wipes and one dry towel to get the access water. Cookies that taste like soap are cookies worthy for the trash can.

Since most of the recipes I have been cooking are not committed to memory,
I do the following:

First I read the recipe all the way through. Grab all my ingredients. Check expiration dates. (If you cook all the time chances are you won’t need to do this. But I believe in freshness and it has become a habit to me to check all expiration dates prior to cooking.) At this point if I don’t have the ingredient I can rush to the store to get it. In the past I’d start cooking and in the middle of whipping I’d realize I didn’t have something. So it’s better to check your ingredient supply before you take any ingredients out to cook. You could have a disaster having to run to the store mid cook.

After having all my ingredients out on the table, I pre-measure everything over small bowls. Then place them into small bowls. (My husband likes to call them monkey bowls.) That way if you spill it, you don’t ruin the whole mix. You can put it back in the bag or container and measure again. I know it sounds like a luxury to have to use all these dishes but it can be a time saver in the end.
And lastly, if you don’t know what it is- sugar or salt. Taste it!

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Clean as you go.

When I cook, I don’t like to clean one big mess at the end. So I keep paper towels near by and a trash bag. This trash bag is a clean plastic bag just for the trash I create during cooking. I recommend using the trash bag or a big bowl because it keeps your work station sanitary without having to reach for your dirty kitchen trash can. I like to wipe my work area often while I cook so I just toss it into the
temporary refuge container. Some professional cooking counters have holes in them where a trash can lies underneath. This allows the cook to keep their station clean and free of clutter. It is also sanitary because the cook doesn’t have to touch or be near a dirty trash can.

When I am done with a monkey bowl I throw it immediately into the sink. They stack up easily so it saves space in my sink. When I have the food in the oven, I start filling up my dishwasher and preparing for the next step in my cooking.
For me, this is usually wiping down the counter and getting cooling racks and frosting tools.

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Fat cook. Always taste before you serve

Everything you serve should be tasted as you cook and before you serve it. This will be the key to your cooking reputation.

When you are cooking over the stove it is easy to cook as you go. It is harder to do that when you are baking. But my rule of thumb is to smell the batter and if you bake with pasteurized eggs, taste the batter. However, you can’t taste dough so this will be one that you will have to taste before you serving.

My rule of thumb is to have one other person (my cooking assistant –my husband) help taste my food prior to serving. Nothing leaves my home with out a taste test. So every one that tastes my food thinks that everything I cook is really good! But I have to admit they taste the result of what I have learned from my mistakes.

Previous weeks to this date, I have made a caramelized banana cake, banana cream pie, truffles, cheese soufflé and meringue cookies.
These items turned out marvelously, but I forgot to get pictures.
When I get another chance to bake it again I will post it on my blog.

Young pallet

I come from a family of restaurateurs. Food and music has been in my life since I was a little girl. When I was younger, I wanted to be a singer and entertainer. But as with adults like me, our ideals change and so do we. Music writing will always be in my life but food nourishes me and keeps me alive.

My food journey began when I was little in New York having the opportunity to fill my pallet with the best gourmet food. My parents had a Chinese & Vietnamese restaurant in China Town with a family friend. But it didn’t work out.

When we lived in New York, we visited Houston, TX to visit my uncle and cousins. My cousins were working at the first Kim Son restaurant. It was a tiny restaurant off of I45. Now Kim Son has several chains and a published cook book. My uncle and cousins invited my dad to come to Houston to open a family business called King Food. It’s really located in Webster, Texas - which is on the outskirts of Houston. I tagged along with my mom and dad at the restaurant. As early as 12 years old I begged my family to let me work. I wanted to work because it seemed like fun.
My uncle gave me 25 cents for each chair I pushed in after the lunch rush. I enjoyed working closely with my family. When I finally reach 15 I poured tea and bussed tables.

During the summertime I spent hanging out with my brother, sister and cousins. I have to say that I really didn't know what a real piping bag or a cake leveler was until my cousin Hanh introduced me to the world of cake decorating. Her mom and dad let her take a cake decorating class at her local arts and crafts store (Michaels). You pay a very agreeable wholesale price on cake decorating supplies and learn the tricks of the trade.


One night Hanh made a professional birthday cake in her kitchen. She pulled out her tools. Baked a cake from scratch. It was a life changing moment for me. Glorious, I tell you.
Now I have my own cake decorating set. Not as nice I admit. But it will do for now.

In my teens I waited tables at King Food after school. After eleven years at King Food my parents decided it was time to open their own place. So now they have Thanh Phuong Vietnamese and Chinese Restaurant in Pearland, TX.

Not too long ago I admitted to my husband I wanted to open a bakery/cafe some day.
Just recently, I took a baking class with Hanh at Lee Leeds cooking school. It was an awsome
fun day. It re-sparked my ignition and made me want to bake again.

Food being an essential part of my life, this blog will be about places I have eaten and also about things I have cooked or baked. Some day I would love to open my own bakery and be a well known food critic. Here’s my practice for now.