the very best banana bread recipe

I really like banana bread, but I have a few problems with your standard banana bread: First, it can be kind of tough, and if I'm going to eat a quickbread I want it to have a very soft, cakey texture. Second, to get the inside cooked through perfectly you have to cook it a long time, so the outer edges get kind of dry and dark. If you cook it so the edges are perfect, the inside is still mushy, which is just gross. Third, I think banana bread really needs chocolate chips to be perfectly delicious, but I think that about lots of things, so I'm ok if you disagree with me on that. The first two issues, however, are indisputable. *wink*

So I've made lots of banana bread recipes, and I've finally hit on the perfect one. It's just plain wonderful. The bread is much lighter in color than most banana breads I've tried, and it's much lighter and softer in texture as well. However, in addition to a great recipe, there's one secret I've found that turns a really good banana bread into absolutely perfect banana bread. Here it is:

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goldenrod {have extra hardboiled eggs on hand?}

Growing up, we had creamed eggs and toast (goldenrod) for breakfast every Easter morning. My parents scheduled the Easter "festivities" like dying eggs or having an egg hunt for earlier in the week leading up to Easter and then reserved Easter day for a more religious observance of the holiday. This meant that my sisters and I were always a little bummed the Easter bunny hadn't visited* Sunday morning, but at least we knew we'd have a fantastic breakfast (which was sometimes pretty colorful if the any of the egg dye had snuck past cracks in the shells and colored the eggs themselves).

I turn to this recipe anytime I need a super easy dinner I know all my kids will eat without complaint. It's simple and old fashioned, quick and easy, and it just tastes good. (Keep reading for the recipe.)

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spinach & orange smoothie recipes {+ how to freeze oranges for smoothies}

You may have noticed by now that most of the recipes I share aren't exactly healthy. There's chocolate cookies with caramel cream and Oreo Madness and let's not forgot the chocolate peanut butter brownie mousse. Of course, I have a few bread recipes and some main dish recipes mixed up in there, but my recipe section is fairly dominated by the tasty and fattening. So I'm sure you're all shocked that today I'm sharing a tasty and healthy recipe or two. One of them even has spinach in it! I know, crazy times.

We've recently purchased a Blendtec blender and have made our foray into the land of green smoothies. I was skeptical, as I always am about anything that's either 1) very healthy, or 2) supposed to change my life. And I'm not sure my life has actually changed, but I do have to say that my own special green smoothie, complete with a few secret ingrediets, is very, very good. I don't feel like I'm forcing myself to eat vegetables, and I'm fairly impressed with the amount of spinach I've consumed in the past week. And I like being impressed with myself. (Keep reading for two smoothie recipes - Popeye's Green Orange Dream and Paradise Orange Dream - as well as tips of freezing oranges for smoothies)

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soft sugar cookies with cream cheese frosting (delish!)

These cookies were a family tradition growing up - my dad LOVES them, so my mom always made them at Easter. And Christmas. And Halloween. And Dad's birthday. Oh - and Valentine's Day. And pretty much any other holiday we had an appropriate cookie cutter for. They're soft and cakey with a rich cream cheese frosting that pretty much everybody loves - it's way better than the tasteless "royal" icing that's often used on top of sugar cookies or the pasty pink frosting on those store bought ones. (Keep reading for printable recipe card.)

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Daisy Braid Bread {fantastic beginner bread recipe!}

So I could go on and on about how wonderful this bread is and why you need to make it right away, but I decided to sum up instead:

1. It's a great beginner's bread. It's the first bread I ever made - in home ec in 8th grade. If all us 8th graders could make it, you can too.
2. It rises in the fridge, meaning you don't have to be around all afternoon to have this bread hot with dinner. Spend about 1/2 an hour in the morning (or the night before, or the morning before) mixing it up and shaping, then pop it in the fridge for 2-48 hours. Then bake whenever you want for piping hot bread.
3. It's delish. Seriously. It's a tiny bit sweet and a tiny bit rich - not enough to make it taste like a sweet bread, but enough to make it one of the more delicious white breads you've ever tasted. 
4. It's gorgeous. It looks like it took a lot more work than it actually does, and it impresses people (not that I care about stuff like that).

Convinced yet? I certainly hope so. (Keep reading for recipe, photos, and tips.)

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STL: host a casual morning get-together + make ahead casserole recipe

Hi guys! It's my turn this week to Share The Love by giving you an idea for connecting with the important people in your life: why not turn a cold, lonely, boring morning at home with the kids into a chance to get together with some other people who are also having a cold, lonely, boring morning? It's really easy (and fun!) to host a simple morning get-together where you invite friends, neighbors, or parents of your kids' friends to come over and eat, chat, and let the kids play together for a few hours. If we're all stuck inside because it's so cold, we might as well be stuck inside together, right? (Keep reading for tips and casserole recipe.)

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STL: peanut butter and chocolate hearts

Remember, the Share the Love series starts on Monday, where guest posters and I will be sharing ideas for projects that will help you connect with the important people in your life during this chilly and sometimes lonely time of year. To kick things off I wanted to show you a fun recipe you can make with even your littlest kids that's perfect for this time of year: chocolate covered peanut butter hearts.

These are a beauty of a treat: they're extremely easy to make and taste like a decadent Reese's PB cup. We made our hearts pretty big, so we've been sharing slices of them. I keep cutting off just a little bite, then coming back for more. (Keep reading for recipe + tutorial!)

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easy triple layer fudge {for Valentine's day}

I know, I know, it's still a month until Valentine's Day. But I have a blog series starting next week that will run all the way through V-Day (more info on the series coming Friday!) and so I won't have another chance to post this fun little fudge recipe, so here you go. The basic recipe comes from my mother-in-law's friend, and it's a winner. So easy a four year old could just about make it on his own...which mine nearly did. No need to time anything, or use a candy thermometer, or anything like that. Just one pot and about 15 minutes (plus chill time!) and you've got a pan of creamy, delicious fudge. And with one easy modification you can make triple layer fudge with a pink top for Valentine's Day, or a green top for St. Pattie's Day, or even a blue top for Smurf day. Or something like that. Doesn't it look delish?

Perfectly creamy and incredibly easy. (Keep reading for the recipe.)

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