Banana Berry Quick Bread Deliciousness (gfcf! or not!)

 There's something about fall that makes me want to bake all the time. We love quick breads in this family. I am a fan of any food i can sneak veggies in to so my kids will eat some and quick breads are good for that. like the chocolate zucchini bread i posted a while back. I also make pumpkin carrot zucchini muffins to die for, will be posting that one soon. Anyways, this one doesnt have any veggies in it (lol) but i had some bananas that were getting pretty brown and i didnt want to throw them away, so when you let your bananas get too ripe, make bread!

3 ripe bananas mashed
⅓ cup melted butter (i used earth balance coconut spread, so yum)
1 cup sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1½ cup flour (i used Bobs Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour)
2 cups berries, I  always have frozen berries in my freezer it seems. Not a bad thing! I like to use them in smoothies or for pancakes. For this recipe I did a mix of blueberries, raspberries and blackberries.

I was unsure as to how to proceed with my frozen berries ....should i defrost.....can i leave frozen....so i put the question out over FB -land and a few of my lovely lady friends responded, unanimously advising to defrost. Too much moisture otherwise while baking. Makes sense! I defrosted my berries in the micro then softly patted them with a paper towel to drain any excess liquid (thanks for the tip Colie!)

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
With a wooden spoon, mix butter into the mashed bananas in a large mixing bowl.
Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla.
Sprinkle the baking soda and salt over the mixture and mix in.
Add the flour, mix.
Add berries, mix.
Pour mixture into a greased and floured regular sized loaf pan.
Bake for about 1 hour.
Cool on a rack.
Remove from pan, slice and serve!

You know, i remembered just now that right before i put the pan in the oven i had sprinkled some sugar on top. My goal was to get a nice crust but it didnt quite turn out how i planned so dont try it. In the pic youll see the very top sort of raised up and this is why. Still tasted good though! 

Also, i was surprised it turned out so dark looking,but then i remembered when i mixed the berries in the batter i noticed it turning purple from the juices. I am sure if you used fresh berries and stirred gently that you would achieve a more golden color to your bread. Either way, it was yum. Super moist, and perfect with a cup of coffee. or if you're one of my birds...with a sippy of coconut/almond milk. :)

Nom!

A

Mommy stayed out too late last night Stir Fry (gfcf! or not!)

A few weekends ago i got to enjoy a ladies night out,
We drank too much, laughed a lot and stayed up way too late.
I had a blast!

The next day......not so much of a blast.

I was riding on about 2 1/2 hours of sleep and by the time i needed to start making dinner i had already used up my 2nd wind...3rd wind...4th wind.....you get the picture.

I needed to make something simple, and something that i could make utilizing what i had already in my fridge and pantry. Oh, and it needed to be gluten and dairy free of course, so the kiddos could nosh.

I had some chicken breasts that needed to be used. That along with fresh veggies, and some gluten free noodles, I managed to piece together a yummy stir fry.
After reading the label on the back of a packet of stir fry seasoning that i had in the pantry, I decided to season it myself.  (ingredients contained wheat, milk, soy , gluten and a list of other chemical craziness and non-food bad stuff)

I cooked my chicken separate from the veggies so as to get a proper saute on both and then mixed everything together with the cooked noodles.

1 package chicken breasts cut up into chunks
1/2 large onion diced
a couple cloves of garlic finely diced or smashed
salt
pepper
olive oil

1 large bunch of broccoli, cleaned and cut
a couple of carrots, sliced into thin little sticks
one large zucchini, chopped
More onion, about a 1/4 cup chopped.

1 box gluten/dairy and soy free noodles

Heat oil in a large pan. Cook up your chicken, 1/2 onion chopped and garlic making sure to season with salt and pepper to your liking until chicken is coked through and everything is nice and golden.

While the chicken is going, go ahead and saute your veggies and season to taste.

Boil your noodles to al dente.

When everything is done, combine in a big bowl and toss well.
Taste to make sure it doesnt need more salt, etc.

Pair with a side! I had a bunch of asparagus that i needed to use so i drizzled a little olive oil, sprinkled a little bit of kosher salt and some diced up garlic (one or two cloves, to your taste) threw it in the oven at about 375 degrees and roasted them up in about 10/15 minutes or so. Made a perfect side! I love asparagus and could totally have eaten the whole thing all by myself.

Daisy approved  :)

It was easy and delicious!
Plus I used up a bunch of stuff i had in the fridge that might have gotten thrown away anyways. Waste not! :)

Nom,

A