I was saving this..

Like I save nice pyjamas,new slippers..



I wanted to savor every minute because I knew I would like it..
It's the kind of book you keep..and I really do give most of my books away..
You will share..or would share..by buying another copy for the other person..
But you wouldn't give this one away.Well I can't..
I don't even know how long Molly has had her blog..I have read quite a few posts since I heard about this book..and enjoyed every one..
But they didn't prepare me for how much I would LOVE her book.. I am a little more than half way through..because I am reading it like I am eating a favorite food..savoring every chapter..enjoying every recipe...
I just finished the chapter w/ the Grotto Eggs recipe..
Mine had tears in them.
You cannot read this book if you have lost a beloved parent or two..and not become filled with warmth.
It evokes the memories you had. it makes you wish you wrote about your parent(s) like that:)
It made me happy I wrote a letter once to a radio station about my mother and she won "Mother Of The Year"one year at Mother's Day because of my childlike poem.
She was..over the moon:)

It makes you like Molly Wizenberg from the get go and want to make every recipe in her book..
I had made her tuna bouchons many months ago..

Last night I had to make the Banana Bread..Could be because of Nooschi's post too one day w/ the chocolate pouring over the cake:)

This one is polka dotted w/ chocolate..and crystallized ginger..one of my miracle foods.

My husband loved it..and I do too..



With our morning coffee..it was absolutely delightful.
I am so glad she shared all these recipes..



This would definitely be a cake I would bring to someone to share..

If you enjoy reading.. baking..cookbooks, chapters that are each a little book in themselves....and personal thoughts..you will LOVE this book!
If you enjoy writing about cooking and recipes and a bit of life in general to share here..you will love it even more.
5 stars for me.My highest rating.
I cannot wait to buy Ranch Dressing and make her dad's potato salad w/ caraway seeds.
The banana bread will always now be Molly Wizenberg's Amazing Recipe in my recipe file.

La Recette..

Banana Bread with Chocolate and Crystallized Ginger
From “A Homemade Life” p. 26 by Molly Wizenberg

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips (or a chopped up bar)
1/3 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger
2 large eggs
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup well-stirred whole-milk plain yogurt (not low or nonfat)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Set a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 350F. Grease a 9 by 5 loaf pan with cooking spray or butter.

In a small bowl, microwave the butter until just melted. (Be careful and do this over medium power in short burst because it can explode or splatter and that is a big mess.) Or melt it in the preheating oven. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the chocolate chips and crystallized ginger and whisk well to combine. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, lightly beat the eggs with a fork. Add the mashed banana, yogurt, melted butter, and vanilla and stir to mix well. Pour the banana mixture into the dry ingredients, and stir gently with a rubber spatula, scraping down the sides as needed, until just combined. Do not overmix. The batter with be thick and somewhat lumpy, just make sure all the flour has been incorporated. Scrape the batter into the loaf pan and smooth the top.

Bake into the loaf is a deep shade of golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 50 mins to an hour. If the loaf seems to be browning too quickly, tent with foil.

Cool the loaf in the pan on a wire rack for 5 mins. Then tip out onto the rack, and let it cool completely before slicing (if you can wait that long).

The loaf freezes well wrapped in plastic wrap and again in foil to protect from freezer burn


I have to add a funny anecdote...I mentioned to Jacques as we savored the bread.."I could see cinnamon sugar on this.. or w/ this" and he agreed.. when I googled the recipe..in lieu of typing it out w/ 2 fingers..my right index and my left middle finger..I first found the recipe w/ cinnamon sugar which isn't in my book:)

I smiled.And loved that too!