Banana Bread Bars with Brown Butter Frosting

Banana Bread Bars with Brown Butter Frosting

Ingredients:

Banana Bread Bars:

1-1/2 c. sugar

1 c. sour cream

1/2 c. butter, softened

2 eggs

1-3/4 (3 or 4) ripe bananas, mashed

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 c. all purpose flour

1 tsp. baking soda

3/4 tsp. salt

1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Brown Butter Frosting:

1/2 c. butter

4 c. powdered sugar

1-1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

3 tbsp. milk


Directions:

Heat oven to 375F. Grease and flour 15x10-inch jelly roll pan. For the bars, in a large bowl, beat together sugar, sour cream, butter, and eggs until creamy.Blend in bananas and vanilla extract. Add flour, baking soda, salt, and blend for 1 minute. Stir in walnuts.

Spread batter evenly into pan. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, for frosting, heat butter in a large saucepan over medium heat until boiling. Let the butter turn a delicate brown and remove from heat

Add powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk. Whisk together until smooth. Using a spatula, spread the brown butter frosting over the warm bars.

Ham & Cheese Pretzel Pinwheels

Ham & Cheese Pretzel Pinwheels

Ingredients:

2 cans refrigerated breadstick dough

4 cups hot water

1/2 cup baking soda

1 lb deli ham

1 lb cheddar cheese slices

3 tablespoons butter, melted

Coarse salt, such as kosher salt, pretzel salt, or sea salt, to top

Dijon or honey mustard


Directions:

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Separate the bread sticks and set aside. Using a pizza cutter, slice the cheddar cheese and ham to be the same width as the bread sticks. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk 1/2 cup baking soda into 4 cups hot water until it dissolves. The baking solution should be just slightly cloudy. Place a kitchen rag next to the bowl.

Dip a bread stick into the baking solution for 30 seconds. Make sure the entire bread stick has been dipped. Transfer to the kitchen towel to let any excess water drip off.

Layer the cheese and ham on top of the bread stick. Roll one end of the bread stick inward to create a spiral or pinwheel. Pinch the end of the bread stick to the side to seal. Place on the baking sheet and repeat until the baking sheet is full.

Bake until golden brown and puffed up, about 15 minutes. Tent the finished pretzels with foil to keep them warm. Repeat for the next batch.

Using a pastry brush, brush the butter onto the pretzels and sprinkle with salt.

Serve immediately with mustard to dip.