Banana Bread Granola

This Banana Bread Granola has all the warm comforting flavors of my favorite banana bread recipe (the one right here on Simply Recipes!), but it’s a little more suitable for weekday breakfasts.
The brown butter and brown sugar are perfectly matched with toasty oats and walnuts.
But the real secret to this granola’s magic is how the diced bananas get caramelized and chewy after a long slow cook in the oven. It’s the perfect texture to contrast the crunch of oats and nuts.
The story of how I met Elise is a funny one. We were in Austin for a conference and Elise was sitting with a few people I knew in the hotel lobby. There were no seats, so I just plopped down on a sofa arm near my friend. Elise looked over and introduced herself, and I blurted out, “Omygosh I love your site.” I think I avoided full fangirl-dom, but barely.
Flash forward a few years, and now we live just a couple of miles apart. We’ve shared meals, baked muffins, seen a fantastic concert, and even spoken on a panel together. When Elise proposed that I start writing for Simply Recipes, I didn’t even have to think about my answer. Yes. Yes. Yes.
Elise asked me to start thinking of fun and interesting granola recipes to share with you, and my brain went into overdrive. Granola is something I make often and the combinations are virtually endless.
I think it’s pretty fitting that we decided on Banana Bread Granola, considering Elise’s banana bread was one of the first recipes I ever made from this site. So, in a nod to the most popular thing on Simply Recipes and to one of my favorite treats, please enjoy this brown butter banana bread granola.

Banana Bread Granola Recipe

I call for raw walnuts because they toast in the oven along with the granola, and nuts that have already been toasted can burn. If you can’t find raw walnuts, you can sub raw almonds or pecans, or simply add toasted walnuts in the last 10 minutes of cooking.
If you like your granola in big clusters, spread the granola in a single, even layer on the baking sheets and do not stir during baking. This way, the granola will bake into one solid piece and you can break it up to clusters once cool.
You can store this granola in airtight containers for about a week, though it rarely lasts so long in our house.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup unsalted butter (If using salted butter, taste your mixture before adding salt)


• 1/3 cup lightly packed light brown sugar


• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract


• 1 tablespoon water


• 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (Certified gluten-free, if needed)


• 3/4 cup chopped raw walnuts (See recipe notes)


• 1/4 cup chia seeds


• 1 tablespoon cinnamon


• 1/2 teaspoon salt


• 2 medium ripe bananas, diced

Read More: Banana Bread Granola

.
.
.

Shrimp, Lemon, Spinach Linguine

The concept is simple. Sauté shrimp with shallots, garlic, lemon, and toss with spinach and linguine. Pretty straightforward, right?
Here’s where it gets interesting. Instead of just squeezing some lemon juice over the pasta, or grating lemon zest, we are sautéing thin slices of lemon until they are well browned and caramelized. Those sautéed lemons slices get minced and added to everything else.
The browned lemon bits bring zippy bursts of roasted lemony flavor to the dish, providing a wonderful accent to the shrimp, spinach, and linguine.
Try it, you’ll see! Just make sure the lemon is very thinly sliced and that you sauté it long enough to get thorough browning.

Shrimp, Lemon, Spinach Linguine Recipe

Ingredients

• 8 ounces linguine pasta


• Salt


• 3 Tbsp olive oil


• 1 whole lemon, quartered lengthwise then thinly sliced, seeds removed


• 1/2 cup sliced shallots


• 1 Tbsp minced garlic


• 1 pound peeled, deveined 26-30 count shrimp


• 5 ounces baby spinach leaves


• 1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese


• Freshly ground black pepper

Read More: Shrimp, Lemon, Spinach Linguine

.
.
.

Carnitas

Enter any Mexican taqueria in California and you’ll find carnitas on the menu, usually pork butt (the shoulder roast) braised first, pulled apart, and then roasted on high heat to caramelize.
This is my father’s favorite recipe for pork carnitas which we put into fresh tortillas for tacos, with fresh tomato salsa. I think I could eat this everyday for a week and not get tired of it.

Carnitas Recipe

Ingredients

• 4 pounds boned pork shoulder, cut into large cubes (remove any large chunks of excess fat, but do not remove all the fat or you'll have dry, unflavorful carnitas)


• 1 quart beef broth


• 2 cups chunky tomato salsa either prepared or homemade


• Water


• Salt


• 2 cups fresh tomato salsa (pico de gallo)


• 16-24 corn tortillas

Read More: Carnitas

.
.
.

Vanilla Frappe Macarons

Let’s see mornings in a new light with Nespresso VertuoLine Breakfast Coffees, Solelio and Giornio and some breakfast cookies.

A-yup. Breakfast cookies by way of French Toast Macarons and Vanilla Frappe Macarons.

Admittedly, most days I will hurriedly down a few scrambled eggs and then it’s off to start a day of rushed madness. But lately, I’m seeing mornings in a new light. To help me along with that are these breakfast dessert macarons and Nespresso VertuoLine Breakfast Coffees, Solelio and Giornio to go with them.

I’ve decided waking up and thinking about all one-hundred and elevent-y! things that need to be complete before 4pm while sipping my coffee is completely non-sensical. Not only that, it gets me reeling down the path of wanting to ignore emails because after that one-hundred and elevent-y to-do list is probably another few dozen emails of missed deadlines inquiries. That, friends, is the awful truth of it.
Thank gawd for the little pleasures in life like morning coffee and cookies. If you are a regular reader around here, then you know I’ve been a long time fan and partner of Nespresso. Their new VertuoLine Breakfast Coffees, Solelio and Giornio are my new go-to blends. The Solelio has red fruity notes, while Giornio has white floral notes—both are light and medium in roast.

What really makes this coffee shine is that Nespresso’s coffees and espressos are topped with a silky and generous layer of naturally-formed crema—a sign of superior, high quality coffee. And if you are a coffee and espresso drinker like me, then you will love how the VertuoLine Evoluo machine brews both large-cup coffee and authentic espresso with one easy touch of a button. But foam—where is the foam to this at-home barista machine you ask? No worries there, because Nespresso has you covered with its Aeroccino4 milk frother, which helps you turn hot or cold milk into barista-worthy foam.
Look at how airy and tight that foam is.

Beyond that, Nespresso makes it easy to recycle the 100% aluminum capsules with a pre-paid Nespresso UPS bag, so go ahead and indulge in some Nespresso and don’t forget the breakfast cookies to go with it!
**This post was created in connection with my appointment as a Nespresso participant.

Vanilla Frappe Macarons

Ingredients:

Macaron Shells

• 60g almond meal


• 120g confectioner's sugar


• 1 tablespoon vanilla powder


• 20g granulated sugar


• 60g egg whites (about 2 eggs)


• 2 tablespoons vanilla seed powder (optional)

Filling

• 55g white chocolate


• 90g butter room temperature.


• 30g confectioner's sugar


• 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste

Read More: Vanilla Frappe Macarons

.
.
.

French Toast Casserole

With this French toast casserole, you skip the hassle of standing by the stove and pan-frying each individual slice of French toast.

Instead, you just throw everything into a dish and let the oven do the work! You can even assemble the casserole the night before and bake it the next morning.

You still get all the best parts of a slice of French toast, but with far less effort: soft and custardy middles, cinnamon-infused edges, plus an extra-crunchy toasted topping.

For this French toast casserole, you are going to need a fairly large loaf of bread – enough to make about 10 cups once cubed. Use any good-quality loaf, like a French loaf, sourdough, ciabatta, or challah. I actually really liked the sourdough bread because the slight sour taste helped balance out the sweetness of everything else.

Leave the crusts on the bread since this adds some good, crunchy texture to the casserole!
I also added some orange zest and dried cranberries to my version to brighten up the flavors. You can leave these out if you want, or add your own favorite dried fruits to the casserole!

By the way, those extra-crunchy top pieces are like cinnamon and sugar croutons. As I was testing this recipe, I kept picking them from the top and leaving the bottom for my husband. Shh…don’t tell anyone.

French Toast Casserole Recipe

Make-ahead instructions: Assemble the casserole through Step 4, cover well, and refrigerate overnight. The next day, uncover, drizzle the casserole with the topping, and bake. Baking time will be slightly longer.
This casserole reheats well, though the chunks of bread on the top will gradually lose some crunch. The best way to reheat it is to bake it in the oven at 350F for 10 to 15 minutes to warm through and re-crisp the top.

Ingredients

For the casserole:

• 1 large loaf good-quality French loaf, sourdough, ciabatta, or challah (enough to yield 10 cups of chunks of bread)
• 1/2 cup (45g) chopped pecans
• 5 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk
• 1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
• Zest from one medium orange (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

For the topping:

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 3 tablespoons (40g) dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Optional toppings for serving:

• Dried cranberries
• Powdered sugar
• Maple syrup

Read More: French Toast Casserole

.
.
.

Easy Sesame Noodles

These Easy Sesame Noodles are a wonderful side dish. For such a simple side dish, they have a lot of delicious flavor packed in and are sure to be a hit at the dinner table!

Now that I am out of my first trimester and have entered the blissful second trimester, I am slowly able to eat and enjoy a variety of food again. I am so happy about it!

One genre of food I don’t make often enough is Asian cuisine. My husband adores Asian food. He loves the bold flavors and often requests that we go out for some or that I attempt to make it homemade. The unfortunate thing that I realized a couple weeks ago, is that this type of food is lacking on my blog and I intend to change that! So be on the look out for some yummy recipes coming your way this year :)

These noodles were beyond simple to whip up and it packed with flavor. This makes a wonderful side dish and goes perfectly with stir fry. We love these noodles and I am sure you will too! If you are looking for an easy, quick and tasty side for your next meal, consider giving this a try! It is a winner at our house!

Easy Sesame Noodles

These Easy Sesame Noodles are a wonderful side dish. For such a simple side dish, they have a lot of delicious flavor packed in and are sure to be a hit at the dinner table!

Ingredients

• 12 ounce stir fry noodles, cooked and drained
• ¼ cup Soy Sauce, I prefer reduced sodium
• 2½ Tablespoons sugar
• 2 Tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• 4 Tablespoons Sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon Hot Chili Oil
• 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• ¼ cup green onions, sliced
• 2 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds

Read More: Easy Sesame Noodles

.
.
.

Paleo Chicken Adobo

Do you know the Filipino dish Chicken Adobo? I can’t even say the words without my mouth watering.
This one-pot recipe calls for simmering chicken in a tangy, vinegar-based sauce, which I’ve riffed to make gluten-free and Paleo. It’s a very tasty spin on your typical weeknight chicken dinner that everyone can enjoy!
Chicken adobo is an extremely popular dish from the Philippines made with meat cooked in vinegar and soy sauce – this much is generally agreed upon. From there, ingredients and opinions vary widely. There are 7,000 islands in the Philippines, and on each one, every lola (grandmother) and tita (auntie) has their own recipe.
I first discovered chicken adobo as a child. I did not like meat, and my mom was constantly trying to find ways to get me to eat it. What I did like was anything sour – including vinegar – so my mom thought to try chicken adobo. I loved it and it became a staple in our house.
When I had to go gluten-free in 2012, I began adapting some of my childhood dishes to be gluten-free, including this chicken adobo. The only big change I had to make to the recipe was to switch out the soy sauce for tamari, which is soy sauce fermented without wheat. It has a deeper and richer flavor than soy sauce.

When I want to make a Paleo version, I just swap the soy sauce or tamari for coconut aminos, made from fermented coconut sap. This ingredient has a flavor is similar to light soy sauce and tastes a little sweet.
I also add a little fish sauce to my version. Fish sauce has a powerfully pungent aroma, so don’t be scared when you open the bottle! It adds a nice background savory flavor that brings the whole dish together.
When developing my gluten-free and Paleo recipes, I consulted with my sister-in-law to make sure I was on the right track. She is from the Philippines and my brother says she makes THE BEST adobo. My final recipe tastes very similar to hers, so I’m feeling pretty good about it!
At my house, we love to eat our chicken adobo over coconut rice or garlic fried rice, but it’s also great over plain steamed rice or even mashed potatoes. Sometimes I like to make some extra sauce to eat with veggies. If you choose to do that, just make sure to use a big enough pot.

Paleo Chicken Adobo Recipe

You can also buy whole chicken legs and separate them yourself into drumsticks and thighs. You want 3 to 3 1/2 pounds of total meat.

Ingredients

• 4 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin on (about 1 1/2 pounds)


• 4 chicken drumsticks (about 1 1/2 pounds)


• 3/4 cup tamari or coconut aminos (or low-sodium soy sauce, if you don't need this to be gluten-free!)


• 3/4 cup white wine vinegar


• 1 tablespoon fish sauce


• 1 tablespoon coconut sugar, honey, or dark brown sugar


• 1/2 tablespoon coconut oil


• 2 tablespoons fresh grated ginger


• 2 bay leaves (dried, not fresh)


• 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns


• 3 cloves garlic


• 1/4 teaspoons salt (optional)


• 1/2 teaspoon fine ground pepper


• Coconut rice or plain steamed rice, to serve

Read More: Paleo Chicken Adobo

.
.
.