Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

*This is without the frosting

This is a sweet treat and a great way to use up your old bananas! GO Bananas!

1/2 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 Cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla
2 Cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup mashed ripe bananas


1. Preheat oven to 350*. Grease a 10 X15 inch jellyroll pan.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, then stir in the sour cream and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda and salt: stir into the batter. Finally, mix in the mashed banana. Spread evenly into a prepared pan.

3. Bake for 20 -25 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Allow bars to cool completely before frosting with the cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese frosting
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
3 1/2 cups of powder sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese, then one cup at a time add the powder sugar (don't loose count) and then add vanilla.

Sourdough

I went to an Enrichment activity that has changed the way I make breads, pancakes, and waffles! The man there has a starter that is 25 years old!! He has worked all my life on making great breads with this starter! Well, he shared it all with us, which gives it an amazing taste. Get a starter from someone or you can make your own.

STARTER

Here is a helpful site that will get the "dough" rolling for your starter.
http://www.io.com/~sjohn/sour.htm

BREAD

1 cup starter
5 1/2-6 cups flour
1 Tbs dry yeast
1 1/2 cups of water
3 Tbs. sugar
3 Tbs. butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Mix 2 1/2 cups flour and yeast in bowl. Heat water, sugar, butter and salt until butter melts and add to dry mix. Add starter and beat on low for 30 seconds scraping bowl then beat on high for 3 minutes. Combine 2 1/2 cups flour with baking soda and add to yeast mixture. Stir in remaining flour until dough is firm. Shape into a ball and place in greased bowl turning once cover with wrap or clean towel. Let double (45 minutes). Punch down and divide in half. Let sit 10 minutes and form each into a ball. Place on grease baking sheet, score crisscross with sharp knife. Cover. Let rise until double (30 minutes). Bake in oven at 375* for 30 minutes. Cool on wire racks (important because you don't want the extra moisture on the bottom).

This is the only bread that my girls will eat the crust with! We just love it, but don't make it too much or else it won't be so good when we have it. Store in bag or air tight container. Freeze one if can't eat both fast enough. Goes moldy in one week. This is what the final product should look like.

PANCAKES

Night Before
2 cups flour (wheat, white or both)
1 Cup warm water
1 cup milk
1/2 starter
Mix all together with wooden or rubber spoon, cover and let stand on counter top (not fridge)

In the Morning
2 Beaten eggs
Stir into batter then,
2 Tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp. baking soda
Mix together and fold into batter while griddle heats

For Waffles

Add 2 tbs veg oil to batter before adding sugar mixture.

CARE OF STARTER
1. Starter is water and flour only
2. Never use metal for mixing
3. Sweeten the pot every 2 weeks (save 1 tbs of starter and add equal amounts of flour and water)

*Thanks to Marty Townsend!!

Rachael's Fresh Salsa

This is one of my all time favorite recipes! Everything is too taste. So follow this recipe and add more things as you desire. I love the lime and garlic taste and go heavy on it. It is fresh so it doesn't keep more then 3 days, but I promise it should be gone in the first 2 days!

6-8 Roma Tomatoes
1 bundle of green onions <-- not white, makes the favor too strong
1 Jalapeno pepper
1-2 cloves of garlic
1/4 C fresh chopped cilantro <--- Cilantro is so cheap at the store (like $.50) and I usually use half the bunch
1-2 limes
1 tsp. vinegar
1 tsp of white sugar
salt and pepper

First on the side of your cutting board press or mince your garlic glove (start with one and add as needed) then sprinkle a 1/8 tsp of salt over the garlic and press together to make a paste almost. Let sit while chopping everything else. Finely chop tomatoes, onions, pepper (I only use half and without the sides to keep in mild, start mild and can always add more, but hard to take out) , and cilantro. Combine chopped ingredients into a medium mixing bowl. Now add your garlic paste mixture. Cut your lime in half and squeeze juice over the bowl of tomatoes. I use the whole lime, because I am a lime fanatic! Start with half and add more to taste (have corn chips handy). Add vinegar and mix all together. Add salt and pepper and few dashes here and there. TASTE and add more of what you like. Then rename salsa to _____'s Salsa (place your name or funny adjective in blank). Because when you made the salsa it is YOUR creation. Every batch is different!

*If you like it more smooth and less chunky put it through your processor or blender