One Banana = Two Happy Kids

If you had one over-ripe banana and a spare 30 minutes, you too could make these delicious banana muffins!

There's nothing like Google to put a recipe at your fingertips and that's exactly how I created a little breakfast magic this morning.  "One banana muffins" is what I typed into the search bar and a plethora of recipes were presented. Gosh that was easy!

When the kids awoke to the smell of fresh banana, chocolate chip muffins I felt like mother of the year! Of course that was a fleeting moment when they realized lunch kits were already packed with "lame" and school WASN'T cancelled on account of the 20cm of snow that fell overnight.  But, I'll take the applause when I can get it and today, was muffin magic.

Simple Soup

When winter weather hits and you are tempted to hibernate, isn't it a wonderful and comforting thing to have homemade soup?

I made this soup as a hearty and salt-free gift for my father. He, like so many others, watches his sodium intake carefully. Have you ever read the label of an inexpensive can of soup? 35% or more of your daily sodium requirement in one serving! And when you become conscious of your sodium intake anything over-flavoured with salt leaves your mouth dry and gasping for alternatives. That's why homemade soup, started with love and quality ingredients is always far superior.

I chose to start this soup with a ribeye steak. Ribeye is very tender and fairly fatty. It is not a typical tough soup or stew cut of beef. I selected it so that every bite of steak was a reward, not just a chewy chunk. It was the star of the show, as it should be.

The broth was favoured with two types of onions, celery, garlic and carrots. I used a variety of coarse and fresh peppers to add a bit of spice. Later I added soaked organic barley.

This beef barley soup, served with fresh rolls or rye bread could be the perfect answer to the winter chill you are feeling.