Chocolate Banana Cardamom Cake

So call me competitive... I heard of a girl who made a Banana Cardamom cake, and I had to admit, it was a good idea. The only problem was: I didn't come up with it first! So, what could I do but improve upon her idea? Add a little chocolate and- voila! Genius!

Ingredients

Milk Chocolate Cake Mix (I used Duncan Hines)
3 eggs
1/2 cup MINUS 1 Tbsp mashed ripe banana
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp cardamom powder
1 1/4 C water
(follow the directions on the cake mix box, but exchange all but 1 Tbsp of the oil for banana. Ex: if your cake mix says to use 1/3 C oil, then use 1/3 C mashed banana, minus 1 Tbsp, and 1 Tbsp oil)
chocolate frosting
1/4 c pecans, chopped


Directions

1. Mash the banana well, and measure out 1/2 c. Then take 1 Tbsp out and discard.

2. Put all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Don't beat eggs first. Mix really well- an electric hand mixer works best.

3. Grease and flour 2- 9 inch cake pans (I LOVE the new Pam cooking spray with flour already added)

4. Pour the batter in the pans and follow the baking directions for your cake mix. I baked mine in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, if your pecans are not toasted, toast the pieces lightly for a few minutes over a low-medium flame in a saute pan.

6. Take the cake out when a toothpick comes out clean in the middle.

7. When FULLY COOLED, frost the cake with the chocolate frosting.

8. Sprinkle the top with pecans.

This cake has a unique flavor because of the cardamom, and the banana actually makes the cake really moist. It also replaces over 600 calories of oil with about 120 calories of banana, so it's healthy to boot!

This would be an impressive dessert to serve to your worldly, sophisticated guests!

Lavender Brownies

Lavender is one of my favorite herbs. The smell is so relaxing, and the blossoms are such a delightful light purple color, even when dried.

But lavender is also a great culinary item. It does taste slightly flowery, but also has a bit of a minty, menthol flavor as well, which is much less striking than its scent.


One of my favorite combos is lavender and dark chocolate, so the other night I thought, why not brownies?

And they were delicious! I just added about 1 tsp dried lavender flowers, chopped, to my store-bought dark chocolate brownie mix, and voila! A fresh, unique, exotic flavor. IN CHOCOLATE!

*note: use only lavender flowers meant for cooking, not for potpourri, as this is usually scented with extra fragrance. Check out your local health food store to see if they stock bulk herbs.

Guest Basket

We were recently charmed with a visit from a very close friend, and I wanted more than anything to show her how happy we were to have her in our home.

If we had an extra bedroom, I would have laid out some clean linens, presented a simple, fresh vase of flowers on the nightstand, blah blah blah.

But all I had to work with was an air mattress in the living room. So I decided to create a basket with some small welcoming comforts.

Here are some things I included:

Natural travel-size shampoo and conditioner (Kiss My Face and Avalon are my favs)


Lavender travel-size lotion (Kiss My Face, again)


A travel-size bar of natural lavender soap (lavender is for relaxation)


An organic dark chocolate bar (make sure to get 70% cacao)


A short novel for reading



Other things you can include:
a razor and/or toothbrush for a longer stay (or at least keep an extra on hand)
a list of your favorite spots to visit in town
a map of your city and/or public transportation maps
a bottle of water, iced tea, or even a mini bottle of wine

Put them all in a fun basket, and your visitor will feel right at home!