During the pandemic, everyday feels like Groundhog Day. We just watched that movie with the kids this past weekend and they loved it.  Well, if everyday is going to be the same then I want it to involve this Banana cake with cream cheese icing. So on top of the standard eggs, bread, and milk from the store, I make sure to have bananas, cream cheese, and powdered sugar. As I tell my husband when he sees me making a cake every 3 days – someone has to be the adult around here! :-p

I found this recipe on AllRecipes.com which is my goto place for recipes. Here is the link:

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/8333/banana-cake-vi/?internalSource=streams&referringId=15827&referringContentType=Recipe%20Hub&clickId=st_trending_b

I’ll paste my version of it here.  I just tweaked a few things b/c I didn’t have stuff on hand or didn’t want to do the extra stuff.  Otherwise, it’s mostly the same:

Ingredients:

¾ cup butter (use salted butter)
2 cups white sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
1 ½ cups buttermilk (milk with 1 tbsp of vinegar added – let sit for a few minutes)
2 teaspoons lemon juice (didn’t use)
1 ½ cups mashed bananas (3 bananas)

For the frosting:

½ cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
3 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Step 1

Preheat oven to 275 degrees F (135 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9×13 inch pan. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas with lemon juice (didn’t use lemon juice just mashed the bananas), set aside. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda. Set aside.

Step 2

In a large bowl, cream 3/4 cup butter and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in 2 teaspoons vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Stir in banana mixture. Pour batter into prepared pan.

Step 3

Bake in preheated oven for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Remove from oven and place directly into freezer for 45 minutes (did not do this – don’t ever have that much space in the freezer and it turns out fine!). This will make the cake very moist.

Step 4

For the frosting: In a large bowl, cream 1/2 cup butter and cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add confectioners sugar and beat on low speed until combined, then on high until frosting is smooth. Spread on cooled cake.

Some people in my family like to sprinkle this cake with cinnamon before eating. Sounds good, but I tend to like it the way it is – can’t mess with perfection.

Update: I did gain 20 lbs over the pandemic so maybe don’t make this every few days like I did. :-p

Careful – this recipe will make you gain weight real quick!  It is sooo good, but use sparingly!  :-p

Chocolate Lava Cake in a Mug (in the microwave):

In a large mug, whisk together:
4 tbsp flour
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 tbsp white sugar
2 heaping tbsp cocoa powder

then add in:

1 egg
3 tbsp oil
3 tbsp milk
a splash of vanilla extract
A splash of almond extract (optional)
dash of salt

whisk together thoroughly until well combined.

dump 3 tbsp chocolate chips on top of the batter but do not stir.

microwave for ONE minute, then stir. microwave another 20-30 seconds, and voila! chocolate cake in under 5 minutes.

And yet another dessert for breakfast idea.  I’m starting to see a new theme here.  Maybe I should just rename this site DessertForBreakfastorBust.  I did read an article recently that talked about how you should eat your dessert during the day as opposed to at night.  So, here we go, we’re in line with the health advice of the day which I’m sure will be completely different in a year or two – then they’ll be telling us research shows we should be having our dessert at midnight.  :-p  Really, we shouldn’t be eating dessert, but that’s not realistic..  And I’ve done my own research which proves that eating dessert is actually a mood lifter and gives you more energy and motivation to do some renovation – when you tell yourself if you just finish painting a room – you can have a danish, etc..  One danish per room is REALLY motivating.  :-p

Mini Cream Cheese Danishes

Ingredients:
• 1 roll Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
Filling:
• 8 ounces soft cream cheese
• 1/2 cup sugar
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 1 can cherry or blueberry pie filling
Glaze:
• ⅓ cup powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. milk
Directions:
1. Open container of rolls and do no unroll them. Use a sharp, serrated knife to cut through them like slice/bake cookies. Make 10 slices.
2. Lay each slice on a cookie sheet.  (You can put wax paper down if you want – I didn’t)
3. Use a measuring cup to flatten each roll out and build a small wall around the edge.

Filling:
1. Mix cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth.
2. Drop a small amount into each “danish.”
3. Add a teaspoonful of cherries or blueberries.
4. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes.
5. Let cool and add a drizzle of glaze.  (I actually didn’t do the glaze part because I’m lazy – tastes good either way..)

Glaze:
1. Combine milk and sugar and drizzle on danishes. Can use a pastry bag, if desired.

Another dessert for breakfast idea.  I bring this dessert to my MOPS meetings and everyone asks for the recipe.  It is sooo good!  I don’t really eat breakfast unless it’s amazing so that’s why I tend to have dessert breakfasts..  :-p  And it has to be stuff that goes well with my coffee.  Anyone have an amazing coffee cake recipe?  I still have yet to make a coffee cake..  One day..

Sopapilla Cheesecake Dessert

Ingredients:
3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, Softened
1 cup white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 (8 ounce) cans crescent roll dough
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg

Directions:

1. Grease a 9X13 inch pan. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Beat the cream cheese with sugar, egg, and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth. Unroll 1 can of crescent roll dough, place into the bottom of a 9×13 inch baking dish. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish, then cover with the remaining can of crescent dough.
3. Drizzle the melted butter evenly over the top of the cheesecake. Stir the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar together with the cinnamon in a small bowl, and sprinkle over the cheesecake.
4. Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown, about 35 minutes. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into 12 squares.

Since I like cake for breakfast, let’s call this a blueberry muffin cake and call it a day! You are allowed to eat blueberry muffins for breakfast but not cake so this is the best of both worlds!

Blueberry Muffin Cake
Ingredients:
Mix together:
3 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder

Cream together:
2 cup sugar
1 cup butter
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla

Add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with:
1 cup whole milk
Next, gently fold in 3 cups blueberries mixed with a little flour.  Pour the batter in a 9×13 pan.

Preheat oven to 350.  Bake the cake for 45 minutes to an hour.