My famous Banana Surprise Muffins with Buttermilk Syrup
For several years, I was the Innkeeper at an eight room Inn in Gettysburg. I worked there as the Assistant Innkeeper until my husband got sick and I had to leave to take care of him. Once he passed away, I was kind of lost. I spent about two months just trying to process all my feelings and pull myself together. One afternoon, I decided to take a trip up to Rockville, Maryland, to visit my mother-in-law. We had a lovely visit, and at the end, I went to hug her goodbye, and she looked at me, and she said, "Oh Annette, I'm so worried about you. What are you going to do?" I told her, "Mary, I will be okay. I will figure it out." I always had.
On the drive home, I had plenty of time to think. I got home and walked into my house. I plopped down on the couch and threw my purse to the side. My cat jumped on my lap, and I picked up my phone. I opened a search engine and typed in Indeed. I wanted to see what was out there work-wise. What do you think the first job that came up was? It was the Innkeeping job I had left 18 months earlier. I sent my resume and figured that if they wanted me back, they would call me; if not, they would just ignore me. Within five minutes, I got a call asking if I was ready to come back to work.
I want to tell you a little something about the way God works. If something is meant to happen, it will. That day I decided to look for jobs. That day, the person who was doing that job threw their keys and walked out. THAT DAY!! I'm going to say something, and I don't say it lightly. That job saved my life. I was at a crossroads. For the first time in my adult life, I didn't have anyone to take care of. My adult kids were on their own. My husband was deceased, and it was my cat and me.
Being an innkeeper created an environment where I was a caretaker for people from all walks of life, all day, every day. I love to cook and bake, so I was able to do both. People would join me in the kitchen, and I'd be playing music and singing. My boss told me you bring joy to your food. He was right. I'm no Michelin Star chef. I'm a person who just enjoys caring for people. Bottom line.
I am re-releasing the cookbook I wrote while working at the Inn. It's not your mother's cookbook. It was also the first time my food had ever been professionally photographed. My food is pretty good-looking 😆.I'm going to put two of the recipes here to give you a little preview of what it's all about. Enjoy.
A Fruit Compote by Any Other Name
Would Still Be as Sweet
This recipe is the very definition of simplicity. I’m pretty sure, unless you have been living in the Gulag, chained to a radiator for the last 25 years, you probably have access to two of the main ingredients - Sugar and Water. I could be wrong, but somehow, I don’t think so. Fruit, the X factor in this recipe, is added later.
When making a fruit compote, keep the concept of equality in mind. Equal parts of everything go into this recipe.
Ingredients
1 Cup of Sugar
1 Cup of Water
Bring this to a boil, allowing the sugar to dissolve
1. 1 Cup of Fruit
Instructions
- Add Fruit to the boiling sugar and water - The fruit can be frozen or Fresh
- It can be Blueberries, Raspberries, Strawberries, or a combination of the 3
- If you choose to use Strawberries it’s best to chop them up first
- Bring this to a Boil again and then turn the heat down to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often
- Remove from the heat and allow it to cool before refrigerating
This is a fantastic addition to Waffles, Pancakes, French Toast, Muffins, and Scones.
Strawberry Stuffed French Toast
It’s never my intention to insult anyone's intelligence, BUT this IS a cookbook, so I am about to write out the ingredients and directions for making the French Toast part of this recipe. Under normal circumstances, if, for example, I was telling one of my kids how to make French Toast, I would simply say, “You dip the bread in the egg and then fry it,” and I'd have an expression on my face that screamed DUH! That won't work here because this is a cookbook. So, I must put aside my desire to be sarcastic, which is NOT an easy task, and tell it to you like it is.
Ingredients
- Bread - the type you use is completely up to you. We use Sourdough, sometimes bread from scratch (recipe to follow), or, if you are not ambitious enough to bake bread, you can use frozen bread dough.
- Eggs - 2 per serving
- Milk of Half and Half- 1 TBSP per 2 eggs
- Vanilla - 1 TSP per 3 servings
- ¼ TSP Cinnamon per 3 servings
Instructions
- Crack the eggs into a pie tin or shallow baking dish. Combine eggs, vanilla, milk or half and half, and cinnamon in a dish and beat until well combined
- Dip the bread in the egg mixture and place it on a preheated griddle. Cook for 3 minutes on each side or until well browned.
Wow, explaining that didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would. Now for the syrup
Ingredients for the Syrup
2-3 Cups of Strawberry Preserves
2 Cups of Karo Syrup
- In a medium saucepan, add syrup ingredients and heat on medium-low. Stir frequently. Keep on low heat. Do not let it boil.
Ingredients for Stuffing
½ Cup Powdered Sugar
â…› Cup Milk or Half and Half
1 Pkg of Cream Cheese - softened at room temperature
2 Cups of Cool Whip
1 TBSP Vanilla Extract
- In a medium bowl or KitchenAid, cream together the powdered sugar, half and half, and cream cheese.
- Mix until it is smooth and creamy.
- Add in Cool Whip and vanilla, mix together for 1 minute.
Plating Instructions
- Put one slice of French Toast on a plate. Hold the other slice of French Toast in your hand and add a large spoonful of stuffing and spread it across the bread.
Place a piece of French Toast with stuffing on top of the French Toast on the plate.
- Slice the bread diagonally, and separate slightly
- Cover the stuffed French Toast with a ¼ cup or less of strawberry syrup
- Top with freshly cut strawberries and then dust with powdered sugar before serving
Now I want you to listen very closely to what I say next. My Grandmother used to make the world's best French Toast. I’m not kidding, if I went to Wikipedia right now, there is probably a photo of her standing next to the Eiffel Tower wearing a Beret. Ok, maybe not, but it was so good, and one day it finally dawned on me what she did that was different from what I was doing. She would cook the French Toast in a pan lightly coated with Olive Oil. That little-known fact is a game-changer, and yes, you are welcome.