Ahhhhh, Chicago in the summer…you
really can’t beat it, especially when you have some special visitors. Last weekend was perfect…well maybe about 5
degrees a little too cool for a true summer day, but that was probably a little
better for my Grandma and Aunt who were visiting. After three years of trying to explain where
we live, they finally got to see it and explore the city.
Even though Grandma Cole is
getting up there in age and goes a little slower these days, she is still a
young whipper-snapper at heart. “Skippy”
is my Grandma’s new nickname lovingly
given to her because of the stutter step she has developed, but she did great
walking around! From Lakeview to
Oldtown, Michigan Ave to a boat tour, she hung in there with us. There was just one little hiccup…apparently
she doesn’t know how to work a revolving door.
As we were headed into Bloomingdales to find a wedding outfit for my
Aunt, I went into the revolving door first, thinking my grandmother would come
in the next one behind me, but she had another ides…all of a sudden she jetted
in behind me. All I heard was my sister
and Aunt yelling to stop…I looked back and the next thing I saw was my Grannie
getting smashed between the revolving door and the outside edge. Thankfully she was okay because the door wasn’
t moving fast, but those things are HEAVY!
She brushed it off very quickly, but I broke down in tears…you never
want to be responsible for hurting someone.
Anyways, the weekend was a great success and wonderful to hang out
with family. My Aunt even brought some
of her old cook books to go through (let’s just say there were some real “gems”
in there! – some pretty old school books, but some really cool ones too).
In the spirit of fun summer desserts, this week and next week’s
recipes are dedicated to classic summer desserts. I decided to try the cooking light version of
banana pudding. It was pretty darn good
for being a lighter version of this classic.
Roasting the bananas really brings out the taste in the bananas! I hope you enjoy!
Ingredients:
5 ripe unpeeled medium bananas (about 2 pounds)
2 cups 2% reduced-fat milk
2/3 cup sugar, divided
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon butter
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 (12-ounce) container frozen
fat-free whipped topping, thawed and divided
45 vanilla wafers, divided
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°.
2. Place bananas on a jelly-roll
pan covered with parchment paper. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes. Remove 3
bananas; cool completely. Peel and cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Bake the
remaining 2 bananas at 350° for an additional 20 minutes. Carefully peel and
place the 2 bananas in a small bowl, and mash with a fork until smooth.
3. Combine milk and 1/3 cup sugar
in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer (do not boil).
4. Combine remaining 1/3 cup
sugar, cornstarch, salt, and eggs in a medium bowl; stir well with a whisk.
Gradually add hot milk mixture to sugar mixture, stirring constantly with a
whisk. Return milk mixture to pan. Cook over medium heat until thick and bubbly
(about 3 minutes), stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add mashed bananas,
butter, and vanilla, stirring until butter melts. Place pan in a large
ice-filled bowl for 15 minutes or until mixture comes to room temperature, stirring
occasionally. Fold half of whipped topping into pudding.
5. Spread 1 cup custard evenly
over the bottom of an 11 x 7-inch baking dish. Top with 20 vanilla wafers and
half of the banana slices. Spoon half of remaining custard over banana. Repeat
procedure with 20 wafers, banana slices, and custard. Spread remaining half of
whipped topping evenly over top. Crush remaining 5 wafers; sprinkle over top.
Refrigerate for 1 hour or until chilled.
Architecture Boat Tour
Recipe Source: Cooking Light
Picture Source: Cooking Light
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