Recipes that appear in Idea Alley have not been tested by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
Rhonda Parker shares this quick bread recipe.
"[This is] a 'loaded' version of banana nut bread -- with Mandarin oranges, chocolate chips and more," Parker writes.
Parker notes she has had the recipe for more than 30 years.
Gift of the Magi
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup mashed bananas
1 (11-ounce) can Mandarin oranges, drained
6 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup shredded coconut
2/3 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup Maraschino cherries, drained
1/2 cup chopped dates or figs
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until fluffy.
In a separate bowl, mix together the bananas, oranges, chocolate chips, coconut, almonds, cherries and dates. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda over the fruit. Add to creamed mixture. Pour into 2 greased and floured 7-inch loaf pans. Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted near the center comes out clean. Dust each loaf with confectioners' sugar before serving.
Makes 2 loaves.
The fruit punch served at many Mexican restaurants is an evergreen request from Alley Kats. We've published many recipes over the years, and to date none has been an exact match. We suspect this is because restaurants have access to ingredients that regular cooks don't. But that hasn't stopped Kats from creating versions of the sought-after punch.
Pauletta Reese shares this one.
Mexican Punch
2 tubs fruit punch flavor Crystal Lite
1 tub lemonade flavor Crystal Lite
Water
1 (12-ounce) can Minute Maid frozen orange juice
1 (48-ounce) can PLUS 2 (6-ounce) cans pineapple juice
Sweet'N Low or other desired sweetener
In a 11/2 gallon glass container combine the Crystal Lite mixes and 2 cups of water. Stir well. Add orange juice concentrate and pineapple juice and mix until dissolved. Taste; if too strong add more water, one cup at a time, until desired flavor is reached. Sweeten to taste. Serve over ice.
REQUESTS
• Lemon bars like those served at Delicious Temptations for Mary Hicks. The bars have a light crust and "just the right amount of lemon vs. sweet taste," Hicks notes.
• Brown sauce like that served on the chicken chimichangas at Mexico Chiquito for Pauletta Reese.
Send recipe requests, contributions and culinary questions to Kelly Brant, Idea Alley, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203; email:
kbrant@arkansasonline.com
Please include a daytime phone number.
Food on 02/18/2015