Baking and more baking

I had three very ripe bananas that were screaming to be used so I made Banana Pancakes for myself and Streusel Topped Banana Muffins for my co-workers.  I also made Pumpkin Scones and Italian Cream Cake for my co-workers.

This weekend my co-workers helped me out and volunteered at a HUGE college fair over the weekend.  There were 100 colleges and vocational schools there and over 3,000 students in attendance.  It was an incredible event and I'm so grateful for their help so the muffins and scones are a surprise for them.  The cake is also a surprise, but for one of their birthdays this week.

I'm still wiped out from the event, so I'm only showing the finished products and recipes... not the process... sorry!

Pumpkins Scones and Streusel Topped Banana Muffins

Italian Cream Cake
OMGoodness... this was really DE-VINE!!!  It is totally worthy the work. So moist and rich.  Get ready for a sugar high though.

*Update* My co-workers ate this cake 4 days in a row. I asked them if they were getting sick of it...one said that she woke up thinking about it and the other said that it was the best cake he's ever had.  I highly recommend it.  It's a crowd pleaser. 

It's kind of crazy that it's the end of September and it was still 90+ degrees outside today.  I'm grateful for the beautiful weather, but... it's Fall!  I'm dying to bake and not sweat to death doing it.

Streusel Topped Banana Muffins

1 3/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 

1/4 teaspoon baking soda 

3/4 teaspoon cinnamon (divided) 

1 egg 

1 cup banana (mashed) 

3/4 cup sugar 

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup walnuts (chopped) 

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup oats

2 tablespoons unsalted butter (melted)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare a 12 cup muffin pan with paper muffin cups.
In a bowl combine the brown sugar, 1/4 cup of the flour, oats, melted butter, and 1/2 tsp of the cinnamon, mix and press together with a fork until it looks crumbly, and set aside.
In another mixing bowl, combine the remaining 1 1/2 c flour, baking powder, baking soda, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp salt. Set aside.
In another bowl combine the egg, mashed bananas, sugar, and oil, mix well then add to the flour mixture. Stir until just moistened, fold in the walnuts.
Spoon batter into each muffin cup, about 2/3 full each. Top each batter filled cup with the streusel topping, enough to cover so you cant see the batter. Bake at 350 degrees 20-25 min, or until toothpick test comes out clean.

Billie’s Italian Cream Cake

(from Pioneer Woman)

Cake:
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar
5 eggs, separated
3 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup flaked coconut (from PW: If you think you hate coconut, trust me: I do too, and I love it in this recipe)
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 cups all purpose flour

Frosting:
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese - COLD
1 stick (1/2 cup) butter
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 2-lb package powdered sugar
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup sweetened, flaked coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Grease and flour three 9-inch round cake pans.
Beat egg whites until stiff. Set aside.

Cake:
In a large bowl, cream together butter, oil, and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the egg yolks, vanilla, and coconut.
In a separate bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and baking powder.
Alternate adding buttermilk and dry ingredients to wet ingredients.
Mix until just combined, then fold in egg whites.
Pour evenly into the three prepared pans, then sprinkle the top of each pan with 1 (at least) tablespoon sugar.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes, then turn the cakes out onto cooling racks and allow to cool completely.

Frosting:
In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Stir in chopped walnuts and sugared coconut. Spread between layers and serve.

PUMPKIN SCONES

Scones

2 cups all-purpose

7 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ginger

6 tablespoons cold butter

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

3 tablespoons half and half

1 large egg

POWDERED SUGAR GLAZE

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 tablespoon whole milk or half and half

SPICED GLAZE

1/2 cup powered sugar

2 tablespoons powered sugar

1 tablespoon whole milk or half and half 

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

pinch ground nutmeg

pinch ginger

1 pinch ground cloves

Directions
TO MAKE THE SCONES:.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. Set aside.
In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.
Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 14–16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

TO MAKE THE PLAIN GLAZE:
Mix the powdered sugar and milk together until smooth.
When scones are cool, use a brush to paint plain glaze over the top of each scone.
As the plain glaze firms up, make the spiced glaze. 

SPICED ICING:
Combine the ingredient for the spiced icing together. Drizzle this thicker icing over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (at least 1 hour). 

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