Cheeze-its

Yum.  As claimed by the original poster, ShopGirlMaria, these do taste like the ones from the box, but you have the added bonus of knowing exactly what ingredients are involved.  I must re-post to ensure this recipe never disappears from my life.  The downside is that two pans of crackers does not last very long in my household.  We could eat salty cheesy snacks for hours.

Mix:

• 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
• 1/2 tsp salt
• Approximately 1 cup of shredded sharp cheddar (I use a Tillamook Vintage Cheddar that is heavenly)

Add while mixing:

• 1 cup flour
• 3-4 Tbsp ice water (I used 4 and it was the right amount)

Pull the dough together, divide into two and chill for 30 minutes in the fridge in plastic wrap.  Then roll out on a floured surface to about 1/8" thick. Cut into squares with a fluted pastry cutter if you have one (I don't) and if you're not lazy, use a toothpick to prick each one. Spread on parchment paper, sprinkle with about another tsp of salt, and bake at 375 F for about 10 minutes.  They should be puffed and crisp. I found that it worked best to start them on parchment paper so they didn't stick to the pan, but then remove them for the last few minutes so they were more crispy than chewy.

Banana Muffins

These are handed down from my mom, and I have no idea what book she may have originally grabbed these from.  The trick to moist, yummy banana muffins is really old bananas.  I let mine get so brown that you can't see a single bit of yellow left on them, and then I freeze them if I'm not going to use them right away.  It's easy to pull them out of the freezer and let them sit in the sink to thaw for anytime-banana-muffins.

Mix together:

• 3 overripe bananas
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup veg. oil (ie. canola)

Separately, combine:

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• chocolate chips as desired (I usually add a big handful, 1/2 cup or so)

Crumble topping (this is heavenly but I am usually too lazy):

• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp flour
• 1/8 tsp cinnamon
• 1 Tbsp butter (tip: freeze the butter and then you can grate it so it's easier to mix in)

Combine wet and dry ingredients and mix with a spatula until just moistened.  Spoon into a greased muffin tin.  Sprinkle the topping on each muffin and bake at 375 degrees F for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean (if doing mini-muffins, I find about 15 minutes is enough).  Enjoy!