Banana and Blueberry Bread

One of the things I learned from baking this is that sometimes it's still best to fold in a mixture by hand, despite having a KitchenAid Stand Mixer. No doubt, it was easy combining the wet ingredients with the electric mixer, but fold in the dry by hand, followed by the very delicate fruit. You'll end up with wonderfully juicy fruit still waiting to burst in your mouth, instead of berry juice that has bled into the mixture. Even though the original recipe called for raspberries, use any berries which are available and in season. Toasting the slices and buttering them is up to you, we found they were wonderfully moist on their own.

Serves 6-8

2 eggwhites, lightly beaten
2 large ripe bananas, mashed
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 1/4 cups frozen raspberries (or a punnet of fresh blueberries)
butter, to serve

Preheat oven to 160 deg C and butter a 21cm x 4cm loaf tin. Line the base an long sides with baking paper.

Combine the eggwhites, mashed banana, sugar and oil in a bowl. Sift in the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and bicarbonate of soda, and fold together until just combined. Fold through the raspberries, then spoon the mixture into the prepared pan.

Bake for 1 1/4 hours, until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes or so before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely. Slice, toast and serve with butter.

Toast with Avocado, Fried Eggs and Soy Sauce

One invaluable thing to learn in the kitchen is how to fry eggs (and not burn them along the way). You'll find that topping any meal with a fried egg can go a very long way! This recipe can easily be doubled for a lovely breakfast together. If you plan to save half the avocado for later, remember to save the avocado half with the stone in its flesh, as it helps keep it for longer.

Serves: 1

1 tbsp of groundnut oil
2 large eggs
2 slices of seeded rye bread
1/2 ripe avocado (save the rest for a salad later), stone removed and flesh scooped out
Drizzle of light soy sauce
Salt and ground black pepper

Heat a wok over a medium heat until it starts to smoke and then add the groundnut oil. Crack the eggs into the wok and cook for 2 minutes or to your liking. Meanwhile, place the bread in the toaster.

To serve, place the toast on a plate and spread with the avocado flesh. Place the eggs on top and drizzle over the soy sauce, then season with salt and ground black pepper and eat immediately.