warm and woolly

Handknits in action! Erik has been a model of sartorial splendor when it comes to cozy knitwear.

out for an autumn stroll in his owlie hat and zig zag pram blanket

 enjoying brunch in his bitty cabled cardigan

 watching football in his bitty cabled cardigan

 looking a wee bit grumpy in his tiny trees baby vest

sporting his crochet earflap hat

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Amazingly I've actually done a few things in the kitchen in the past couple of weeks. These banana chocolate chip muffins were a big hit.

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

makes 12 muffins

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
3 large ripe bananas (about 3 cups mashed)
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash of cardamom
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup chocolate chips (or substitute chopped nuts or raisins or any combination thereof)

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Oil or spray a muffin tin or use paper liners.

- In a large bowl, with an electric mixer or by hand, beat the oil, sugar, eggs, and mashed bananas well until blended. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients – be careful not to overmix. Fold in the vanilla and, if using, the chocolate chips, raisins, and/or nuts.

- Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tins and bake for 20 minutes, until a knife inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool muffins on a baking rack.

adapted from the Moosewood Restaurant Book of Desserts