Banana bread blondies + pad thai

Thanks for all the great baking suggestions yesterday. I finally decided to make a variation on Liz (aka VeggieGirl)?s famous blondies, which are always a hit. I had to change the recipe quite a bit because of the ingredients I had on hand.

banana bread blondies
? 2 bananas, mashed
? 1/2 c.  + 2 t. brown sugar
? 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
? 1.25 cups flour (half whole wheat)
? 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
? 1 c. butterscotch chips
? 1/2 c. shredded coconut
? almond milk (added as needed)

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Lightly coat an 8"x8" baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Combine all ingredients except coconut. Mix in almond milk until batter reaches smooth consistency. Pour into pan and bake for 20 min. Sprinkle shredded coconut on top, and bake for 5-1o more min. until toothpick inserted in the center of the blondies comes out clean.

These are almost gone {I think my brother ate half the pan}. I wish I had sneaked some flaxseed into the batter. These blondies taste like a cross between banana bread and butterscotch cake.

If you?ve been reading my blog for a while, you know I?m a huge fan of pad thai. I thought it would be fun to try a homemade version, so my mom bought all the ingredients this week and whipped up the dish with the help of my sister {who wanted a photo of her cooking on the blog because she rarely does it, haha}.

[Bethany mixing the noodles or doing something equally productive, hehee]

The verdict? Really good, but it was missing that authentic pad thai taste. I?m not sure what should have been added. This is the recipe we used. If you?re a pad thai connoisseur, please share your infinite wisdom with us {thanks}.

[even the picky eater ate at least 2 servings]

I finished painting the decks today when the rain finally cleared, and now the house looks spiffy for the 4th. We?re having some friends over for dinner, and I?ll be sure to take lots of photos of our little celebration. What is everyone doing for the 4th?