This was done by Kid #2... he's 5.  It's pretty cute.  We didn't see it until after it was done which is kind of a good thing because we might have tried to get him to fix it.  It's so damn adorable that I even put it on Facebook.  I never put photos on Facebook.
It's Easter today... today people, not the whole weekend.  Please keep on top of the liturgy here.  Just because it's a holiday we do not wish each other 'Happy Good Friday'.  Jeez.  Happy Easter Vigil... NEVER.


I haven't really gotten to any serious cooking or baking but it's on it's way.  Instead I went to The Hunger Games movie with Kid #1, went out for some serious connecting with KT, went for a 10k run and survived with my foot none the worse for wear (my poor body however is not exactly happy with me today), had some much needed time with D over a pint or two, spent some time with the in-laws and my own parents... and I washed my windows.  All in all not so bad for a long weekend and it's not over yet.  The weather cooperated today so I've also taken some pictures of the up and comings in my garden.


I don't know quite how this has happened but its the second year now that I've gotten parsley coming up on it's on.  I didn't think it was a perennial - I think it's a biennial - but what the hell... here it is and I'm not complaining.


You know it's spring when the chives start to poke through the brown earth and green up the place.

The scent isn't quite as strong this year but my little hyacinth's are going strong.  Another sign that spring is here to stay.

And lastly my favourite, homely rhubarb.  Just doing what it does best, forming huge leaves and hiding the gorgeous red stalk underneath.  In about a month it will be ready for me to start cutting... that should give me just enough time to get through all those damned canned pears that are still sitting in the cold room.  Happy Easter.

I now have just a few moments to breath deeply and not ponder too hard or too long about what needs to be done as soon as my feet hit the floor tomorrow morning.
For those of you who have been following me for a little while now you may have noted my penchant (nice word) for lists.  You might say that I'm addicted.  Lists are soothing.  Lists give me a sense of accomplishment.


Some of the things that have gotten me through this week are:
1. This song seems to hold no end of inspiration for me while I'm running.  It's been months now and I'm still on it hard.  It even moves me to ridiculous gestures while I'm running the streets - SAD.
2. I think that just maybe I'm starting to get this Pinterest thing.  I've gone there just to see if there is inspiration just a couple of times.  I always leave it knowing exactly why North Americans are grossly over weight.  If Pinterest is any indication as to how most of us are eating then about 90 percent of us are eating sweets or baked goods pretty much all the time.  The rest of us 10 percent seem to be consuming some kind of mexican pasta dish.  Weird.  Random.  Embarrassingly compelling.
3. The sun.  It came out to play this week.  Things warmed up to a balmy 15 degrees or so at one point.  The sun is also sticking around until about 7:45 in the evening these days.
4. The fact that by the end of this weekend I will be looking out of clean windows.
5. I have so much fun reading this blog and getting inspired by her writing style.  I can't wait to support her by purchasing her book when it comes out.

Some things that made the above list seem especially precious:
1. 4 day work weeks sound wonderful but they suck when you have to fit 5 days work into 4.
2. Monday's flat bike tire has somehow jacked up my bike and now there is something obstructing the back tire making it twice as hard to peddle.  My ass is in some serious pain. And I hate my bike right now.
3. This forever juggle that we adults do (most of us) between what we want to do and what we can accomplish in reality.
It is this last thing, this last item on my ick list that I will dwell on briefly.
I have a lot of lists and most of them are short term but there are also some mid-term and long term lists as well.  Getting a Masters Degree - Long Term.  Deconstructing my back deck area - Mid Term.  Making cookies - Short Term.  You get the idea.  My short term lists this week went out the window completely.  One thing after another crowded the lists completely out of reality.  Can't even begin to tell you what those things were at the moment but there it is.  I'm sure that you've had those weeks too and therefor you can well imagine what some of those things might have been.  I managed to squeeze this little gem in though and subsequently crossed one little tiny thing off one of my 'short term' lists.
Savoury tarts are a funny thing and to be honest I couldn't tell you why this is a tart and not a quiche save that it's made in a tart shell.  This got made because I recently acquired a tart shell and I wanted to use it.  It also came to life because I had chard.  It also exists because it's pretty easy to put together once you have the requisite ingredients (milk/eggs/cheese/veggies).  I made my own crust but I wouldn't diss you for buying a ready made instead, I would just tell you to watch how much you can pour into your crust size.


 I've got a couple more 'short term' lists on the go for this weekend and cooking is definitely a list of it's own.  I'm glad though that even in the middle of a massive juggle week it's still possible to find a way to knock a thing or two off the list without too much effort.


Chard, Leek and Chevre (goat cheese) Tart
adapted from Simply Organic

Crust (I tried this stupid, weird, Amazingly easy crust from David Lebovitz)

Filling

3 cups chard, chopped
1 cup chard stems, chopped
2 cups leeks, thinly sliced
1 cup button mushrooms (I had them and needed to use them - you could easily leave them out), quartered
3 med cloves garlic, minced
1 cup milk
5 eggs
2 tbsp italian seasoning (basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, parsley)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp pepper sauce (optional)
1 cup medium cheddar, grated
1 cup chevre

Heat a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat.  Once hot add in about 3 tbsp of oil or butter (might need a little bit more) and add the leeks and chard stems.  Cook together for about 5 minutes.  Turn the heat down a little and add in the garlic, chard leaves and garlic.  Cook together for another 5 minutes.  Turn off the heat and set aside.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Combine the milk and the eggs together.  Whisk until thoroughly mixed.  Add in the seasoning, salt, paprika, nutmeg and pepper sauce.
Sprinkle half of the cheddar onto the bottom of the tart crust.  Spoon the veggie mixture on top of that and spread it evenly around the tart shell.  Plot the chevre in large tbsp dollops throughout the tart.  Pour the egg mixture into the tart shell.  Sprinkle the last of the cheddar over the top.
Bake for 35 - 40 minutes or until the centre of the tart is not jiggling.
Cool for about 7 - 10 minutes before slicing.

Story of a cooking week turned upside down:
I mostly cook on Sunday or Monday.  It's a thing.  I usually have just enough time to get done what needs to get done without it being a terrible rush.  I take full advantage and do the bulk of my cooking and baking on one (or both) of those days.  This week however...
D's Mom has arrived back from her winter stint in Trinidad.  It's wonderful.  It meant that Saturday evening was the first date night that D and I have had together since, well,  a long time.  We both stared at each other a bit.  Didn't know exactly what to say.  Once we got used to not having two smaller versions of ourselves pulling, asking, tugging, complaining and generally making noise around us, we were off and running.  Wonderful night.  Went to long.  Slept in the next morning.


Sleeping in isn't a problem usually.  In fact, it's quite wonderful.  This Sunday though, I had a shower to attend.  Not one where you get wet and soapy but one where you bring a gift and somebody makes a ridiculous hat and there's lots of cooing and mimosa's.  Then we had kids to pick up.  And then it was rainy and gross and my cooking window closed for that day. No food - D made a kick ass stew.
On to Monday.  Of course there was work.  No problem.  As you know I bike to work.  Back in the fall I had this weird stint where once a week for 3 weeks in a row I blew a tire.  The same day each time.  Not the same tire.  It was totally weird.  Since then I've been biking regularly with no more tire incidents... until Monday.  I hustled out of work to find my back tire totally flat.  Dead.  Absolutely nothing remotely resembling air in that back tire.  Well that changed everything.  Just like that I was taking the TTC home, driving Kid #1 to her choir rehearsal so that I could end up back at my school to pick up my bike, dropping my bike off to get a new back tire, running back home to put this cake together, popping said cake into the oven for D to watch over, going out for a run at the end of which I stop to pick up my bike and ride it the rest of the way home.  I'm tired just writing all of that.  No proper food was made that day by me.  D made spaghetti sauce.  Somehow though in the midst of that ridiculously run on sentence you might have seen that a cake got assembled and popped into an oven.


Yep.
Here is the cake made after 2 days of weird circumstances seemed to conspire against any food being concocted at all.  It's like a miracle cake.


Tomorrow I will be cooking because I have this chard tart that is burning a hole in my pocket so to speak.  For now though I am happily munching on this pear cake - even took some to work.  If you want something sweet and icingy then this isn't your cake.  If you want something more like a loaf than a cake that will go perfectly with your morning or afternoon snack time pretty damn close to perfect then this is the cake for you.  The batter was kinda gloppy for me and I was scared that it would turn out but I absolutely love this cake.  It's just sweet enough.  It's just dense enough adn it gets better with age.  And it comes together pretty darn quickly and easily.


Pear Cake adapted from Smitten Kitchen
makes on tube pan cake

3 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp nutmeg
3/4 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 lg eggs
2 cups pear or apple shredded, finely chopped or even pureed
2 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan.
Combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cardamom and nutmeg together in a bowl and mix.  Set aside.
Beat together the softened butter and the sugar.  Mix until light and fluffy.  Add in the eggs until the mixture is quite frothy - about 4 minutes.  Mix in the pear and vanilla.  Stir until mixed.
Add the flour mixture to the egg mixture.  Stir until combined.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Bake for about 65  - 75 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Cool for about 10 minutes before removing from the cake tin to cool completely.

My turnip obsession continues.  It's like I've got some kind of masochistic streak in me.  I don't like the things much but I can't stay away from them.  I've been spending some time ('cause god knows I've got so much of that to spare right now) thinking about why turnips have become so embedded in my psyche.
Here are some of the reasons that I've come up with:
1.  It's the challenge.  They basically suck.  I am the super hero who can change all of that.  I can find a way to rescue turnips from their own suckiness.  It's like that guy you were dating because you were pretty sure that if you could just work on him for a while that your love would rescue him... yeah, that totally worked.

2.  They're big - usually.  I have to use them to 2 or 3 dishes because using a whole turnip for one dish is really just unthinkable quantities of turnip all up in your face.

3.  I feel some sort of seasonal commitment at the moment.  Maybe it won't last forever or maybe it's my new paradigm, I'm not sure yet.  Whatever it is it means that turnips are, at least for the moment, a part of my late winter world.  I've accepted it and am moving on.

4.  I feel somehow sorry for the butt-ugly turnip.  Somehow my weird-ass brain has personified this vegetable and if I don't use it I feel like I'm rejecting it.  Weird-ass brain.

I love that UK food magazines are picking up on this whole seasonal thing in a way that North American ones just simply are not.  It's cool.  I'm finding parsnips, rutabaga, squash, turnip... all that crap.  So it was in the Good Food magazine that I found this Swede Fritters recipe.  I passed it by completely the first few times I paged through the magazine.  Somehow today it just caught my eye and my imagination.  Why hadn't I thought of this before.  It makes so much sense.  Adding bacon aside, spicing the living crap out of turnips would definitely improve them right?  RIGHT.  Yes.  I've done it.


I've rescued turnips from themselves.  From their drab, frumpy little corner of the root cellar.  (Number 1 covered)  I have found a way to use up that half that was leftover from the stew last week.  (Number 2 covered)  I have found a way to use turnip on their own - just a little onion - no other vegetable.  Completely seasonal. (Number 3 covered)  I used turnip.  I no longer feel guilty about it sitting in the bottom of my fridge waiting for my pot.  (Number 4 covered)
Make these.  They really don't suck at all.  I reheated 3 for work today and they were fan-friggin-tastic without any condiments at all.  I would make these again anytime.  And they were easy.  I still don't like turnip much but I no longer feel guilty or afraid that it can't be redeemed.  If only I hadn't ordered another one.


Turnip 'Pakora' Fritters adapted from 'Good Food Magazine UK'
made about 14 med/small ones

4 cups turnip/rutabaga diced fairly evenly
3/4 cup all purpose flour
plain yogurt
whole milk
1 lg egg
1 small onion, diced
2 tsp garam masala
2 tsp curry powder (I used west indian)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp salt
1 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp coriander
1/4 tsp cardamom
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp pepper sauce or cayenne
oil for frying

Boil the diced turnip for only 15 minutes or until just softened.  Drain and set aside.
In a bowl mix the yogurt, milk, egg and mix well.
Add in the onion, garam masala, curry powder, cumin, salt, turmeric, coriander, cardamom, sugar and cayenne.  Mix well.  Finally add in the flour and mix well until it forms a paste.
Mash the turnips but only barely.
Add the turnip to the flour mixture.  Mix well.
Heat a large frying pan over medium heat.  Add the oil of your choice - I used lard that I had rendered but you could also use coconut oil or ghee for something authentic.  Otherwise just go with what you have. - to the hot pan.  Place about 1/4 -1/3 of a cup of mixture into the hot oil and quickly form into a rough circle.  You can put as many circles in the pan as will fit.  Turn after 3 - 4 minutes on each side.  It should be golden brown and slightly crispy.  Once both sides are done remove the fritter from the pan and place on a paper towel to rack to cool and drain just a bit.
Serve all alone or with your favourite chutney or tamarind sauce.

I'm not sure if it would be possible for me to find a way to have changed this recipe any further from it's original than say, ummm, just using a completely different recipe.
It was originally a Pumpkin Coffee Cake.
It was not supposed to have a 3 egg cake as it's bottom layer.
It shouldn't have had as much butter as I added.
I could go on but  instead I think that we need to take a moment here and consider inspiration and the roll that even the most mundane and everyday can have on inspirations' stage.  My inspiration for this Coffee Cake... a jar of pears.


If you've been following this blog for any length of time you may have picked up that I'm on a year long experiment so to speak.  I started canning seriously last summer and am now sitting back and watching how things get used up.  Did I make too much of this, too little of that.  That kind of thing.  Well, I've never done this before so I guess I should have maybe thought things through a little more and started smaller with a couple of things (I didn't think that 25 jars of jams would be too much).  I am now starring down 12 very large jars of canned pears.  Beautifully canned in a vanilla, cinnamon syrup.  Ready to be eaten with ice cream, plain yogurt (sounds great) or a simple pound cake.  I haven't done any of those things with the pears.  What I've done thus far is give 3 jars to my parents.  That felt good.
This situation needs some serious tackling and my first order of business was to come up with a way to get through a decent amount of pears (try about a half a jar here) in the most kid-appealing way possible (not so sure that this was a success in that department).
I must thank the author of this book because while I was meandering through it before falling asleep I kinda just latched onto this pumpkin coffee cake thing and my brain ran.  And ran.  And ran.  I like where it ran to with the pear thing.  I like that it has a topping and that after a day or so it got even better  'cause the topping got kinda soft and squidgy with the pears.  I definitely screwed up on the egg thing and put 3 eggs in the bottom layer where there should only have been 1... Oops.  It worked fortunately.
If you make this cake please don't pass final judgement until the day after it's been baked (or maybe the evening if you baked it in the morning) because I found it much improved with 12 hours under it's belt.


So look here, don't shrug off those mundane moments as completely lost time.  Those hours spent in line.  The waiting at the Dr's office.  The time spent waiting for your phone company to have an 'available representative'.  Those times when you get so desperate for a snack that you eat 3 tablespoons of peanut butter in a row (and not the healthy kind of peanut butter).  Those could be just the moments that will somehow produce that epiphany.


Pear Coffee Cake adapted from Winter Harvest Cookbook

3 cups sliced pears (canned or fresh)
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and diced
1/3 cup milk
3 eggs
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cardamom
3 tbsp brown sugar

Grease a 9x13 inch cake pan.
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine the milk and eggs together in a bowl and set aside.
Combine the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar together in a bowl.   Cut in the butter until the mixture forms a crumbly texture (mine never really truly got there but close enough).  Divide the flour mixture in half(ish).  Add the eggs/milk mixture to one of the flour bowls.  Stir until mixed and pour into the greased baking pan.  Bake for about 10 minutes or until just barely firm in the middle.
Place the sliced pears on top of the warm cake.
In the remaining flour bowl add the cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and brown sugar.  Mix.  Pour the mixture on top of the pears.  Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until the topping looks somewhat melted to the pears and the edges of the cake are golden brown.
Cool for about 10 minutes before cutting.

Sometimes I am a b*&%h.
I was recently having a conversation with D in which I got little heated.  Not at him, at someone else.  A situation that I was describing to him was really getting to me.  He was telling me that I was being a real b#%*h.  His accusation was dead on.  I was being a b@&*h.  I told him that I was totally ok with it.  I was completely and totally accepting of my own bitchiness.  I think that it makes me a more balanced individual.  In fact, I will go out on a seriously politically incorrect limb here and say that I think there are situations which demand some serious and heartfelt bitchiness.
At the time I was describing a situation in which an acquaintance was discussing his wife's shopping habits to a large group of people.  This person publically implied that he let his wife off the leash to go crazy shopping.  The sub-text being that these are the things that men must put up with to keep (and to reward) a happy marriage.  Now while I whole-heartedly applaud this individual's desire for a happy marriage, I can't even begin to express how offended and revolted, disgusted and angry I was with the comment.  I was so 'moved' that in discussing this whole thing with D I used some pretty choice words... and the kids were around.
I apologized to them afterwards because I wasn't exactly proud of my vocabulary but it did give me a chance to talk to Kid #1 about why my reaction was so strong.  Being the Mom to this wonderful daughter of mine means that I have a responsibility to tell her about the root of my anger and bitchiness.  We ended up having a serious discussion about how important I feel it is that no matter how wonderful her partner is that she remain confident and empowered in the relationship.  Equitability to me means that I don't need to ask for permission to spend money either because I make my own or it's not something that either one of us do frivolously and we both trust each other in that.  I know that if D spends money he's doing it for a damn good reason.  I also know that he feels the same way about me.  I have never been questioned about a purchase.
However, I also made it clear to Kid #1 that if she had money available to her and wished to 'live large' with that money that she had every right to do so.  We have a cousin who is a highly respected and recognized lawyer in the UK.  She has worked hard.   Damn hard.  She gives her time not just at her job but with numerous organizations that help educate and empower women.  She makes a lot of money and she spends it.  Done.  She gets a lot of flack for her spending habits.  Many in the family will talk about it, pass judgement even.  I made it clear to Kid #1 that I have no problem with how our cousin spends her money.  If our cousin were a man no one would say a word.  In fact, they might very well pat him on the back for being so successful ... and most certainly they would never question it. Because our cousin is a woman her spending is treated differently.  The wonderful thing about our cousin is that she doesn't care.  She does what she does and she's proud.  She is generous to a fault and enjoys herself freely and openly.
I guess what really got my goat about this whole thing was that rather than people jumping on this guy for being so down right patriarchal and condescending towards women, he was applauded.  Applauded.  That was the shocker.  I'm still speechless about it.


I cook.  I clean.  I work both in the home and out of it.  Because I have to and because I want to.  I'm not the craziest feminist out there for sure but I want my daughter to live in a world where she can be herself.  Where she can get paid the same salary as a man for the job she does.  Where she has access to jobs that even now are limited for women.  Where she can wear a head scarf if she wishes or knee high boots without fear.  I also want her to be able to stay home to parent, cook and clean if she wishes.  It's important.
This bread is an homage to my past.  To Women's collective past.   To kneading and baking bread whilst fully appreciating all the choices that I now enjoy as a woman.  So yeah, this is definitely one those situations in which I am proud to be bitchy.


Pumpkin Cloverleaf Buns adapted from Gourmet Magazine 'Comfort Food'
makes about a dozen

5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp warm milk
1 tbsp brown sugar
2 3/4 cups all purpose flour (a little more for kneading)
1 tsp salt
1/8 tsp each nutmeg, cardamom
1/3 cup pumpkin/squash puree (canned is fine)
1 lg egg + 1 egg yolk

1 tbsp water
1 egg

Combine the yeast, warm milk and brown sugar together  and set aside in a draft free spot to proof for about 10 minutes.
Combine the flour, salt, nutmeg and cardamom together in a bowl and set aside.
Once the yeast has proofed and is all bubbly and doubled in size then add in the pumpkin, 1 egg + 1 yolk and the butter.  Mix until incorporated.
Add the yeast mixture to the flour mixture and mix with a wooden spoon until it forms a soft dough ball.
Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 8 minutes or until the dough is silky smooth and almost feels light when working through it.
Oil or grease a large bowl.  Place the dough in the greased bowl and turn the dough so that all side are greased.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in draft free spot to rise for 1 1/2 - 2 hrs or until doubled in size.
Punch down the dough (do not knead). Divide the dough in half.  On a lightly flour surface roll half of the dough out into a long log.  Cut the log into 6 pieces.
Cut each piece into 3 small pieces.  Form each piece into a ball shape.
Repeat with the other half of the dough.


Grease a 12 cup muffin tin.  Place 3 balls into each muffin cup.  Cover with a clean cloth and place in a draft free spot to rise for 1 - 1 1/2 hrs (until the dough is about an inch above the rim of each muffin cup.


Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
Combine the remaining egg and water.  Brush the egg wash over the top of each bun.
Bake about 20 minutes or until golden brown.
Best consumed the same day.  Otherwise cool and freeze.  Just warm them up as you want to each them.

I'm stuck.  Staring at the computer screen.  I'm desperately trying to come up with something that is absolutely deep and thoroughly enlightening.  Trying to sit here and type away with abandon.  Focussing hard on the words flowing out of my fingers. But the reality is that this is my first day off all week.  I've got a naked 5 year old reading the words out loud as I type and singing at random intervals.  Occasionally that same five year old squeezes and kisses my arm and then bounces off with a balloon.  The laundry buzzer goes off and then Skype rings and there I am completely distracted.  I know that there is stuff in me that's waiting to come out.  I feel it in there.  Something deep like a tree root.
I would love to come up with something profound to say about community and civil involvement.  I wish that I could adequately express how disturbed I am that there was a Canada wide recall on beef patties this past week and how revolted I am that the cheap food we've all been brain washed into buying is killing us and our world.  I'd love to go on about how I feel about gated communities and fear and how our possessions have ended up defining and possessing us instead.  How ownership in it's extreme capitalist consumer based form (as we now live it) - I don't even know if that makes sense - has rendered 'my stuff' more important than your life or our planet.   I wish that I could be more eloquent in expressing my disgust that a hoodie is somehow justification for a pedestrian to become a walking target.
But there it is.  I'm stuck.  And sad.  A little blurry on the inside.  Working to muscle my focus through a zany five year old, skype and laundry.  I'll stop trying now and get to the cake.


As promised:  Banana Cake.  I'm gotten over my shame about having so many sweet recipes in a row.  Whatever.  There are some food bloggers who only post sweets and baking.  So this ain't so bad.  I also need to add by way of further justification that this recipe is delightfully 'uncakey' when it comes to dessert cakes.  This cake got me through the week.  Occasionally it became my lunch which predictably launched me into a minor sugar coma for the rest of the afternoon.  To be honest it's not a half bad way to work through the afternoon.


Oh... before I forget, this recipes makes a lot of batter so I just kind of eye-balled it and made 4 cupcakes as well as the round cake.  If you find yourself in this predicament I can tell you that what worked for me was putting those cupcakes in a box and sending them off with some friends.

Crazy Cute box courtesy the most best KT.  BFF.

Banana Cake with Cream Cheese Icing adapted from The Wednesday Chef
makes 1 10 inch round cake and about 4 med/lg cupcakes

2 2/3 cup pastry flour
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt (I use sea salt)
3 - 4 med/lg bananas, very ripe and peeled of their skins (if there is a lot of liquid then you could easily drain them for a little bit)
3 lg eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup canola oil
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Your favourite cream cheese icing (Look - I don't get fancy here.  It's cream cheese it's just a little dab of butter and enough icing sugar to bring it all together so that it's nice and icingy... throw in some lemon zest if you want but why mess with perfection)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease and flour either a 9x13 baking pan or a 10 inch springform pan. (this is what I used)
Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.

Whisk or mix(er) the very ripe bananas until all goopy.  Add in the eggs one at a time and continue to mix away happily.  Add in the buttermilk, oil and vanilla next and mix until well incorporated.

Add the flour mixture to the banana mixture and stir by hand until everything is wet and mixed together.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake - for the springform pan it took about 50 - 55 minutes before a tester came out clean - for the 9x13 pan 45 - 50 minutes should do but make sure you test the middle with a cake tester.  If you make some muffins with the extra then the muffins should stay in for about 25 - 30 minutes.
Cool completely.
Ice with your favourite cream cheese icing once the cake and/or muffins is/are completely cooled.