I make this WWI-era raisin spice cake where the raisins are boiled for with the sugar and shortening. The raisin juice and spices make the cake very dark and moist. I only use 1/4 tsp. of cloves. Maybe someone could figure out where the bananas could be added. POOR MANÂS CAKE 2 cups sugar 2 cups water 1 box raisins (1 lb.) 2 heaping Tbs. shortening 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda 1 tsp. salt 1 tsp. ground nutmeg 1/2 tsp. ground cloves 1 tsp. ground cinnamon 3 cups flour 1 tsp. vanilla Boil sugar, water, raisins and shortening together for 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature. (Important  do not refrigerate mixture and do not continue with recipe if mixture is still warm.) Sift dry ingredients together and add to cooled mixture. Stir in vanilla. Grease bottom only of tube pan and add cake batter. Bake in preheated 350 degree over for about an hour or until it tests done. If top is getting too dark after about 45 minutes, loosely cover with a piece of foil. Cool on a rack for about 10 minutes; then slide a knife around the sides of the pan and the tube and remove cake onto the rack to cool. Store in a bag in the refrigerator.

Glad to share the recipes. It's funny, but I've got muffins from both Cook's recipes in my freezer right now. I like to alternate back & forth between them. Here's the Cook's "Big Bran Muffins" with my notes. One warning, the batter needs to sit at least an hour before baking. I usually leave it overnight. Big Bran Muffins with Raisins and Dates Cooks Illustrated 9/1993 My Notes: This was the best recipe so far that used wheat bran. It makes a dark, moist, flavorful bakery style muffin. I tried it with ½ cup oil & ¼ cup applesauce; I didn't notice any change in texture or taste. The biggest problem was getting the time & temperature right. 20 mins. at 400 is NOT enough time to cook the insides. The first time I made them, I had to re-bake the first batch after the tops came off revealing a batter filled center. The second batch came out much better. Cook's Illustrated Note: You can substitute one cup oat bran for the wheat germ for a wholesome but slightly more dense muffin. (I have successfully used all wheat bran and half wheat & half oat bran; I've never tried the wheat germ.) Makes about 20 muffins 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (I use 1½ cups AP flour & 1 cup + 2 tbsp. white whole wheat) 4 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 1 tablespoon baking powder 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1/8 teaspoon table salt (I omitted) 3/4 cup vegetable oil (I use ½ cup oil & ¼ cup applesauce) 2 teaspoons honey 1/4 cup molasses 1 cup light brown sugar plus 2 tablespoons, packed firm (I omit the extra 2 tbsp.) 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used vanilla powder) 3/4 teaspoon maple extract (I used maple powder) 1 1/2 teaspoons butter extract (I omit) 3 large eggs, lightly beaten 2 cups buttermilk 1 cup toasted wheat germ (I use another cup of wheat bran or a cup of oat bran) 1 cup wheat bran (not the cereal) 1/2 cup whole dates, plumped with scalding water, drained, and coarsely chopped (I poured boiling water over dried, sweetened cranberries, to plump & to remove excess sugar) 1 cup dark raisins, plumped with scalding water and drained (I poured boiling water over dried, sweetened blueberries, to plump & to remove excess sugar)) 1. Whisk first five ingredients together in a bowl; set aside. 2. In a large bowl, whisk next 7 ingredients together. Whisk in eggs, then buttermilk, wheat germ, and bran. Let batter rest 10 minutes. 3. Whisk dry ingredients into wet mixture to partially blend. Continue mixing batter with a rubber spatula, making sure that ingredients at the bottom are incorporated into the batter. Fold in raisins and dates. 4. Cover batter with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour, preferably overnight. 5. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat over to 400 degrees. Lightly grease the top surface of 2, 12-cup muffin pans, use liners if necessary. (I bake in batches because I don't own two 12 cup muffin tins) Using an ice cream scoop, place a portion of the batter into each cup, filling to the brim (I've learned that it is important to fill them all the way to the top). Fill empty muffin cups with water to ensure even baking. Bake until muffin tops brown, about 20 minutes. (Cook's Illustrated Note: If muffins are not done after 20 minutes, reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake until muffins test done.) [I bake 10 minutes at 400 and then 15-20 minutes at 350. I check with a pick, making sure center of muffins are completely done.] Let muffins cool in pan for 5 minutes, and then transfer them to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. MIMIS BRAN MUFFINS Makes 12 muffins 1 cup flour 1 cup bran 4 tsp dry milk powder 1/4 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, packed 1/4 cup dark corn syrup 2 Tbsp molasses 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 egg 1/3 cup raisins 1/4 tsp grated orange zest 1/2 cup water Glaze: 3 Tbsp sugar 3 Tbsp dark brown sugar, packed 3 Tbsp shortening 2 Tbsp corn syrup 2 tsp water Distribute about 1 Tbsp glaze onto bottom and sides of 12 muffin tins with pastry brush. Combine flour, bran, milk powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir well and set aside. Mix together brown sugar, dark corn syrup, molasses, oil and egg in separate bowl until well blended. Puree raisins and orange zest with water in blender or food processor. Add to liquid ingredients. Stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients until just moistened. Fill muffin tins 2/3 full and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Immediately invert onto foil or wax paper to cool.

That's what we call "almond bread" here. I make it every Christmas. Almond Bread 3 egg whites 1/2 cup caster/superfine sugar 1 cup plain flour 4 oz unblanched almonds 4 oz glace cherries-optional 2oz glace pineapple-optional 2 oz glace apricots-optional Beat egg whites with sugar to make a stiff meringue. Fold in flour, almonds and fruit. Bake in a greased loaf pan at 170C/325F for 30-40 minutes. Leave in pan to get cold. Remove from pan, wrap in alfoil and leave 1-2 days. Slice thinly and bake on dry tray in very slow oven until dried out. Notes: Almonds/fruit are in ounces by weight. The glace fruit is an optional extra. You could sub dried cranberries or whatever you like. The 1-2 day wait period can't be rushed. You can leave it even longer if you need to. I use an electric meat slicer to get the slices really thin but I have done them every year for about 20 years now so it was a good (on sale) investment. If you were going to make these a lot I'd suggest if you can get an inexpensive slicer it's worth it. The oven needs to be _very_ low. I find the best way is to have the slices trayed up and ready to go for when I've finished baking something else. I turn the oven off, place the trays in and forget about them until the oven's cold. (This is usually the next morning as I've finished one batch of Christmas baking at 1am the night before ;-) .) Usually this is enough to dry them all the way through, but if not, turn them all over and repeat. They should not get too brown, just sort of off white or a pale beige. Enjoy!

2 oz unsweetened chocolate (squares) 1 cup all-purpose flour (sifted)& 2 tbsps all-purpose flour (sifted) 4 tsp double-acting baking powder 4 tsp baking soda 1 pinch salt 2 oz sweet butter (2 sticks) 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 cup granulated sugar 2 tsps light cream (milk) 1 egg (graded large) 1. Place the chocolate in the top of a small double boiler, over hot water, on moderate heat. Cover until partially melted, then uncover and stir until smooth. Remove from the heat, and set aside to cool slightly. 2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt,set aside. 3. In the large bowl of an electric mixer cream the butter. 4. Add vanilla and sugar, beat to mix well. 5. Add the melted chocolate, and beat until incorporated. Then add the light cream or milk and the egg, and beat to mix well. 6. On low speed add the sifted dry ingredients, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula, and beating only until incorporated. 7. Place the dough on a piece of wax paper, fold the sides of the paper over the dough, and press down on the paper to flatten the dough to a scant 1" thickness. 8. Wrap in the waxed paper and refrigerate for 20-30 minutes (no longer or the dough will crack when you roll it out). However, if you do refrigerate it for longer (even overnight) let it stand at room temperature for about 1 hour before rolling it out). 9. Adjust two racks to divide oven into thirds, and preheat oven to 400. Line cookie sheets with aluminum foil. Flour a pastry cloth and place the dough on it. (If you have doubled the recipe, roll only half of the dough at a time). With a floured rolling pin (which should be refloured frequently to avoid sticking), roll the dough out until it is only 1/8" thick (thin). I use a round cookie cutter that is 2 3/4" in diameter. Use any size you like, and cut the cookies as close to each other as possible. Place the cookies 1/2" apart on the aluminum foil. (It might be necessary to transfer the cookies from the pastry cloth to the foil with a wide metal spatula). Handle them carefully in order to keep them perfectly round and flat. Leftover pieces of the dough should be pressed together and rerolled. Bake 2 sheets at a time, for 7-8 minutes, reversing the sheets top to bottom, and front to back once, to insure even baking. Bake until the cookies feel almost firm to the touch. These are supposed to be crisp (they will become more crisp as they cool) and they should not be underbaked, but watch them carefully to be sure they do not burn. If you bake one sheet at a time, bake it on the upper rack. With a wide metal spatula, transfer the cookies to racks to cool. Store in airtight container.