Preheat oven to 350 degrees with the rack positioned in the middle. Cream together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating to fully incorporate into the mixture, then beat in the bananas and vanilla. Sift together the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and cinnamon. Mix this in to the wet ingredients until you can see no traces of flour. Using a rubber spatula, transfer the batter to a greased 8×8″ cake pan with the bottom lined with parchment paper, and bake in the center of the oven until it has set and a toothpick can be inserted into the center and come out clean, about 30-35 minutes. Allow to cool slightly, then turn onto a wire rack to cool completely before storing. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the penne to al dente. Do not over cook or you will have one mushy casserole. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large pot over medium-low heat and add the leeks, celery and garlic with a pinch of salt. Sweat the mixture until the leeks are softened and their liquid has been released and evaporated. Add the flour to the leeks and stir to coat. Cook off for a minute. Add the milk to the leeks, 1/2 cup at a time, whisking to work out any lumps each time. Raise the heat of the leek pot to medium-high and add the bay leaf, mustard and lemon zest. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. Remove from heat, discard the bay leaf and season to taste with dill, salt and white pepper. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water and drain the pasta. Combine the sauce, pasta and tuna, adding the reserved pasta water to create a creamy consistency, coating all the pasta. Transfer everything to a casserole dish and top with bread crumbs and grated cheese. Bake until top is golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Cool slightly, cut into wedges and serve. Heat a cast iron Dutch oven (or similar heavy bottomed pot) over medium-high heat with lid on, containing the oil and a couple of popcorn kernels. When you hear the kernels pop, the oil is ready. Remove the lid, add the remaining popcorn kernels and sugar, stirring quickly with a wooden spoon to coat. Put the lid back on and, shaking occasionally to prevent sticking, continue to cook over medium-high heat until popping reduces dramatically. Remove the lid and sprinkle over the salt. Put the lid back on, give the pot a shake and then dump the contents into a bowl for good eating. For ease of clean up, when the pot has cooled (to avoid cracking), fill it with water and bring to a boil and scrape off any caramelized sugar with a wooden spoon. Since the sugar adds so much depth on its own, it is unnecessary to use very much salt to bring out the flavor. Add a couple of honey roasted peanuts in there if I’m coming over. Heat a heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat with the lid on, containing the oil and a couple of popcorn kernels. When you hear the kernels pop, the oil is ready. Remove the lid and add the remaining popcorn kernels. Put the lid back on and, shaking occasionally to prevent sticking, continue to cook over medium-high heat until popping reduces dramatically. Remove the lid and sprinkle over the salt. Put the lid back on, give the pot a shake and then dump the contents into a bowl for good eating. Yes, this is just a small variation over the recipe above. So what? Coat the popcorn kernels with oil and place in a brown paper lunch bag. Omit the oil if you are not adding salt, it is merely to give the salt something to cling to. Fold the flap of the bag over twice to seal and place, standing up right, in the middle of the microwave. Microwave on high for 2-3 minutes, or until popping begins to subside. Remove from the microwave, carefully open the bag and sprinkle with salt, if using. Reseal, shake to distribute salt and enjoy. Since microwaves vary greatly, you may need to experiment with how long and how much power to use to make your popcorn.
