calling all banana bread lovers

I wouldn't call myself a lover, but I like banana bread. I take that back, I like GOOD banana bread. It has to be thick and moist and dark. Every time I raise the courage to try making another loaf, it ends up being light and fluffy, sounds yummy, but it is not.

This morning, I looked in the freezer, I am not sure why, but I saw the ten bananas that I have been stashing away for a rainy day that I was feeling confident. Obviously it hadn't come in a while, how did I get that many bananas?



So I decided I was going to have a banana bread marathon to see if I can find that one recipe. You know, the one recipe that you made that one time, but you cannot remember which one it was and you just cannot replicate. So I scoured my cookbooks and made three loafs of banana bread. Just incase you were wondering how many loafs 10 bananas makes, its three.

So we made banana bread...



and the conclusion was that the Better Homes and Gardens recipe was the best (of the three.) And I even used whole wheat flour (don't tell Jared)


The third loaf not only looks HORRIBLE, but tasted nasty too.

No I didn't find the ONE, but it was pretty good, I liked it. But maybe if I can find that ONE, I might become a banana bread lover.



I did learn a secret, don't use a blender, use a wooden spoon, we like chunks of banana, not just banana flavored bread.

Better Homes and Gardens Banana Bread
ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 eggs, beaten
1-1/2 cups mashed banana (5 medium)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup cooking oil or melted butter or margarine
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1 recipe Streusel-Nut Topping (optional)
directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease bottom and 1/2 inch up the sides of one 9x5x3-inch or two 7-1/2x3-1/2x2-inch loaf pans; set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Make a well in center of flour mixture; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl combine eggs, banana, sugar, and oil. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture. Stir just until moistened (batter should be lumpy). Fold in nuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan(s). If desired, sprinkle Streusel Topping over batter.

3. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes for 9x5x3-inch pan or 40 to 45 minutes for 7-1/2x3-1/2x2-inch pans or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean (if necessary, cover loosely with foil the last 15 minutes of baking to prevent overbrowning). Cool in pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely on a wire rack. Wrap and store overnight before slicing.

4. Makes 1 loaf (16 slices)

5. Streusel-Nut Topping: In a small bowl combine 1/4 cup packed brown sugar and 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour. Using a pastry blender, cut in 2 tablespoons butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in 1/3 cup chopped walnuts.



And of course...