Middle Aged and Living Well

Every family should have a goto banana bread recipe to use up those aging bananas on the counter.  Try this recipe for a moist, but not wet bread with strong banana flavor and great  crumb.  If you don’t like the wheat flavor, feel free to replace the wheat and oats with equal amounts of all purpose flour.

Ingredients

• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup vegetable oil, or shortening or melted butter
• 1/2 cup plus 1 Tbl brown sugar, separated
• 2 or 3 ripe bananas,
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2/3 cup rolled oats
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
• 1 cup buttermilk, yogurt or sour cream
• 3/4 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Procedure

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Peel and split bananas down the middle lengthwise and place on oven proof tray.  Sprinkle with 1 Tbl of brown sugar and roast for 15-20 minutes, until juices are flowing and sugar is starting to caramelize and the aroma of bananas fill your kitchen. Remove from oven and lower temperature to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl mix eggs, sugars, oil until ribbon stage.  Mash roasted bananas and add with the vanilla to the egg mixture.  In a food processor, add the flours, oats, baking soda and powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg and pulse several times to mix and reduce the rolled oats to a flour.  Add dry ingredients to the liquid ingredients and stir until just blended.  Add the buttermilk and stir until combined.  If using, add the chocolate chips and lightly stir.

Pour into a 5×9 inch buttered and floured loaf pan.  Bake for 1 hour or until a cake tester comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack and wait until cool to cut.

Note

Want to turn your banana bread to a fancy dessert?  Toast some slices of the bread, top with cinnamon ice cream and drizzle with caramel sauce.  This is an easy to make dessert with a great wow factor.