Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Five Star Banana Bread

This time of year I always seem to get bit by the baking bug. I'm sure it's the same for lots of folks.  What with the holidays right around the corner and a chill in the air it's time to dust off my baking skills (which are negligible) and fire up the oven.   I've been craving banana bread.  Not to mention I've got a bunch of bananas in the freezer I'd like to use up.  I've been experimenting for years with different banana bread recipes, trying to find "The One".   While there are hundreds of recipes out there I finally settled on the one I'm going to share with you today. I've made this one several times over the past couple of years and it makes a couple of wonderful loaves of yummyness.

Banana Bread

3 1/2 cups of All-Purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter ( or sub 1 cup of shortening if you'd rather)
4 eggs
2 1/2 cups of very ripe mashed bananas
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla

Directions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease two 9x5 loaf pans.
In a big bowl beat the butter and gradually add your sugar. Add eggs and beat well. Stir in mashed banana's and vanilla.
In another bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Blend into the banana batter.  If you want to add nuts, now is the time.  Divide the batter between the two greased pans.
Pop it into the hot oven.  Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until a toothpick stuck in the center of the loaves comes out clean.

Here's where I like to start a pot of coffee and pour me a cup.  Cut a slice of banana bread and enjoy it with a hot cup of coffee just to make sure it's done.  Cut another slice to double check for quality control. Then and only then consider maybe... just maybe... sharing with the rest of the family.

24 comments:

  1. oh Holy Banana Bread Batman! Yummeh! I am going to bake this today Sci .. Thanks!

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  2. Oh! I wish I could do wheat! I have always loved banana bread. And you are not alone. I always feel like cooking when the cool weather arrives. :-)

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    1. Sue,
      Sorry, I didn't mean to torture you. I like cooking when cold weather arrives. It helps heat up the house too. Unlike the summer when the very last thing I want to do in this RV is crank up some heat.
      So what's in your oven?
      Sci

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    2. You can make this...substitute gluten free bisquick for the all purpose flour. It is available at Albertsons! You can make biscuits with it, too. Get more than one box. ;)

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  3. Send me some, not that you really got me hungry for it.

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    1. DD,
      Isn't Banana Bread awesome! Do you like it with butter slathered on it? I just love it right out of the oven with some butter all melted into it. lolllllllllllllll sorry, that was just mean wasn't it?
      Sci

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  4. Martino here ....

    Making your banana cake now :) Just a whim but I'm in the baking mood too.

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    1. Hi Martino, Let me know what you think. Tis the Baking Season!
      Sci

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  5. SCI,

    YUM, I have 3 bananas calling my name. I've been wanting to make bread again.

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  6. ...well, it's going into the binder...it'll be a few days until the Thanksgiving cooking week arrives...it'll compliment my pecan pies nicely...thanx Sci

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    1. Ken, I didn't know you baked. A man of many talents. Pecan Pie, Oh My! I always think of pecan pie when folks start thinking about Thanksgiving desserts. My grandma used to make some yummy yummy ones. So one day I asked her if she would share the recipe. She laughed and said "It's right there on the bottle of the Karo syrup". smh

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    2. ...i just like to eat...part of that is cooking(baking)...my breads suffer some but i'm getting better...i have a three ring binder full of recipes from the blogs, thank God i have a ultra fast metabolism, or else i would be a house...6' 2" and still about 175 lbs since highschool... i balloon up to 180 ish around the Holidays tho...lol

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  7. Banana bread yum yum!! I too have frozen bananas in the deep freeze, but they can stay there for awhile. I pureed a few pumpkins last week, which I have been baking into loaves.

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    1. PCH, the local grocery sometimes has marked down banana's. A nice size bag for a dollar, so it's hard to pass up. Pumpkin bread sounds pretty dang good. I've got a couple or three pie pumpkins that I need to do something with. Hmmm....

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  8. I'm glad you decided to share the best recipe instead of the other ones. lol I'm making a pumpkin roll cake now, because it''s expected.....next, your banana bread....warm, with REAL butter. After it cools, I'll make a confectioners sugar icing for the top. mmmmmmm

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    1. lottajoy, if you prefer I'll be glad to hook you up with one of the others! Hahahaaa
      Pumpkin roll cake sounds good but how do you keep it on the plate?

      Oh man, now you have me wanting to put sugar drizzles on this bread. I might have to make another loaf now!

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    2. Oh, it makes it SO good. Confectioners sugar, soft butter, and a drop of vanilla...a wee dab of milk. A diabetics dream. And I printed out your recipe for longevity.

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  9. Thank you. I love banana bread and will check this out as my recipe is nothing special. On the bread front, I've a friend that also has a lab, her's is a chocolate. She made a pumpkin bread to bring to a charity baked goods auction. It was beautiful, wrapped in clear plastic, with a big ribbon in which lay two pieces of dried wheat for decoration. She placed it in the CENTER of the dining room table and went upstairs to do one last thing before work. She came down and the bread was gone. Her lab was hiding in another room. The ribbon was shredded, the plastic torn, the wheat GONE, as well as the whole loaf of bread.

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    1. What a great story! I can just see that lab standing right up in the middle of the table eating cake! And then look at her with big eyes and saying "What???"

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  10. I always add pecans to mine, yummy! Choc chips and coconut would be good too!

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    1. Ohhh I think that sounds wonderful. Chocolate chip Banana Bread anyone?

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