Banana Bread

Banana bread is incredible.  Banana bread is also awful.  The number of times I have loved it and hated it is equal.  For this reason alone, I only eat my own.  That is only because I have re-imagined a number of banana bread recipes into the single one that I truly love.  A little from here + A little from there = Incredible banana bread.The foundation of my re-imagination lies in the bananas.  How can you do something different to bananas, you ask?  Well, you procrastinate.  I never feel the desire to bake banana bread until 12 hours or less than when I need it.  I have never once thought "I am going to make banana bread on Thursday for Friday night's _________ so I should buy some bananas a week ahead."  Instead, at about 8:30 the night before I need said treat, I think "You know, banana bread would be great."  Therefore, I am left with a late night trip to the store hoping for black bananas, which (not) surprisingly they never have.  As a result, I have to ripen my bananas on my own, which is what makes my banana bread unique.  The banana favor is authentic--not to sweet (or so ripe they are strange!), and not like paste (e.g., the effect that peanut butter has when stuck to the roof of your mouth).  Because of fidelity to their own fruit's natural taste, my bananas make for a great banana bread.

 

Throw all of your bananas on a baking sheet lined with foil and place them in the oven at 300 degrees until they are black, soft, and leaking a bit from the ends.

I made chocolate banana bread with chocolate chips (tonight it was gluten free) and regular old banana bread.  Both are incredible in their own right.

Banana Bread:

(mostly inspired by the Banana Banana Bread post on allrecipes.com)

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 5, 6, or 7 (or really however many you want!) oven-ripened bananas
• a dash of vanilla

1. Ripen your bananas in a 300 degree oven.  When cooled, mash them to the consistency of your liking.  (People are as picky about the consistency of their bananas as they are about mashed potatoes.)
2. When the bananas are done, turn the oven to 350.
3. Cream together butter and brown sugar.  Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended.  Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients then stir just to moisten.  Pour batter into a lightly Pammed loaf pan (or 2) of your choice.
4. Bake for 55-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.
5. Try to resist eating until the next morning when the flavors have completely developed.