Banana Banana Bread

Ingredients:

• 2 c flour (I use 1c whole wheat and 1c all purpose)
• 1 t baking soda
• 1/4 t salt
• 1/2 c butter
• 3/4 c brown sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 1/2 c mashed overripe bananas *Depending on size, this is about 6 bananas. Mashing only takes about 30 seconds in a Kitchen Aid mixer - I like to leave it a little on the lumpy side.
• Optional fixins: 1/2 c chocolate chips, 1/2 c chopped walnuts, or 1/2 c blueberries (I often add frozen ones, just go to upper end of bake time)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease 9x5 loaf pan
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
3. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar.  Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended.
4. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture, stir just to moisten. Gently stir in an optional ingredients: chocolate chips, walnuts or berries.  Pour batter into prepared loaf ban.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 60-65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean.  Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

I really enjoy banana bread, but let me clarify... MOIST bread.  Dry banana bread is a travesty in my humble opinion.  That's why I love this recipe (only mildly adapted from one I found on allrecipes.com).  I am obsessed with how moist it is and I love the ridiculous amount of banana flavor.  Most banana bread recipes call for 2-3 ripe bananas. This one is double that... and I believe double the banana flavor.  I love keeping the mashed bananas a little on the lumpy side because I love the added texture.  You could easily put the bananas in a blender as well if you wanted a more uniform texture.  Emma is a huge fan of the chocolate chip banana bread (as is Eric :), and I prefer a little more traditional with walnuts or blueberries if I'm eating it for breakfast. Enjoy my family's favorite banana banana bread!