Quick and Easy Banana Bread

Don't you just love it when some things in life just come together so perfectly?  I'd gone through a string of not-so-great recipes and then I got super busy so there was minimal posting on my blog (as you may have noticed).  Last week, I wanted some bananas.  I love raw bananas - the greener, the better.  Yes, I'm weird, I know.  My husband doesn't like bananas.  Which, of course, means my husband is even weirder than me!  So I ate the bananas I wanted and I ended up having three sitting on my counter.  They'd started to turn black and since I'm a firm believer of "waste not, want not", I HAD to make something out of these bananas.  Knowing the husband wasn't going to be eating anything, I decided to make banana bread.  While I may not be the biggest fan (I'll eat it if I feel like it), my mom and best friend love banana bread.  I wanted to try out a somewhat simple recipe since it had been SO long since I'd made it.  Luckily, this turned out REALLY good (although not as good as my best friend's banana bread, who currently owns the title of "Best Banana Bread" in our families).  It's super simple and I'd bet you probably have all the ingredients in your pantry right now.

Quick and Easy Banana Bread
adapted slightly from King Arthur Flour

1/4 c. Canola Oil
3/4 c. Brown Sugar, packed (light or dark)
3 Eggs
1 1/2 Bananas, mashed (about 3)
2 1/4 Baking Mix (I used this but Bisquick will work just fine)
1/2 tsp. Ground Allspice
1/2 c. Chopped Pecans (or walnuts)

Preheat your oven to 350.
Spray a 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf pan with cooking spray with flour.
In a large bowl, whisk your oil and sugar until combined.
Add in the eggs and keep whisking til it all comes together.
Add in your mashed bananas, baking mix, and allspice and mix until blended.
Stir in the nuts until its evenly distributed.
Pour into your loaf pan and bake for 60 minutes, laying a piece aluminum foil over the top after 30 minutes to prevent overbrowning.
You'll know its done when a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.
Allow the bread to cool for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan so it can cool completely on a wire rack.
Eat and enjoy :)

Easy Banana Nut Muffins

Sometimes a recipe comes along that is so good, people ask for it as a gift.  This is the story of these muffins.  I was looking for a banana nut muffin recipe because I had some bananas that were turning black and were begging to be used.  Now, I'm not the biggest fan of banana nut bread or muffins.  I prefer straight bananas but my best friend Erin is the exact opposite and I knew my parents loved banana nut things (what about Ryan?  He hates bananas).  So I knew if I made them, they would be eaten.  I made the muffins and my dad fell in love with them.  He loved them so much that when I asked him what he wanted for father's day, he said, "I want those banana muffins you made a couple of weeks ago."  So that's what I did!


Banana Nut Muffins
(recipe courtesy of King Arthur Flour Whole Grain Baking cookbook)

1/2 c. Butter, melted
1/2 c. Brown Sugar (I use light but you can use dark if that's all you have)
3/4 tsp. Baking Soda
3/4 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice (no PPS?  Use 1/4 tsp. nutmeg and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon)
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract (Neilson-Massey Vanilla Bean Paste)
3 Ripened Bananas
1/4 c. Honey
2 Eggs (or 1/2 c. Egg Beaters)
2 c. Whole Wheat Flour (or White Whole Wheat or All-Purpose) (KAF)
1/2 c. Chopped Walnuts or Pecans

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 12 cup muffin tin.
Beat together the butter, brown sugar, baking soda, spices, and vanilla in a bowl until smooth.
Add the honey and eggs, beating until smooth.
Peel the bananas and place into the bowl.  Using a potato masher, mash the bananas into the mixture (you can make it as lumpy or smooth as you like).
Add in the flour, stir to combine.
Lastly, add the walnuts/pecans and mix.
Pour the batter evenly into your muffin tin (I like using a 1/4 c. measuring cup so I know how much is going into each tin).
Bake the muffins for 23 to 28 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean.
Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for a couple of minutes and then move the muffins to a rack to cool.

Notes:
Want to make Banana-Chocolate Chip Muffins?  Add 1/2 c. chocolate chips instead of the 1/2 c. nuts.
Want bread instead of muffins?  Follow the directions only instead of adding to greased muffin tin, you'll add the batter to a greased 9x5 inch loaf pan and bake for 50 minutes.  After 50 minutes, cover the bread lightly with foil and cook an additional 10 minutes.  Allow to cool for 10 minutes before removing the bread from the pan and allowing it to finish cooling on a wire rack.