extreme banana nut bread

it was raining today and brian and i were craving some comfort food.  so i threw some chicken taco stew in the crock pot and decided to bake some banana nut bread for dessert. 

ingredients needed:

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

two sticks of butter, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

4 eggs, beaten

4 over-ripe bananas, mashed

1 cup chopped walnuts - optional

preheat the oven to 325 - yields two loafs - 9x5 

bake time: 60-70 min

method:

once the oven is preheated, grease and flour your loaf pans.

in a medium bowl, sift flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon.

 

in a large bowl, cream your butter and sugar until smooth.

 

once the mixture is smooth, add the eggs and vanilla and beat on low until well incorporated.

 

i just added the chopped walnuts to my mashed bananas... on the right is my sifted dry ingredients

next, gradually add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients.  i used a spatula for this.  you should probably add the dry ingredients in thirds, but i was too impatient and added it all at once.

next, add the bananas and walnuts.  dont overmix.

divide the batter evenly between the two prepared loaf pans.  bake for 60-70 min until a knife inserted into the crown of the loaf comes out clean. 

 

i would recommend keeping a close eye on the loaves around 45-50 min.   because of the sugars, it can brown quickly.  i started to smell the bread at about 50 min, and i should have checked on it then, and didnt. a liiiiitttllee burnt. darn. *note - i think our oven is hotter than it should be, so you may not have any problems.

 

let the loaves cool in pan for 5-10 min.  transfer the loaves to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely.  wrap in aluminum foil to keep the moisture in.   ideally, refrigerate for two hours before serving.  but heck, they come out warm and smelling delicious.  how can you resist?  there are two loaves... so i decided to try one hot out of the oven and put the other one in the fridge to cool for two hours.  

finished product.  yuuuuummm!  way good and way addicting.  i just wish i hadnt burned the edges.  ugh.  better luck next time.  it was still delicious though.  enjoy!