Basic Banana Bread

One of the most popular recipes I make this end of the year is Banana Bread. Most of the time it's actually Fruit Bread, on account of all the extra goodies I throw in, but today I'm going to break down the basic recipe to build from.

Anna Banana's Bread

The Shit List

• 3 Bananas, as ripe as possible
• 2 Eggs
• 2 cups Flour
• 3/4 cup Sugar
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 teaspoon Baking Soda
• Butter 9x5 Loaf Pan

How to Handle That Shit 

Mash the royal fuck out of your bananas.

Add 2 eggs, beating them into submission with the bananas.

Sift in 2 cups flour, 3/4 cup sugar, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon baking soda.

Stir well, until that shit looks consistent.

Pour into the loaf pan, giving it a little jiggle to settle in nice and deep like. I like to sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of sugar on the top to make a pretty, sweet crust.

Bake 1 hour at 350F, when toothpick comes out clean, that shit is ready to pop out to cool.

This tastes delicious in slices with butter, cream cheese, or fruit spread. I imagine Nutella would kick ass too, but I can't handle hazelnut to try it out. For breakfast, I love toasting up a slice, covering it in a spread, and having it with a nice cup of tea or coffee.

  Extra Shit You Can Do

•  Get your nuts all up in this recipe's business. My personal favorites are pecans and almonds, chopped and toasted in an oven for 10 minutes. Throw about 1 cup of your choice of nut into the batter, and sprinkle 1/2 cup on the top before baking for a pretty crust.
• For a bigger punch in your mouth, add two tablespoons brown suger, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, and 1/2 teaspoon allspice in at step #3.
• Don't have enough bananas? You can substitute 1 banana with 1 cup of yogurt, sour cream, or applesauce, and you will still taste banana goodness. 
• You can also replace bananas with any jam, and obviously this will change the flavor a bit with whichever item you substitute. I have made breads with no banana at all, which obviously means it isn't "banana" bread anymore, but still delicious. I'd suggest staying away from grape or lemon, as they tend to clash with the overall flavors.
• I haven't experimented with vegetables yet, as that is more savory and would most likely jive more with a zucchini bread recipe than this sweeter bread.
• Dried fruit is the business when it's Christmastime. Fruitcake is usually pretty nasty, but with this basic recipe, you can jazz it up by mixing dried fruits in before putting it in the pan, and rock everyone's Yuletide world! Some of my favorite add-ins are rum/bourbon soaked rasins (gold or regular), cherries, cranberries, blueberries, and apples.
• Want to go more dessert-like? Dark chocolate chips go great with both the basic recipe and any substitutes or additions.