Simple and Delicious Banana Bread

My motto is never waste a banana. I usually buy more bananas than I know we can eat. When my bananas get black I peel them, put them in a ziplock bag and freeze them until I am ready to make some banana bread. I then thaw them and they are perfect. Here is one of my favorite recipe. It makes enough to eat and share. Not many people will turn down a fresh, home-baked loaf of banana bread. 

5 cups of white flour
2 cups of sugar
7 teaspoons of baking powder
2 teaspoons of salt
6 tablespoons of vegetable oil
2 cups of 2 percent milk
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
2 cups of mashed bananas
1/2 chopped maraschino cherries 

optional: 2 cups of walnuts chopped roughly

Heat the oven to 350. Grease and flour two loaf pans (I like stone).

Place all the ingredients except for the bananas, cherries, and nuts into a large bowl and beat with an electric mixer until well blended. Make sure to stop every so often to scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl. Mash the bananas with a fork until they break down a bit. Add the bananas to the batter and blend. Fold in the cherries and the nuts.

Divide the batter between the two pans and place them in the center of the oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes. Use a toothpick or knife to check if it is done. If it comes out clean, it is done. Place the pans on a rack to cool. Loosen the edges with a knife, flip the pans over and tap the bottom, I use a knife. Lift the pan off slowly in case the bread is sticking to the bottom of the pan.

If you want to take it up a notch, add 1 cup of chopped dates in place of the maraschino cherries. Another good substitution is 1 cup of mini chocolate chips again in place of the cherries. You can also melt 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and drizzle the loaf.

This recipe will make about 8 good size muffins if you prefer to have a small portable portion.

Serve the loaf sliced and spread with butter or eat plain. This is a good moist bread that keeps for several days in the fridge. It also freezes well and stays delicious for months if you pack it carefully. Since it makes two loaves you will have to decide whether you prefer to share or have some for next week or next month.