Kitchen Phoenix: Banana Bread

It's still pouring rain here. Steady, heavy rain all day long added more to the already soaked ground and high rivers. Many of the smaller rivers here are in flood warning, and we learned that our friends' house has a couple feet of water underneath it (again).

Life is exciting, isn't it?

I had a couple of nasty old bananas sitting around, so to combat the dreariness outside, I decided to bake my cares away inside. This is a recipe that I received from my mother-in-law in the form of their hometown's County Cookbook, published in during the county's centennial in 1985. She not only was an involved contributor, but she also saved a copy for each of her future daughters-in-law.

Small-town North Dakota, people. Like straight out of a movie. (There were no murders.)

I love the look on The Husband's face when he comes home and sees (and smells!) banana bread cooling near the stove. He's like a kid on Christmas morning!

Food is totally my love language.

Banana Nut Bread

courtesy of my MIL




Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup mashed bananas (two big old nasty ones)
1/2 cup chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans work well)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 330 degrees F. (Not a typo. 350, I've found, is too hot.)

Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well.

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and nutmeg.

Mash bananas (if you haven't already).

Add, alternately, flour mixture and mashed bananas to the butter mixture until incorporated. Don't overbeat.

Mix in nuts.

Pour into a well-greased loaf pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from loaf pan and cool on wire rack.