Best Banana Bread

My husband loves baked treats and frequently asks me to bake some. Once in a while, I give in and bake a batch of cookies or banana bread. I pack some of it up and send them off to work with him. His coworkers often ask me for recipes. Now, I can send them here.

Like most bakers, I have tried many different recipes for banana bread before finding one that absolutely blew my mind. I asked my husband to taste the bit of dough left in the bowl. He doesn't usually like to, but when he did, he was floored. We knew this was going to be good. The best way to describe this banana bread is to say that the crust, which comes out a nice shade of brown is on the crispy side. But the center is so soft and almost doughy without being underdone. Take great care not to eat too much (this is difficult) because it is very sweet. I might even suggest adjusting the sugar with each new batch. Though my husband would disagree as he thinks it's perfect the way it is. To each his own.

Taste in Bloom Original Photo

Difficulty: Easy; Serves: 1 loaf; Total time: 2 hrs 20 mins

Barely adapted from *Food Network: Flour's Famous Banana Bread
Ingredients:

• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup + 2 Tbsp sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup oil
• 3 1/2 very ripe bananas, mashed
• 2 Tbsp crème fraiche or sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2/3 cups walnuts, toasted and chopped (opt. - I left them out)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line bottom of a loaf pan with parchment paper.

Sift dry ingredients together: flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. 

Whisk together sugar and eggs until light and fluffy, about 10 minutes. Drizzle in oil and add mashed bananas, crème fraiche or sour cream and vanilla extract.

Pour into lined loaf pan and bake about 45-50 minutes, up to one hour.