Going bananas

I'm not a banana fan. They're so pushy. Put them in fruit salad and they will smother every ingredient but cantaloupe. They leap from peanut butter sandwiches just to annoy you, and will slime-up a perfectly decent cream pie. Banana splits force unwanted nutrition upon purposefully decadent ice cream, while sending the whipped cream slithering off the sides. The only time they co-operate is when mashed into submission and baked into a cake.

Perhaps I'd view bananas in a more charitable light if I lived where they grew, but I find little appeal in the queasy chartreuse things they ship to grocery stores north of the 49th parallel. Bananas are tolerable if eaten when none-too-ripe, but they slip from a firm, warm yellow to a slimy ebony so quickly it seems futile to buy them. And I hate to waste food. Since you can't refrigerate the suckers, a bit of ingenuity is required if you wish to bank the aging fruit for baking. If you don't have time to make banana cake now, just peel the suckers and toss them in the freezer -- in a baggie, of course.

Everyone and their fifth cousin-once-removed has a banana bread recipe, but trust me, this one is the best. Even though I don't like bananas, I gobble this moist dessert without a qualm. Named for the woman who generously shared this recipe with me 20 plus years go, here is the recipe I promised in a previous post. Drum roll please, for Bev's Best Banana Bread. Ask for it by name.

Bev's Best Banana Bread
Printable recipe

Ingredients

• 1 cup mashed ripe bananas
• 1 level tsp baking soda
• 1 egg
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 melted butter
• 2 tbsp milk
• 1 1/2 cup cake and pastry flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla

Instructions

1. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas and baking soda together. Set aside.
2. Mix remaining ingredients together until smooth.
3. Fold in banana mixture.
4. Bake in 9" pan at 350F for 35 to 45 minutes.
5. If making muffins, line tin with muffin papers and bake 20 minutes.

Variations

• Don't even think of messing with this recipe. It's perfect.
• If you're feeling particularly decadent, ice with cream cheese icing, but this moist cake doesn't need any help.

Serving Suggestions

• Serve with tea, coffee and a warning that it's addictive.