Usually when I have extra bananas in the house that are ripening faster than we can eat them, I start looking for recipes to use them up. This time, my husband Wayne told me I needed to make some banana bread or something because I accidentally bought a bunch a few days after I had bought a bunch. So I really had an overabundance of bananas.
It didn't take me long to find a recipe in Beverly Lewis' Amish Heritage Cookbook for Banana Nut Bread. Bev added a note under the recipe that said, "The light texture will convince banana bread connoisseurs on the very first bite!" It looked easy enough so Sunday afternoon I found myself in my kitchen mashing bananas.
Since I was making this for us, I decided to substitute 1/2 cup of my sugar/stevia baking blend for the cup of sugar. As I was putting the first ingredients in the mixing bowl as directed by the recipe, I had this urge for coconut. So without a second thought, I added a half a cup of unsweetened coconut flakes.
This is Volunteer Appreciation Week at the thrift shop so each day the staff is doing something special for the volunteers. This is also the week I have the quilting group, Blankets of Hope, at church on Tuesday morning so I usually sign up for Monday morning first shift the second week. Monday the staff planned to serve us breakfast and I figured there would be plenty to eat and my "treat" wouldn't be missed, but at the last moment as I walked out of the house, I picked up the loaf of banana bread. When I got to the thrift shop I made the decision to leave it in the car and I could come get it if I needed to.
Well, there was so much food for breakfast and four different kinds of muffins so I didn't say anything. Later, Volunteers Terry and John came up to me at the register and asked me if I had brought anything for them. I told them about my banana bread in the car but that there were so many muffins, my banana bread wasn't needed. Then they told me the muffins had been bagged up and weren't in the community room and I needed to go get my bread. I was surprised at what they were telling me, but I left my register (it was a little slow right then) and got the bread out of my car.
They were waiting for me in the community room when I brought it in and told me I could just bring it over to the table they were sitting at. I got a knife to slice it and then noticed the muffins were still on the counter. I fussed at them for "lying to me" and they said nothing brought in compared to what I made. 😏
I brought home a few pieces left at the end of my shift so Wayne could eat it and he really liked it. I told him I was going to make it again later in the week since I still had bananas. When I got ready to make it on Wednesday, I asked him if he wanted me to make it with or without the coconut. He said he liked coconut and wanted me to add it. I also like it with the coconut, but then I like coconut. The original Amish recipe does not include the coconut though.
Click here for a printable version of just the recipe.
BANANA (COCONUT) NUT BREAD
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup sugar/stevia baking blend)
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup mashed bananas
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (optional)
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 x 4-1/2 - inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
Cream together with electric mixer the shortening, sugar, eggs, mashed bananas, walnuts, and coconut if using.
Combine the flour, baking soda, and baking powder together in a small bowl with a whisk.
Add to wet mixture and
mix well.
Spread in prepared loaf pan and
bake for 1 hour.
Cool about 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; run a knife around the edges and remove bread to finish cooling on rack. Wrap in foil.
It didn't take me long to find a recipe in Beverly Lewis' Amish Heritage Cookbook for Banana Nut Bread. Bev added a note under the recipe that said, "The light texture will convince banana bread connoisseurs on the very first bite!" It looked easy enough so Sunday afternoon I found myself in my kitchen mashing bananas.
Since I was making this for us, I decided to substitute 1/2 cup of my sugar/stevia baking blend for the cup of sugar. As I was putting the first ingredients in the mixing bowl as directed by the recipe, I had this urge for coconut. So without a second thought, I added a half a cup of unsweetened coconut flakes.
This is Volunteer Appreciation Week at the thrift shop so each day the staff is doing something special for the volunteers. This is also the week I have the quilting group, Blankets of Hope, at church on Tuesday morning so I usually sign up for Monday morning first shift the second week. Monday the staff planned to serve us breakfast and I figured there would be plenty to eat and my "treat" wouldn't be missed, but at the last moment as I walked out of the house, I picked up the loaf of banana bread. When I got to the thrift shop I made the decision to leave it in the car and I could come get it if I needed to.
Well, there was so much food for breakfast and four different kinds of muffins so I didn't say anything. Later, Volunteers Terry and John came up to me at the register and asked me if I had brought anything for them. I told them about my banana bread in the car but that there were so many muffins, my banana bread wasn't needed. Then they told me the muffins had been bagged up and weren't in the community room and I needed to go get my bread. I was surprised at what they were telling me, but I left my register (it was a little slow right then) and got the bread out of my car.
They were waiting for me in the community room when I brought it in and told me I could just bring it over to the table they were sitting at. I got a knife to slice it and then noticed the muffins were still on the counter. I fussed at them for "lying to me" and they said nothing brought in compared to what I made. 😏
I brought home a few pieces left at the end of my shift so Wayne could eat it and he really liked it. I told him I was going to make it again later in the week since I still had bananas. When I got ready to make it on Wednesday, I asked him if he wanted me to make it with or without the coconut. He said he liked coconut and wanted me to add it. I also like it with the coconut, but then I like coconut. The original Amish recipe does not include the coconut though.
Click here for a printable version of just the recipe.
BANANA (COCONUT) NUT BREAD
1/2 cup shortening
1 cup sugar (I used 1/2 cup sugar/stevia baking blend)
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup mashed bananas
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (optional)
2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray an 8 x 4-1/2 - inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.
Cool about 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; run a knife around the edges and remove bread to finish cooling on rack. Wrap in foil.
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