Banana Bread

Whenever my mom and I see a new brownie, cookie, scone, or banana bread recipe, we have to try it regardless of the favorite recipes we already have. We got a new cookbook called “Southern Living Comfort Food”, so we had to try this banana bread recipe. We used the variation below and added 1 cup of chopped pecans for that extra “crunch”. This recipe is different than most since it calls for a 1/4 cup of yogurt, which gives it a nice tang and ensures the batter is very moist. This was a great banana bread recipe, however my favorite is Martha Stewart’s Coconut Banana Nut Bread because it has shredded coconut!!! Enjoy!

Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl. Make a well in the center.

Mash the bananas.

Stir together the melted butter, mashed bananas, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla.

Add wet mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir in the toasted pecans, if using.

Pour batter into a prepared loaf pan.

Bake for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool completely.

Banana Bread
Ingredients
2 cups self-rising flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup butter, melted
3 very ripe bananas, mashed (1 1/2 cups)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup strawberry or vanilla yogurt (We used strawberry)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
*1 cup chopped toasted pecans (optional, see note below)
*1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels (optional, see note below)

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan; set aside.
2. Combine first 4 ingredients in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture.
3. Stir together melted butter, mashed banana, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla. Add to dry ingredients; stir just until moistened.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cover loosely with aluminum foil after 40 minutes if loaf begins to brown too quickly.
5. Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan, and cool completely on wire rack.

Yield: 1 loaf

*Banana-Nut Bread
Add 1 cup chopped, toasted pecans to batter before baking

*Chocolate-Chip Banana Bread
Add 1 cup semisweet chocolate morsels to batter before baking.

Note: For muffins, spoon batter into lightly greased or paper-lined muffin pans, filling 3/4 full. Bake at 350 degrees for 19 to 21 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from pans immediately. Let cool on wire racks. Yield: 20 muffins