Banana Bread Pyle
This is one I’ve adopted from my Mom, Val, and after years of sampling banana bread recipes, this is her favorite. The macadamia nuts are the winning touch. The recipe is from Aunt Bea’s cookbook, a collection of recipes reminiscent of Mayberry– home of Andy Griffith.
- 1 cup butter or oil (You can use canola or vegetable oil as a substitute; however, your loaves will turn out slightly sunken-in at the very center– but taste the same)
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 6 to 7 ripe bananas, mashed
- 2-1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1/2 cup or so chopped macadamia nuts
Grease 2 large loaf pans. (Mom uses 3 regular ones, filled about halfway, so they don’t have to bake as long and get overly dark edges/bottom.)
Cream the oil with the sugar. Add the eggs and beat well. Add the mashed bananas, stirring to blend.
In a separate bowl sift together the dry ingredients. Fold the dry ingredients into the batter, mixing well. Add the macadamia nuts. Pour the batter into the pans.
Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 to 45 minutes. (With 3 loaf pans, bake 40 to 45 minutes.) If you decide to make regular-sized muffins, fill half-full and bake for 20 minutes.
If you cannot find ripe bananas, try adding some applesauce to compensate (my Mom sometimes even prefers this). It can also be made with other nuts, however, it’s just not as good without those expensive macadamias.