The key to this is to add either a spoonful of vanilla extract, or if you have Amaretto, dark rum, or Tuaca in your home bar to add that. Something about the alcohol makes it rise lighter than the recipe found here. Other than that one change, I keep it as is.
If you're like me, you often have more bananas than you're ready to eat. We like ours on the greenish side, so this bread gets made probably at least once every month or two. It makes great french toast, too, if you get tired of eating plain ol' banana bread.Mar
Recently, I've started using a slight variation on this loaf that has apricots in it. I made muffins from it last time, and they were quite good. Here's that recipe, which is an adaptation of Martin and Terri Katahn's Apricot Banana Bread. If you can't get or don't have agave syrup, just use honey. The original recipe calls for regular whole wheat flour, but I'm a big fan of King Arthur's white whole wheat (tip: Kroger carries that flour for about 1/2 of what it costs to order it direct). I also tend to put a couple of extra apricots in here. Works well as loaf or muffins.
2 medium bananas, mashed
4 whole dried apricots, chopped
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Dash of nutmeg
1/3 cup unsweetened apple sauce
1/3 cup agave syrup
1 egg
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract or alcoholic booster of your choice
Combine the mashed bananas and chopped apricots in a bowl. Add in the other wet ingredients.
Combine dry ingredients (I'm a sifter) in a separate bowl. Fold this into your wet ingredients.
Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes for a standard loaf or for 15-20 minutes for muffins.
Made with the applesauce instead of oil, these will run you about 100 calories per muffin.