# I made banana bread!!!
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [December 5, 2002, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647 "2002-12-05T05:24:44Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/1 "2002-12-05T05:24:44Z")
I have never made banana bread before, so this is really exciting for me!
We had been buying bananas lately, and we usually ended up with one or two that were too ripe for either my SO or I to eat, and so we decided to let them get dark, and stick em in the freezer and eventually make banana bread (why are there so many n’s and a’s in that word?)
So tonight, I did. I found a recipe online (it was taken out of the Joy of Cooking, so I figured it might be decent) and I tried it.
I mixed all the flour and baking power and salt, and then in another bowl I mixed the shortening and the sugar. The recipe then said to “blend until creamy”, so I started blending. Did I mention that we only have an old manual egg beater from the 70s (it’s got a lovely lime green handle!). “Creamy” wasn’t quite happening…I was getting lumps of sugary shortening stuck in the blades. So I grabbed a fork, scrapped off the egg beater, and tried to blend with the fork. Not happening either. Just smaller lumps. So I gave up on that and tossed the bananas in anyways. They were all nice and mushy, and I was able to get a somewhat lumpy “creamy” substance from that. I then added an egg, and that helped too, but it always had tiny lumps of shortening in it, no matter how hard I spun the handle on that stupid, cruel egg beater. I then started adding the flour and other stuff to the mix, which made the egg beater USELESS, as it got way too thick for my puny little arms to blend. So out comes the fork again, and I’m beating that mix like my life depended on it! I think I stood there for a good 20 minutes or more, trying to get all the flour mixed in and getting the whole thing not-so-lumpy!
I finally had had enough (seeing as my arm was going numb), and so I just took the more-or-less smooth mix and dumped it into the pan. I then placed it into the preheated oven at 350F, and waited the requisite “hour” in the recipe. It wasn’t cooked yet. So for the next HOUR, I checked every 15 minutes, and then at the 2 hour mark I just took it out of the oven, since I decided (with the help of a butter knife stabbed into the bread) that it was cooked enough. I let it cool a bit, and then flipped it over to get it out of the pan, half afraid that it would slosh out all liquidy and have my SO laugh at me for it!
I then remembered that I hadn’t greased the pan.
Lucky for me, neither of these things were an issue! The bread was solid, and I didn;t even have to cut it out of the pan…it just slid right out!
I tried a slice, and my SO did too, and it is GOOD! I love banana bread, and this is a really good one! I had added more banana than necessary (1 1/2 cups rather than 1-1 1/4) and I didn’t have lemon rind, or nuts or anything fun to add to it, but it is still a good banana bread!
I am so proud of myself! I talked to my mom today already, but I’m going to call her tomorrow and let her know all about it!
woohoo! 😃
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### Author:  [@leechbabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leechbabe)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/2 "2002-12-05T05:33:47Z")
Yay **mnemosyne**.
:: does dance of joy ::
banana bread is yummy !!!
Lucky for me we have a bread maker so I just stick all the ingredients in and it does the rest 🙂
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### Author:  [@Jonmarzie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonmarzie)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/3 "2002-12-05T05:35:35Z")
Goodness. Too bad I’m not in Ontario, or I might’ve had to come over and have a bite! 😃
HUZZAH!
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### Author:  [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/4 "2002-12-05T05:45:51Z")
Oh but it’s mine…all MINE BWAH HA HA HA HA!!!
I think I might make another one before leaving for Christmas to give to my mom…she’d like that! 🙂
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### Author:  [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/5 "2002-12-05T13:38:27Z")
OooOOOOoooooh
must go make banana bread…
YUM!
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### Author:  [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/6 "2002-12-05T13:40:07Z")
Oh, one hint to all banana bread makers:
You can ALWAYS add more banana to your mix. My recipe calls for two squoosy bananas. I’ve made it with up to 5. It works. It’s good. Life is good.
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### Author:  [@Typo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 1:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/7 "2002-12-05T13:46:37Z")
Congratulations! Mmmm…nothing like the smell of fresh banana bread…
I find it works best when the bananas are black on the outside; kind of goopy to work with, but it really makes a difference.
Also, my cookbook says to mix quick breads (non-yeast breads) as little as possible - like muffins - just until all the ingredients are blended. The batters are often lumpy.
I just got my mixer in the last 6 months, so I can TOTALLY sympathize with your egg beater struggle. I definitely remember trying to cream butter and sugar by hand - ugh. “stirstirstirstirstirstir…\…stirstirstirstirstir…”
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### Author:  [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/8 "2002-12-05T14:25:26Z")
Interestingly enough, my first batch of nana bread was taken from _Joy of Cooking_, too. I omitted the nuts (hubby and oldest son don’t like 'em) and added a dash or two of cinnamon.
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### Author:  [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/9 "2002-12-05T14:27:40Z")
Mmmmm, fresh warm banana bread slathered in butter…
(don’t be afraid to throw walnuts in next time.)
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### Author:  [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/10 "2002-12-05T14:34:08Z")
OK, mine is in the oven now. 30 minutes to banana-ey goodness!
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### Author:  [@Elenfair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elenfair)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/11 "2002-12-05T14:46:52Z")
_POUDCAKE_ It’s banana _POUNDCAKE_
Well, okay, it’s poudcake after it’s travelled a week with the US Postal Service.
(And it must have chocolate chips in it.)
(Now I have a craving for Banana Cake. Damn you all to heck.)
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### Author:  [@Elenfair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elenfair)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/12 "2002-12-05T14:51:09Z")
POUNDCAKE, goshdarnit.
See? SEE? I must be so overstressed from my lack-o-banana-poundcake that I can’t type anymore.
_weep_
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### Author:  [@DeadlyAccurate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeadlyAccurate)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 3:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/13 "2002-12-05T15:11:19Z")
And **mnemosyne** , if someone asks you what to get you for Christmas, now you can say: an electric egg beater.
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### Author:  [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 3:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/14 "2002-12-05T15:41:44Z")
I am now eating banana bread.
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### Author:  [@UncleBill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBill)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/15 "2002-12-05T16:21:06Z")
Yay! Eat More Banana Bread! Buy More Bananas.
[sub]but only Del Monte bananas[/sub]
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### Author:  [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/16 "2002-12-05T16:51:10Z")
Hehe I think I will be buying more bananas, and I’ll check to see if they are Del Monte, **UncleBill** , but I think the grocery store I go to only have one kind! And now that I think of it, I think it’s Chiquita, because I remember saying ChiquitaBanana! over and over and over again a month or two abck…unless that was the time we bought bananas at another store…oh, I don’t know! But I’ll look, and I’ll ask why they don’t have Del Monte if they don’t! 🙂
I wanted to add walnuts or chocolate chips, but I didn’t have any. I do have a dinosaur-shaped chololate on a stick that I could have chopped up and added, but its in the fridge, and it was hard, and, well, it was just too much trouble at that point. I WILL be buying chocolate chips next time, though!
I had some for breakfast this morning. It was so yummy! It’s just a little bit squishy, and so full of banana flavour! I love banana bread!
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### Author:  [@sj2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sj2)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/17 "2002-12-05T19:28:29Z")
Mix together some butter and nutmeg to spread on top. Makes life worth living. I once mentioned to my MIL when I first met her that I really liked her b-bread. She sends me one at least every month. Saves me the effort and hers are so yum.
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### Author:  [@DarkWriter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DarkWriter)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/18 "2002-12-05T20:53:26Z")
Adding a bag of the chocolate chip/peanut butter chip mix to the batter is delicious as well.
Sprinkle coarse sugar on top before baking, and you’re in heaven. 🙂
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### Author:  [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)
#### Post date: [December 5, 2002, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/19 "2002-12-05T21:30:30Z")
The recipe I have (from the Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book) calls for oil instead of shortening. All you need is a spoon to mix it. Good stuff indeed. And freezing the bananas just makes them even better.
I notice now that whenever I buy bananas, my husband and daughter refuse to eat the last few in the bunch and let them get black. Gee, I wonder why!
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### Author:  [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)
#### Post date: [December 6, 2002, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-made-banana-bread/140647/20 "2002-12-06T00:57:40Z")
Ooh, banana bread!
My favorite part of making it is squishing the bananas. There’s just no way I can do it except by hand. It’s so icky and squishy and FUN!
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