How to Make Banana Bread

This is a bread machine recipe but I have also used it in a regular oven.

Ingredients

3 medium ripe bananas, mashed

¼ cup butter or margarine, melted

1 egg, slightly beaten

3 tablespoons sour milk (1 tablespoon vinegar and 2 tablespoons milk)

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

½ cup sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)

½ to ¾ cup chopped nuts (optional)

½ cup chocolate chips (optional)

Measure banana, milk, eggs, and butter into bread pan. Combine remaining ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Add to bread pan. Select quick bread setting. Press start.

Tip 1: On occasion I have replaced some of the sugar with brown sugar to enhance the flavor. Or, I use the same amount of regular sugar and replace the chocolate chips with brown sugar. If you choose to use nuts, walnuts are my favorite.

Tip 2: This is a very moist and sticky dough so I usually have to "help" the machine by giving it a quick stir during the mixing cycle (or else there is a lot of dry flour left in the corners of the pan). 

Tip 3: Every bread machine is different. The bake time on my quick bread cycle is a little short for moist breads, so I check it at the end (toothpick or "bounce-back" test) and cook it longer on the machine's bake cycle.

Tip 4: When preparing for a regular oven, I usually cream the butter and sugar(s) in a medium mixing bowl before adding the milk, egg, and banana (and then the dry ingredients). If I remember correctly, I used a 9x5 loaf pan.

I don't always follow my recipes to the letter, so you'll usually see a lot of optional steps and notes to help you adapt the recipe to your taste. Happy baking!