Banana Bread!

We at A Book of Cookrye, despite still having a lot of them in the freezer, bought more bananas. (They were in the produce clearance bin, and technically fruit is good for you.) We didn't just get any bananas, however. We got these:

We have heard rumors that these miniature bananas are sweeter and creamier than full-sized ones, so we were pleased to see these marked down. We were doubly glad they were so cheap when, rather than being better than regular ones, they proved to be bland, tough, stringy, and surprisingly yellow.

Since they were really disappointing to eat anyway, we figured there was nothing wrong with pulverizing them. Besides, we were snowed in.

Banana Breakfast Bread ½ c butter 1 c brown sugar 2 eggs 3 bananas (about 1 c mashed) 2 c whole-wheat flour 1 tsp baking soda Dash of salt Dash of cinnamon Heat oven to 350°. Grease a loaf or 9x13 pan. Mix butter and brown sugar. Beat in the eggs, then add the bananas. Stir in the salt, cinnamon, and baking soda, then mix in the flour. Pour into the pan and bake. A loaf pan will take about 40-50 minutes, a 9x13 pan will be done in 20 or so. This is really good made into cinnamon toast.

This is how you take disappointing things and make them taste good: negate all the health benefits.

It's all right, the butter contains calcium.

We at A Book of Cookrye have heard conflicting reports on what state of bananas is best suited for banana bread. Some have said that they must be overripe to the point of mushiness to make banana bread properly sweet. Others have said the best banana bread is made from green bananas which will add various other flavors absent from fully ripe ones; the added sugar will make up for the fruit not being sweet. It seems everyone agrees that banana bread is best made from bananas that aren't very good.

Would you want to eat something that looks like it got vomited on your food?

Ordinarily, banana bread is a dessert. Recipes for banana cake differ from those for banana bread only in what shape of pan to bake it in and whether to put icing on top. However, we are going to add... er... whatever vitamins and such whole-wheat flour contains. Also, if peanut butter-banana sandwiches oh whole wheat are good, presumably this combination will be too-- even if the peanut butter is absent.

See? It's definitely good for you because it is brown.

We at A Book of Cookrye have mixed feelings about the cold. On the one hand, we have to contend with hazardous roads, drafts indoors, and heaters that sometimes work if the planets are positioned correctly. On the other, we get to bring out our winter clothes, enjoy the luxury of not getting roasted alive outside, and we can cool baked things in minutes.

It's not as sweet as a dessert, but it's delicious- and wonderful to have when you realize it's morning and you must soon face daylight and cold.