I haven’t done a food post in quite a while! I made some banana bread a couple of days ago, and before we could hork it all down I managed to take a few pictures of it. I thought I’d share the recipe with you — it’s easy and delicious! This recipe actually comes from an old cookbook handed down by my grandmother. If you’ve met me, you know that I’m half Filipino and grew up more or less in the Philippines. But you may not know that I’m also half German! I was born in rural northeast Wisconsin, and my dearly departed grandparents were dairy farmers. (I know, what a crazy upbringing I had!) My grandmother could do anything. Well, she couldn’t drive, but there wasn’t much else she couldn’t do. I adored her. This particular cookbook, which I’ve owned and loved for more years than I can remember, was a fundraiser compiled by The Women’s Auxiliary of the The Wagner Fire Department, and it’s chock full of delicious-but-not-terribly-good-for-you recipes. We’re talking about Wisconsin, after all! Although my grandma’s name appears in many places in the book, the banana nut bread recipe was provided by a Brenda Haulotte. It’s makes a perfectly dense, moist bread that’s delicious in the morning with a schmear of butter and a cup of coffee. Or, have it for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum!

1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of sugar
1 egg, beaten
2 cups of sifted flour
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1 cup of mashed bananas (about two large bananas, the riper the better)
About 3 t. milk
1/2 cup of chopped walnuts
And sometimes I throw in a half cup of chocolate chips, because why not? Or if you prefer, blueberries are a nice addition, too.

Grease a 9 x 5 x 3″ loaf pan and preheat the oven to 350°F. Beat butter, sugar and egg in a bowl until fluffy. Combine mashed bananas with milk in a bowl. Sift flour, baking soda and baking powder onto waxed paper (and if you’re using unsalted butter, throw in a pinch or two of salt). Combine the dry ingredients into the sugar/egg mixture in stages, alternating with the banana/milk mixture. Lastly, stir in the nuts. If your batter is too thick, add some more milk (this is largely dependent upon exactly how mushy those overripe bananas are). You don’t want the batter to be runny like pancake batter, but you don’t want modeling clay either. Turn the batter into the prepared loaf pan and pop it in the oven. Bake it for about an hour, or until the center springs back when lightly touched. After removing your ridiculously delicious smelling banana bread from the oven, let it cool for five minutes or so on a wire rack, then turn it out of the pan. Enjoy! And try not to eat it all at once!

Here’s the old recipe book. Tried and true. And well loved.

You can tell from all the stains that I’ve used this recipe a lot!