Gone Bananas!

I have a depression-era-like aversion to wasting food. You might think my mother was one of those who cajoled, “Clean your plate! There are starving children in China!”. But, she wasn’t. Twiggy, with her mile-long, stick-thin legs and sunken cheekbones, set the standard for 60’s America. My mother was happy to scrape scraps into the garbage can.


I’ve employed a number of methods to solve my dilemma, but none more successful than raising chickens. Chickens, as it turns out, are clucking, feathered garbage disposals. There is almost nothing they won’t eat. Almost nothing…

As luck would have it, chickens don’t care for bananas. My dog, Murphy, will eat bananas. Unfortunately, he develops a really nasty rash around his mouth the next day.

Thank God for banana bread. My oldest son adores it. I try to keep a loaf in the freezer for him, and usually the Banana Gods are with me. Somehow, no matter how many I buy, three or four of the bunch remain uneaten. I only like them when the edges are still a little green. By the time spots sprout, they are too sweet, too mushy to peel-and-eat.

This past Christmas, I baked two different recipes and gave them out as gifts. Both received rave reviews. Bake them both! Then you decide!

Banana Bread
The lemon peel in this recipe really pumps up the banana flavor!

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (I only use organic, unbleached)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. ground cinnamon (Freshly ground DOES make a difference)
1 egg (Thank you Pat, Chloe, Lucy, and Sylvia)
1 c. mashed bananas (I never measure. 3 medium bananas should do the trick)
¾ c. sugar
¼ c. cooking oil
1 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel
½ c. chopped walnuts or pecans (Toast them for real flavor!)

1. Grease bottom and ½ inch up the sides of an 8x4x2 inch loaf pan; set aside.

2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp. salt in medium mixing bowl. Make a well in center and set aside.

3. In another bowl, combine egg, bananas, sugar, cooking oil, and lemon peel. Add egg mixture, all at once, to dry mixture. Stir just until moistened. (Batter should be lumpy.) Fold in nuts.

4. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

5. Bake in 350 degree oven for 50 to 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. (Banana bread tends to brown on top before cooking in the middle. A folded piece of aluminum foil placed on top of the loaf, half-way through baking, will prevent this.)

6. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack to cool. This bread is best if wrapped and stored overnight before slicing.



Two-Tone Banana Bread
Kids (of all ages) love this one!

2 cups all-purpose flour (Organic, unbleached, of course)
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. finely shredded lemon peel (Remember what lemon does to banana?)
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. ground nutmeg (Freshly ground is always best! The seed lasts forever, and the taste is worth the work!)
1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon (Keep the grater out…)
2 eggs, lightly beaten (But never in front of my girls…)
5 medium, mushy bananas; mashed
1 c. sugar
½ c. melted butter (Have you read the ingredients in margarine? ‘Nuff said.)
1 tbl. dark rum or milk (Rum is nice for more sophisticated palettes.)
2 oz. semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease bottom and ½ inch up sides of a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan; set aside. In large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, lemon peel, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Make a well in center; set aside.

2. In medium bowl, combine eggs, bananas, sugar, butter, and rum(or milk). Add egg mixture, all at once, to flour mixture. Stir just until combined. Batter should be lumpy.

3. Transfer 1/3 (about 1 ¼ c.) of batter to medium bowl. Fold in melted chocolate.

4. Drop alternating spoonfuls of plain and chocolate batters into prepared pan. Using a table knife or narrow metal spatula, gently cut through batters to marble.

5. Bake for 55 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Banana bread tends to brown on top before cooking in the middle. A folded piece of aluminum foil placed on top of the loaf, half-way through baking, will prevent this.)

6. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes before removing from pan to wire rack to cool. This bread is best if wrapped and stored overnight before slicing.


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