Best Ever Banana Bread
As the old adage goes, the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach – whether he’s your husband or your teen-age son. Even future basketball stars throw their lanky teenage arms around you for a hug when you bake their favourite treat. At our house, it’s my famous chocolate banana bread that gets the most requests. Fragrant enough to waft right out the kitchen and into the yard, this loaf smells so good all your neighbours will fall in love with you too. To reach friends out of olfactory range, my kids have been known to post ‘banana bread events’ on facebook.
Beat together 1 cup of sugar, 1/3 cup of butter and 2 eggs. Add 3 mashed bananas and 1/3 cup of water and whiz it up again. Mix in 1 and 2/3 cups flour, 1 teaspoon of soda, 3/4 teaspoon of salt, 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg. Add in about 1/2 cup of chocolate chips and 1/3 cup of sweetened coconut. Pile the mixture into a greased loaf pan, sprinkle liberally with brown sugar and bake at 350 degrees for about 70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Wait about 15 minutes after taking your prize out of the oven before removing it from the pan, and then try to keep everyone from snootching a piece for another hour, as it will slice much easier when cool. We are almost always unsuccessful at waiting, and end up slathering butter on top and eating it warm and crumbly to soothe our rumbling tummies.
Serve this yummy treat with hot chocolate in front of the fire, and snuggle to your heart’s content!