Instructions for Making Banana Bread
Banana bread has become a very popular type among families and kids, since it is delicious, nutritious and very easy to prepare. You can serve this for breakfasts, as a dessert for guests or for your child’s snacks at school. You can also save more dollars by using bananas that have ripened more than enough to be eaten independently. Here’s how to begin.
Gather the Ingredients
Collect everything you will need to make the bread. This will include 1/3 cup of shortening, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 2/3 cup sugar, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1 3/4 cups of flour, a little extra flour, 2 bananas, mashed well and some butter or cooking spray for preparing the pan.
The Process
Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees F. Grease all the surfaces of the inside of the pan. Sprinkle some flour into the pan, then shake the flour around until all the sides are already covered with flour. You can ensure that the bread will come out very smoothly this way. Mash the bananas, then mix them in with the other ingredients. Mix the sugar, baking powder, flour, salt and baking soda inside a medium-sized bowl.
Now put in the shortening or butter that is softened and mix this until it looks like crumbs. Add two eggs and mix some more. Put this mixture into the pan you have prepared. Bake this for about 30 or 40 minutes at 350 degrees. Check to see if it is done by inserting a toothpick into the middle of the pan and when it comes out with nothing on it, your banana bread is ready to come out of the oven.
A Few Last Tips
Use the proper size pan and it will make this process much simpler. A 4 x 8 inch deep pan is perfect. The oven should not be opened a lot since this will increase the amount of time the bread will have to bake. Every time you open the door, heat escapes and reduces the temperature in the oven.
When choosing the bananas to use, the overripe banana will work much better. When the peel has many brown spots, the banana will be sweeter than regular ripe bananas. When your bread appears to be browning before the middle is done, you can use aluminum foil to cover it. This will allow the bread to get done without over-browning the top. If you have more bananas you need to use, make several loaves at the same time and freeze the extras to keep them fresh. Do not forget to use oven mitts when removing the bread from the oven or you will burn your hands.
Making Chocolate Banana Bread
If chocolate banana bread is going to be made, you simply add a teaspoon of vanilla, a cup of chocolate chips (dark) and enough icing sugar to dust. This can be done when you are mixing the baking powder and flour together inside the bowl. Add the icing sugar then as well. The chocolate chips and butter can be melted by using a double boiler. This variety will take about an hour to bake and the loaf can be dusted with the icing sugar when it is done. Allow cooling for about 50 minutes before slicing.
