Chef Gigi Gaggero

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 cup cold butter cut into chunks

2 cups sugar

2 cups ripe mashed bananas (about 6 bananas)

3 eggs, slightly beaten

2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Method:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and flour 2 8 x 4 x 3-inch loaf pans. Set aside.

Stir together the flour, salt and baking soda in a bowl, set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, until pale in color and creamy- about 3-4 minutes.  Add the bananas, eggs, vanilla – mix just till combine. the batter will look like it is broken.

Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix until the batter is thoroughly blended. Do not over beat. Add walnuts.

Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake on doubled sheet pans for 50 to 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a loaf comes out clean, or with only a few moist crumbs.

Cover with foil the last fifteen minutes of baking if the tops begins to get to brown. This recipe will produce and inherently dark loaf.

Remove the loaves from the oven and allow them to cool in the pans for 5-10 minutes, then turn them out on a cooling rack and let them cool completely.

Chill before cutting and use a serrated knife for the cleanest cuts.

Optional : Dust the top with powdered sugar before slicing and serving  or,  make toasted banana sammies. Makes 2 8 x 4-inch loaves.

Toasted Banana Sammie

Ingredients:

2 ½-inch thick slices of banana bread

2 tablespoons whipped cream cheese

1/2 fresh banana, sliced

1 teaspoon honey

Method:

Toast the slices of banana bread to your desired darkness and remove from the toaster.

Cool slightly. Spread whipped cream cheese on one slice, top the cream cheese with banana slices and drizzle the banana slices with honey.

Top with the remaining slice of Banana Bread.

Slice diagonally and serve.

Makes 1 sandwich.