Banana Bread

Read on for one of my favorite things to make.  This is the easiest banana bread and it is soooo delicious.

I apologize for not writing a post for the past couple of weeks.  I have had a lot of changes recently, all good, including moving to the Lower East Side in Manhattan.  This area of the city is a food enthusiasts dream.  There is so much artisanal food and interesting finds that it's overwhelming.  Not to mention, I now live a short walk from Chinatown where I can purchase live eels on any corner along with an assortment of questionable herbs and spices.  Let's not forget the singular block that is Little Italy.  I am not a fan of Little Italy because of its super-stereotypical restaurants and pushy Italian waiters trying to get you to eat from their prix fixe menus consisting of pizza,  and chicken parmesan.  Although I did find a great place to purchase my favorite Italian goods, but that will be in another post.
I'm going to start highlighting some of my favorite places in the neighborhood in upcoming posts.  For now I leave you with my banana bread recipe.  When living on your own, you can't always finish a whole bunch of bananas before they start to get over-ripe, and this is the perfect use for them.   I vary what I add to it depending on what I have in my fridge.  I usually add greek yogurt for a denser cake, but this time I added milk.  I have also added pumpkin puree in the fall for a yummy seasonal treat.  You can also toss in toasted nuts, chocolate, berries, etc.  Go crazy!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
3 large extra ripe bananas mashed
2 eggs lightly beaten
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup milk or yogurt

Instructions:
1) Grease a loaf pan and preheat oven to 350 F.
2) In a large bowl whisk together flour, baking soda, salt, sugar.
3) Add the eggs, melted butter, and bananas and stir just to combine.  Mix in the milk or yogurt.  If adding chocolate chips, toasted nuts, or anything else this is the time to fold those ingredients into the batter.
4) Pour into greased pan and bake for 40-50 minutes or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of the bread.

Serve cool or warm.  Try toasting it with some Nutella spread on top.  Enjoy!!