Macadamia Banana Bread

Never ever toss out a banana if it starts to get brown/black....just toss it in the freezer! They keep for a long time and are perfect for banana breads. We had 2 that had been sitting in our freezer for a few months (~5 months) and they were overripe perfection :) 

Banana bread was one of the first things my Mom taught me how to make and it's still one of my favorite comfort foods. This has been my favorite recipe for a long time, so enjoy!

Serves: 4 (4 ramekin sizes); double this recipe for (1) standard 9x5-inch pan.

Ingredients

• 1 cup All-purpose flour  
• 1/2 tsp Baking soda  
• 1 dash of Salt (1/8 tsp)
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/4 cup Butter
• 3/8 (0.375) cup Brown sugar 
• 1 Egg, beaten
• 2/3 (0.667) cup Bananas (overripe), mashed (1-2 bananas, preferrably 2)
• 1/2 cup (or to your preferences) Macadamia nuts, crushed
• Optional: 
• 6oz (1/2 of 12oz bag) Milk chocolate chips
• 1/3 cup shredded Coconut, toasted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F (175C). Lightly grease (4) ramekin dishes. 
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Add the macadamia nuts (save a handful to sprinkle on top), and optional items if desirable (chocolate chips, shredded coconut). Pour batter into ramekin dishes. Sprinkle some of the crushed macadamia nuts and brown sugar on the top of each for a toasty, sweet crunch!






3. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 mins (60-65 mins for the 9x5 loaf), or until a toothpick inserted into center of the bread comes out clean. Let bread cool in ramekins for 10 minutes before turning out or serving.



4. Slice some up then toast and butter (my fav). If you have ice cream, serve warm with some vanilla ice cream and enjoy! An easy trick is to scoop out some banana bread in the middle, leaving the bread in the ramekin dish, and filling with ice cream :)

How to melt some butter and toast at the same time ;)

Then it's ready for ice cream or by it's toasty self!