Banana Bread

Okay, so this is my grandmother’s recipe and I can’t believe I’m posting it because it’s one of those little family secrets, but this is THE best banana bread in the world. I may be a bit biased, though.

Ingredients:

1 cup shortening

1 1/2 cups sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. baking powder

3 cups flour

2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 tsp. baking soda (moistened*)

3 mashed ripened bananas

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mash bananas in a separate small bowl with baking soda. Cream shortening with sugar in a large mixing bowl, mix in egg and vanilla extract, then banana and soda, and then add all the remaining dry ingredients. I add the flour last one cup at a time while stirring the mixture. Mix and bake in loaf pans at 375 for 40 to 60 minutes, depending on your oven. When I have a new oven, I start at 40 minutes and then check with a toothpick every 5 minutes after that. When the toothpick comes out clean, the bread is done.

Remove from oven and let cool before cutting into it.

If you want, you can add walnuts or whatever. I don’t like banana nut bread, so I left that off the recipe card when I copied it from my grandmother’s book.

This makes a great gift at Christmas. I usually bake about 8 to 10 loaves, wrap them in foil and stick a bow on them, and pass them out to friends and family. The bread is devoured fast.

Spread margarine or butter over bread and Enjoy!