Banana Nut Bread is one of the easiest homemade delights around. To top that, it is so versatile! It’s a great breakfast treat to make ahead for family and overnighting guests. It’s an ideal addition to any brunch. It’s delicious eaten sliced right off of the loaf or toasted with a slab of butter. Banana bread is a perfect accompaniment for a light salad. It is easily toted to potluck gatherings and good for bake sales. If it were running for office, I would be its campaign manager.

Makes 1 Loaf

2 cups flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground nutmeg (I like freshly grated)

¼ tsp salt

2 eggs, beaten

4 medium bananas, mashed

1 tsp vanilla

1 Tbsp milk

¾ cup sugar, plus 1 Tbsp for topping

¼ cup brown sugar

½ cup sunflower oil (or oil of your choice)

½ cup chopped walnuts, 1 Tbsp reserved for topping

1 pat butter or baking spray

Preheat oven to 350˚. Grease 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with butter or baking spray, set aside. Now that you got all of the work done, let’s create! In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In a separate bowl, mix eggs, mashed bananas, vanilla (because all baked goods need vanilla), milk, sugars, and oil. When combined add wet egg mixture to dry flour mixture.

Side note: There are certain baking rules that I just follow without question. One of them is adding wet to dry ingredients, which is the rule; unless there is a butter mixture involved in which you alternate adding dry and wet ingredients, in that order and sometimes even specified to start and finish with dry. These are just the common practices, and I follow them. If you want to be crazy and spontaneous that’s up to you, but heed my words I don’t know what you’ll end up with… probably banana bread.

When wet and dry ingredients are incorporated (mixture will be lumpy), gently fold in walnuts.

Another side note: If you know me, you know that I prefer banana baked goods with pecans, and they are perfectly substitutable in this recipe. I am also very traditional. So I do make my banana bread with walnuts… most of the time.

Pour the banana mixture in the greased loaf pan. Evenly spread the sugar and reserved walnuts across the top of the banana batter and place in the oven for 55 – 60 minutes, until an inserted toothpick comes out clean from the center of the bread. Let cool for at least 10 minutes before removing from the loaf pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.