Banana Nut Friendship Bread

So I sort of allowed my one yeast baggie to grow into twelve and I’ve been forced to bake pretty much every day to keep them from taking over the kitchen. The original Friendship Bread recipe leaves a lot of room for experimentation so I decided to tackle banana nut bread. I substituted bananas in for liquid and made a few other changes and surprisingly enough, it worked! I’m trying new versions for scones and chocolate chocolate chip bread this week too. Once I perfect those puppies, I’ll record the recipes for you Sarah (or anyone else who wants them!) so you can have a bunch of options when you get your starter. ;) I’ve found that the longer you allow your yeast to grow the more your baked goods rise when cooked. If you use a starter right when you split it, the final version doesn’t have that awesome fluffy bread-like quality. So wait! Ignore my previous post’s instructions and use a starter when it’s at least 5 days old. Okay, so on to Banana Nut Friendship Bread!

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease two non metal loaf pans with butter and sprinkle all the sides with cinnamon sugar (1/4 cup sugar plus 1 tsp cinnamon).

In a non-metal bowl smash 2 large bananas (or 3 smallish ones). To that add an aged yeast starter, 2 eggs, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 cup oil, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1 cup sugar, 2 cups flour, 1 box of instant banana (or vanilla or white chocolate) pudding mix, and 1 cup chopped walnuts. Mix with a non-metal spoon until just combined.

Pour your batter into the prepared pans so they are no more than 3/4 full. Sprinkle the tops liberally with cinnamon sugar. Pop them in the oven for 50 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. The length of baking time will vary greatly depending on the size and shape of your loaf pans so keep an eye on them! Cool and invert the pan over a plate and the bread should slide right out. Slice and enjoy!

Banana Nut Friendship Bread

Ingredients

• Friendship Yeast Bread Starter (Mine was about 5 days old)
• 2 large bananas (mashed)
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 box instant pudding (banana, vanilla, or white chocolate)
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts

Method

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Grease two non metal loaf pans with butter and sprinkle all the sides with cinnamon sugar (1/4 cup sugar and 1 tsp cinnamon). Combine all ingredients in a non-metal bowl with a non-metal spoon. Pour the batter into your prepared pans so they are about 3/4 full (less is okay, more is NOT). Sprinkle the tops with more cinnamon sugar and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes or until the tops are nice and brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. The baking time will vary depending on your pan size and shape so you just have to keep an eye on them and allow them to bake until the bread is totally set. When the loaves are done, remove from the oven and cool until you can handle them. Invert a pan over a plate and slide the bread out. Slice and enjoy!

 

Flickr Tags: banana,bread,frienship bread,yeast,Xochi