What I've been keeping from you

It's been for no other reason that I was rushed and then uninspired. This is my new favorite banana bread recipe. It's been met with extreme satisfaction.

I was very pleased to return home last week to a batch of bananas browning on the counter. Banana bread time, I thought happily. There was already half a loaf of the ginger-chocolate take in the refrigerator, but I had a trip to Montreal approaching, a special someone there who thinks banana bread is just fine, and a special request for a loaf made with butter. Plus, banana bread is one of my favorite things to bake, and its batter is one of my favorite to sample.

I made this slightly cinnamon loaf and discovered that a house can never have too many banana breads hanging around.



Cinnamon and Chocolate Chunk Banana Bread

There is always and always has been a banana bread in the fridge at my parents' house. The best part of my mom's recipe was always the sugar she sprinkled atop the loaf's center before baking. She'd use turabin or just plain white, but since I was already straying from her traditional recipe I took the chance to go wild with the sugar. Cinnamon anyone?

for the bread
3 very ripe large-ish bananas
1 ½ c all-purpose flour
1 c sugar
1 stick unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
¼ c honey
¼ c milk (I used 2%, but whatever you have should work fine)
1 c dark chocolate chunks

for the topping
1 1/2 tbsp light brown sugar
1/2 tbsp white granulated sugar
1 tbsp ground cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350° F. Coat a a 9 x 5-inch metal loaf pan with cooking spray, or line it with parchment paper, with the excess draping over the sides. (So you can remove the loaf without jeopardizing the topping.)

Melt the butter. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. Mash the bananas in a large bowl. Add the butter, eggs, honey, and milk. Mix until just combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet. Toss in the chocolate chunks and stir well. Pour the batter into the prepared pan.

In a small bowl, mix together the topping ingredients. Sprinkle them evenly over the batter.

Bake the bread on a middle rack for 50 - 60 minutes. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean. Cool the bread in the pan for 30 minutes, or, as I sometimes do, dig in while it's still warm. Watch the chocolate chunks - they burn!

This bread is delicious and lasts longer when refrigerated.