Lou, my daughter's best friends mom, made this, and we have adopted the recipe: Banana Bread 2 c sugar 1/2 c oil (I use grape seed oil, as that is the only one in my house) 2 eggs 3 c flour 1 pinch salt 1/2 c buttermilk 1 to 1 1/2 t baking soda 3 to 4 ripe bananas mashed 1/2 c nuts (optional) Cream sugar and oil, add eggs, flour, salt, buttermilk (mix the buttermilk and baking soda together) mix and finally bananas and nuts. Pour in to greased bread pans (we use small ones, makes three). Bake at 350 degree for about 1 hour, top should be split. and then there is the Zucchini Chocolate Cake I used to have the Zucchini listed as secret ingredient, cause that was the only way I could get my girls to eat it. :) t=teaspoon T=Tablespoon c=cup (German measure) 2 1/2 c unsifted flour (370gramm) 1/2 c cocoa (60 gramm) 2 1/2 t soda (1 Paeckchen Backpulver) 1 t salt (1 Prise) 1 t cinnamon 3/4 c margarine or butter (ca. 160 gramm) 2 c sugar (400 gramm) 3 eggs 2 t vanilla 2 t grated orange peel (optional) 2 c shredded zucchini (1/2 Liter) 1/3 c milk (ca. 1/15 liter oder 70 gramm) 1 c nuts (optional) 350 degree oven (ca. Mittlehitze?) mix first 3 ingredients, set aside Beat margarine and add the next 5 ingredients and add the flour mixture and milk. Mix well. Pour in to greased and floured bundt cake form (springform). Bake for 1 hour at 350 degrees. Cool in pan for about 15 minutes and then take it out of the pan to let cool the rest. Drizzle with icing if desired. Icing 2 c powdered sugar 3 T milk Really yummy with a dollop of whipping cream on top. :)

The draining of juices and using the reduced juice will give you a more dense "bread" texture and won't be as soft as a bread with whole bananas in it. We usually make one that has whole bananas no yogurt and one less egg and use chocolate chunks (baking semi sweet). Walnut quality is important as well - better if toasted with salt.

The food charts I have for how long you can keep bananas in the freezer gave no amounts of time, and one said "extended freezer time" - whatever that means (LOL). I guess the goal should be to use the frozen bananas in a timely manner (few months), but I was moving some things around in my refrigerator freezer and I found several ripe bargain bananas that were quick-frozen then placed in a FoodSaver bag, vacuum-sealed shut -- early last summer and promptly forgotten about. I made them into banana bread the other day for yet one more offering to the "throngs" for breakfast during their Christmas visit. When you vacuum-seal peeled bananas (or most food destined for freezer storage), they will last longer than in a typical storage bag because they are stored oxygen-free. Oxygen-free storage prevents the moisture inside the food from migrating from the surface of the food into the bag, drying out or creating ice crystals in the bag. A food science tidbit about using overly-ripe bananas for banana bread. When a banana bread recipe only calls for baking soda as the only chemical leavening, overly-ripe bananas are not as acid (6.5-7.0 pH) as a regular banana (4.6 pH) in order to react in partnership with the baking soda. The reaction may be a weak one resulting in a heavy banana bread. A good banana bread recipe, one that ensures adequate leavening, will use both baking powder and baking soda. If the recipe only has baking soda, make sure a portion of the bananas aren't overly-ripe, or there is another ingredient in the recipe that provides an acid ingredient. That could be some lemon juice added to the bananas to keep them from oxidizing and turning dark, orange juice, honey used as the sweetener, or yogurt, sour cream or buttermilk, which are all acid foods that will react with the baking soda. -Grainlady

Try Glenda's banana bread - it's moist and delicious! Glenda's Sour Cream Banana Bread 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup oil 2 eggs 1 cup mashed bananas (2 medium) 1/2 cup sour cream 1 teaspoon vanilla 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup chopped nuts, optional Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour bottom only of a 9 X 5 loaf pan. In large bowl, beat together sugar and oil. Add eggs, bananas, sour cream and vanilla, blend well. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup, level off. Add flour, baking soda and salt, stir just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour into prepared pan. Bake at 350F for 50 to 60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes. Remove from pan. Cool completely. Wrap tightly and store in refrigerator. Makes 1 loaf.