mulberryshoots

After seeing three bananas ready for a smoothie or something else, I decided to make a banana bread with orange zest this afternoon. It’s a tried and true recipe that I turned to in my trusty McCall’s cookbook.

I melted a half stick of unsalted butter in a big glass pyrex mixing measuring bowl. To it, I added one cup of granulated raw sugar, 1 large egg and 3 teaspoons of baking powder. I stirred it together by hand with a whisk and then added the three ripe bananas. I used a potato masher on them until they were soft and smooth in the batter. Then added some salt, 2 1/2 cups of flour (lightly measured); zest of two small clementines plus juice and stirred it together. Last, I added about a half cup of whole milk and another flick of orange juice. The orange zest made it very fragrant – and for good measure, I added a packet of honey toasted salad walnuts into the batter.

The nearest loaf pan I saw in the pantry was a long narrow one so I cleaned it, sprayed it with Pam and then gently poured the batter into the pan, using a rubber spatula.

Into a pre-heated oven set at 350 degrees, the bread baked for about 55 minutes until it was golden brown and split down the middle. I tested the center for doneness with a toothpick. Looked fine to take out of the oven.

I let it rest on the edge of the rack with the oven door open. Then let it cool, running a sharp knife around the edges and turned it out on a long platter.

Scrumptious – and extra delicious with the walnuts and orange zest. And, yummy bananas! No matter what happens outside, making simple recipes like this can turn a weekend Saturday into a special one.

Life is good!

Footnote: the glorious tea mug with party cardinals on it holds hot Lapsang Souchang tea!