Just because it's on sale . . .

I popped into Loblaws on my way home from the market. I was looking for dried mushrooms. It had struck me that having dried mushrooms on hand would be useful. The type of thing you sprinkled into pasta dishes, quiches and omelettes. The fact that I only make omelettes on a regular basis out of those items did not deter me. If I had dried mushrooms, then I would make pasta and quiches. It was a prerequisite for expanding my cooking ability and having more exciting things to eat.

I got as far as the marked-down fruit. I had been thinking of making banana bread for awhile but hadn't had the right number or ripeness of bananas on hand. I did however have the yogurt and it wasn't going to be around much longer. I had bought my weekly banana supply at the market but here was a deal. Two large bunches of bananas for 99 cents. AND they were ready for making banana bread. Generally buying bananas that are about to bite the dust is a bad idea but in my mind, it was a huge time saving. I wouldn't have to bring bananas to the edge of death because someone had already done it for me.

So I arrived home with about sixteen bananas. Five barely ripe and the rest looking as though they had escaped from an old people's home. I put the groceries away and went to start on the bread. Ah, yes my favourite recipe calls for one cup of mashed ripe bananas

which translates into two bananas.

I choose the two bananas that looked the ripest. And then, I choose a third. I managed to stuff three bananas into the cup although they tried to ooze back out in protest.

I made the bread, well actually I made muffins. This is why I love this recipe. Despite my best efforts to ruin it, it can not be ruined. The first time I made it, I didn't even cook it at the right temperature. It didn't matter. It always comes out of the pan. And even if you indent it while trying to get it out of the pan, it bounces back. It's indestructible and it's delicious.

I was about to start on a massive banana bread production. At the rate of turning bananas into bread, I could make five batches. Except that I had no more yogurt. The fact that I had no idea what I was going to do with about a gazillion muffins didn't even enter my mind. I had bananas to use up.

I have discovered that bananas put in the fridge ripen slower so I made room in the fridge for my bananas. My fridge looked like it had been invaded. I've been eating bananas for awhile now. I'm approaching potassium overdose. But I've still got a week's worth to go. I think next time I'll buy apples. I haven't made my favourite apple dish in a while.


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From the King Arthur Baking Cookbook

2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup mashed bananas (as many as you can fit or 2-3 very ripe large bananas)
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
2 2/3 cups flour
1 cup yogurt, buttermilk or sour cream

Preheat Oven to 350F.

Beat together eggs, sugar and oil. Blend in the mashed bananas and vanilla. Blend well in a separate bowl the baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour. Add all at once to banana mixture. Mix quickly but thoroughly, then stir in yogurt, mixing until just combined.

Pour into a greased and floured 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Bake for about one hour, until a cake tester inserted in the middle, comes out clean. If the bread browns too quickly, tent it with aluminium foil after 40 minutes.

Note that if you have a non-stick-ish pan, it doesn't need to be greased and floured. You can use it to make muffins and then it takes less time to cook.