What's Baking: Chocolate Banana Bread

Bananas and chocolate? Surely a match made in heaven. I'd highly recommend adding in a generous handful (or two) of chocolate chips to the batter -- that addition would surely take this sweet loaf of bread to a whole new level of choco-banana goodness.

Chocolate Banana Bread (printer-friendly version)

makes one large loaf

1/3 cup unsalted butter

1/2 cup raw sugar

2 farmers' market eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

4 uber-ripe bananas, mashed

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Grease (use cooking spray or rub with butter) one large loaf pan.

3. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla and beat well.

4. Sift together the dry ingredients (I just put them all in a bowl together and mix with a fork; sifting is overrated!)

5. Alternate adding the dry ingredients and mashed banana to the butter-sugar-egg-vanilla mixture.

6. Spoon the batter into the prepared loaf pan.

7. Bake for 45-60 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the bread center comes out clean.

8. Remove the bread from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack. Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

9. After 10 minutes, remove the loaf of bread from the pan and allow to cool completely on the wire rack.
10. Enjoy on its own, or if you're feeling particularly decadent, serve with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream and a drizzle of homemade caramel sauce.