I have started an experiment since retiring. As some of you may know, I LOVE cooking, baking and all things food. As a result, I have an EXTENSIVE cookbook collection that my husband says “just takes up shelf space,” so I am looking to change that. I plan to start cooking out of those cookbooks, a recipe a day if I can, and I hope to share some of my favorites with the Enid Monthly readers. This is my way to get back into cooking in MY kitchen, opening these books that I love, and maybe help my husband and I eat a little healthier. Now, don’t get me wrong, not every recipe will be listed as healthy, but it will DEFINITELY be healthier than going through that drive-thru. So I hope some of you will enjoy this journey of mine and maybe try some of the recipes as well.
To get started, I will share one of my favorite go-to recipes for a good breakfast or snack. In my 6 years in Junior Welfare League (JWL) and 3 years on the cookbook committee, this recipe from JWL’s Stirrups Cookbook (pg. 97) became a go-to for me….and I had bananas turning that needed to be used!
Kona Inn Banana Bread is the BEST banana bread recipe THIS baker has EVER come across!!! You can use the cake flour that the recipe calls for, but I like the texture that bread flour gives this sweet bread. On occasion, I will add 1/2 cup of chopped Oklahoma pecans to the mix. Just make sure to add them to the dry ingredients first. This recipe is easily made into muffins. A 4 oz scoop of batter into a well-greased muffin tin is plenty to get a beautiful muffin. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes.
I hope you will try this recipe!!! Whether baking in a loaf for a gift or muffins for breakfast, this Kona Banana Bread will be a huge hit! Happy Cooking!!
KONA INN BANANA BREAD RECIPE
Credit: JWL Stirrups Cookbook
2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup softened butter
6 bananas ripe and mashed (3 cups)
4 eggs, well beaten
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
With electric beater, cream together sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add bananas and eggs until well mixed. Sift together dry ingredients 3 times. Blend with banana mixture but do not overmix. Pour into 2 lightly greased loaf pans. Bake 45 minutes to an hour, at 350°, until firm in center and the edges begin to separate from the pans. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes in the pans.
