This afternoon I noticed 3 very ripe bananas in my kitchen. I immediately knew what I needed to do…bake banana bread. My mouth waters just thinking about it. It’s comfort in a loaf pan. The aroma alone can soothe your soul and make you smile.

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

• 3 very ripe bananas, peeled
• 1/3 cup melted butter (plus 1/2 tablespoon of butter to grease pan)
• 3/4 cup of granulated sugar
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch of kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup walnut or pecan pieces (optional)

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F and butter a loaf pan.

In a medium mixing bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until smooth. Then, stir in the melted butter. Next, add the salt, baking soda, sugar, beaten egg, nutmeg, cinnamon, and vanilla extract. Mix together. Stir in the flour. Fold in the nuts.

Pour the batter into the loaf pan. Bake for approximately 1 hour. Check bread at 50 minutes by inserting a toothpick in the center of the loaf. If toothpick comes out clean, your bread is ready to come out of the oven.

Remove from oven and let cool completely. Then, remove from pan, slice, and serve.