Banana Rules Update

Bananas go in waves at our house. Sometimes when I bring a bunch home from the store, they are devoured before I have unloaded the groceries. Other times, the last, lone banana will sit forlornly on the cupboard, getting brown and sad for days. This is why we have rules for using the overripe bananas. The old banana rules were as follows:

1) If you have one overripe banana, it is to be mashed and stirred into the pancake batter. Sometimes, if we have good yogurt, we make it into a smoothie.

2) If we have two overripe bananas, we make my favorite yummy muffins:

Banana Wheat Muffins
1 1/3 c. all purpose flour
2/3 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. mayonaise
3/4 c. sugar
2 mashed bananas

Combine mayo, bananas, and sugar. Stir in dry ingredients until just moistened. Fill muffin cups and bake at 350 for 20 min.
*I like to use all wheat flour. These are so good! *also note, never mix up your mayonaise with your Miracle Whip in this recipe!

Or we make the family favorite:

Banana Chocolate Chip Bars
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 c. shortening
2/3 c. sugar
2/3 c. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
2 mashed bananas
1 c. chocolate chips

Cream sugar and shortening, add bananas and stir. Add dry ingredients and mix, then add chocolate chips. Spread into a 10x15 pan and bake at 350 for 20 min. Cool and cut into bars.


3) If we have 3 mashy, squishy bananas, I make the above recipes, but I peel the bananas in Seth's presence. Even though these have been in plain sight and uninteresting for days, he will immediately demand and eat one of the bananas, leaving us with just the right number. :) As is obvious with this rule, timing is everything, so as an adendum to rule 2, one must be careful to watch for Seth if two is the actual banana number.

4) If a whole bunch of bananas becomes neglected, and I have six brown beauties, I make my favorite banana bread.

Kona Inn Banana Bread
2 c. sugar
1 c. soft butter
4 eggs, beaten
6 mashed bananas
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. baking soda
2 1/2 c. flour

Cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add bananas and eggs, mix well. Sift dry ingredients into wet and stir until just mixed. Pour into 2 greased loaf pans. Bake at 350 for 1 hour. Cool on rack 10 min. before removing from pan. (The recipe says they freeze beautifully, but we eat two loaves before they cool off, so no idea if it is true! :)

As you can see, there is a big hole in the banana rules! What if I have 4 tired bananas? In the past, I have been known to make both the muffins and the bars in #2, but no longer!!! I have found the next, the new and updated, banana rule!

5) If you have 4 baking bananas, make

Banana Cake
1 ½ C Flour
1 tsp Soda
1 tsp Baking Pwd
½ tsp Salt
4 bananas
¾ C Sugar
1 Egg
1/3 C Softened Butter
1 C Butterscotch chips

Topping
1/3 C Brown Sugar
1/8th C Flour
1 Tbs butter
Sprinkle over cake

Bake 350 25-35 min

Glaze
½ C Pwd Sugar
2 Tbs Milk
Pour over baked cake.

I have a cousin's wife to thank for this one. She posted it on our family web-site. I made it with peanut butter chips (Thought they were butterscotch until it was time to add them :) It was banana bliss. I think it would be nice with chocolate, or with no chips and coconut. Since it is now a part of the rules, I think I will be trying all of the variations.

6) If you have 5 bananas, see rule 3 and adapt to rule 5.

Just a little insight into the mysterious inner workings of the McAllister household!