Peanut Butter Jelly Time!!

Ok no jelly, but first things first, I promised I would let you know how the experimental peanut butter banana bread turned out…no surprise it was tasty, however, it could definitely use a few modifications! It is a great base recipe that I can now expand on and adapt to better suit my tastes!  The peanut butter flavor did not come across quite as strong as I was hoping it would. The cinnamon and banana flavors overpowered the peanut buttery goodness. Everything else turned out beautifully, the bread was moist and fluffy with a slightly crunchy outer crust, and the spice from the cinnamon melded perfectly with the ripened banana creating a lot of  flavor.

Here’s how I made it:

• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 8 ounce container of vanilla or plain greek yogurt (I used full fat yogurt for texture/creaminess)
• 1/2 cup peanut butter (you can use chunky if you like nuts and save yourself from adding them separately, that is if you even want to add them at all)
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar (could do 1/2 white 1/2 brown here but I prefer the caramelly taste of brown sugar myself, you could even use 1 cup of one kind of sugar)
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (could also add in all-spice, cloves, or any other spices you like)

I baked it at 350 degrees for 50 minutes and it came out perfectly!

I ate it warm, right out of the oven covered in Nutella, absolutely delicious! However, next time I will put in at least 3/4 cup of peanut butter, maybe even 1 full cup! You can even play around and use Nutella or any other nut butter instead! I also decided last minute to omit the chocolate chips to get a feel for the true taste of the bread so I know how to modify it next time, then I will add in the chocolate chips for an extra dose of deliciousness! Another delicious way to enjoy this bread is to toast it and eat it with butter, Nutella, peanut butter, jelly or really anything that can be spread on top of it! Toasting it gives it a delicious crunchy exterior with a soft and moist middle, almost better than right out of the oven! Hope you enjoy! And as usual, if you change up this recipe and like it,  please share your ideas with me!!

Sweet Deal!

Another whirlwind of a weekend has come to a close and I am finally able to gather my thoughts! Lots of good times were had…rang in a friend’s 30th birthday and celebrated a beautiful wedding! A few important things I learned this weekend….oreos are much more delicious when covered in chocolate, a chocolate malt from Oberweis has around 7 scoops of ice cream in it and one person can eat an entire container of hummus and bag of pretzel thins in one sitting! Just a word of advice to be careful for any or all of these!

Spur of the moment decision Sunday morning, my brother and Josh decided to have a family gathering at my grandparents house. We swam, barbecued and played with my little niece/Godchild Ari (short for Arianna)! It ended up being the perfect ending to such a great weekend! Lucky for me, my mom had a few bananas that were getting quite ripe so I volunteered to take them of her hands for her, which leads me to my next project….baking a new banana bread, one I’ve never made before! This may sound like an easy task, but I have tried hundreds of banana bread recipes only to find a few that I really like!

The other day while making my famous ‘fried peanut butter and banana sandwich’ I realized that I love the combination of peanut butter with bananas. Actually, this is the only way I will ever even eat a banana; well that or if it is covered in chocolate and frozen! This is the easiest, most delicious sandwich you will ever eat! To make:  saute a cut up banana in butter, cinnamon and sugar until caramelized. Butter one side of two slices of bread, and slather peanut butter on the non-buttered side. In the same skillet that you sauteed the bananas, add one of the slices of bread, butter side down, add the sauteed bananas and cover with the other slice of bread, peanut butter side down (like you would make a grilled cheese). Grill until browned to your liking!

Getting back to the task at hand though, tonight I decided that I am going to try making a peanut butter, chocolate chip banana bread! Seeing as how I am completely obsessed with peanut butter, I cannot wait to get home and try this! Just a funny side note,  I once tried to give up peanut butter for Lent and didn’t even make it past the second day! Woops…never made that mistake again! I will let you all know how it turns out!