Last Sunday it snowed.
And snowed.
And snowed.
All of our plans were cancelled and all of the weekend chores were completed. I found myself with a whole lot of free time. Plus there was a small pile of bananas on the kitchen counter getting spottier and spottier by the minute. What else was a girl to do but bake some homemade banana bread? I checked out several recipes and compiled them into this deeeelicious cinnamon swirl confection. Let me tell ya, it's very good. Several-compliments-from-my-husband good. It has a lighter texture than that of most quick breads. The cinnamon-sugar flavor is a subtle and appetizing addition to the traditional flavor and it is a healthier alternative to chocolate banana bread.
Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread
2 cups self-rising flour flour*
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1/3 cup vanilla yogurt (or regular yogurt + splash of vanilla extract)
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup sugar
1-2 tsp cinnamon
*If you don't have self-rising flour, substitute with 2 cups regular flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt.
Preheat your oven to 350°F.
Cream together the sugar and softened butter. Incorporate the eggs one at a time, then the yogurt and mashed bananas. Now mix in the self-rising flour (or previously combined flour, baking powder, and salt).
Pour about half of the batter into a greased loaf pan (8.5 x 4.5 inches). Now in a separate bowl, stir together the cinnamon and sugar. Pour about half of that onto the batter. Using a clean tooth pick or knife, swirl the cinnamon-sugar blend into the batter. Pour the remaining batter into the pan and top with the remaining cinnamon-sugar.
Bake for approximately 50 minutes. Allow the pan to cool slightly (5-10 minutes) before removing your bread. Run a knife along the interior sides of the pan to loosen the loaf. Invert the pan onto a plate to remove the bread. Then flip the loaf again right-side up.
Be sure to grab a slice while it is still warm!
Tip: Do you have some rapidly ripening bananas? Just toss them as-is into the freezer and save them for when you have time to bake. They will turn black and once thawed be a bit of a mushy mess. That being said, they are perfectly good for baking! Just smoosh the fruit out of the peel and into a bowl.
