Chocolate Banana Bread

Ever wake up on Sunday morning...look around at the lack of food in your house...see a pile of bananas and say to  yourself (or anyone who might be listening)  "hmmmm....chocolate banana bread sounds delightful."  So chocolate banana bread it is.  I didn't have any chocolate chips so I had to make due with what I had, and I actually did not have to run over to my parents house to borrow eggs or butter.  Awesome.  I added Demetra sugar to the top for an extra bit of crunchy sweetness, and I considered adding marshmallows at the end and experimenting with rocky road bread...but, I was getting ready for church at the same time, and forgot, in the attempt to decorate my bathroom with all the shirts in my closet that didn't look good....So party on!!!  by the way I dreamed that my followers count jumped to 31 in one night!  I was so excited...so my dream interpretation:  friends are exciting.  Thanks for being my friends!!!  :)

Chocolate Banana Bread Recipe:

1/2 cup (55 grams) toasted walnuts or pecans, coarsely chopped
1 3/4 cups (230 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 cup (30 grams) Dutch-processed cocoa powder                                                             
1 cup (200 grams) granulated white sugar
1 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (85 grams) white or dark chocolate chips ( I didn’t have any chips, so I chopped 3 oz of semi-sweet baking chocolate.)  2 oz I mixed in, 1 oz I put on top)
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
**! Tbsp molasses (I always add this to fruit/vegetable breads, add an extra richness of flavor)
1/2 cup (113 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 ripe bananas (approximately 1 pound or 454 grams), mashed well (about 1-1/2 cups)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Chocolate Banana Bread: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C) and place oven rack to middle position. Butter and flour (or spray with a non stick vegetable/flour spray) the bottom and sides of a 9 x 5 x 3 inch (23 x 13 x 8 cm) loaf pan.  Place the nuts on a baking sheet and bake for about 8 - 10 minutes or until lightly toasted. Let cool and then chop coarsely.   In a large bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  In a medium-sized bowl combine the mashed bananas, eggs, melted butter, and vanilla. With a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, lightly fold the wet ingredients (banana mixture) into the dry ingredients until just combined and batter is thick and chunky. Fold in the nuts and chocolate chips.  Scrape batter into prepared pan and sprinkle the top of the bread with coarse brown sugar (optional). Bake until bread has risen and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 to 65 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool and then remove the bread from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Makes 1 - 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf.                                      

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