One-Bowl Banana Bread

This one-bowl Banana Bread recipe is what I call Banana Bread Without All The Fuss. I have been making this recipe since I purchased my first cookbook, The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, in the early 1980s. Unlike most recipes, this banana bread doesn't require a mixer, as it has no butter that needs to be creamed. In fact, it has no fat at all other than that provided by the eggs. This is not a banana cake, therefore, but a banana bread that has a compact crumb that is moist purely from the power of the bananas.

As with all banana breads, though, you want to use ripe bananas. The riper, the better. One common trick is that when you are down to that last banana that's riper than you prefer, let it continue to ripen until it is spotty brown, then stick it in the freezer. The skins will turn almost black, but that's OK. When you have collected 3 or 4, let them thaw to make the banana bread. You'll want to peel them over the mixing bowl. Depending on how ripe they were when they went into the freezer, they will be very soft, and there may even be a separated liquid. That's OK.

NOTE: I make this in a 9" x 5" loaf pan, but it should work in an 8" x 4". You can also make multiple smaller loaves, obviously, but the cooking time will be shorter. Start checking halfway through the recommended cooking time.

One-Bowl Banana Bread

adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook (1979)

3 to 4 very ripe bananas
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a loaf pan (see note above). Place the bananas in a mixing bowl and mash until nearly smooth (I use a potato masher). Add the eggs and sugar and whisk vigorously until the eggs are well beaten and everything is well-mixed. Add the remaining ingredients and stir in using a rubber/silicone spatula or large spoon just until all of the dry ingredients are incorporated. (As with all quick breads, don't overmix.) Scrape the batter into the loaf pan and bake for 50 - 60 minutes. The bread is done when the edges have pulled away from the side of the pan and a tester comes out clean, with maybe only a few crumbs clinging. Place the pan on a rack to cool, then tip out of the pan and place on the rack to finish cooling. It's OK to slice this while still warm, but do let it cool below piping hot. When completely cool, store in an airtight container, or wrap well in plastic wrap or foil.