Do NOT throw away those bananas!

So sometimes I buy bananas.  I am not sure why I do it, because I don't really like bananas that much.  But something in me always says "they are healthy, they are full of potassium.  You should eat these" and so I do.  I also remember my mom when I was a kid and woke up too late to eat breakfast, shoving a banana and a glass of milk in my hand to eat on my way to school.

Of course I buy the bananas and then I do not eat them and they end up looking like this:

I have a hard time eating yellow bananas. Forget ones that are all brown.

So what to do with these bananas?  Well, the simple answer is banana bread.  I don't like bananas, but for some reason when they are baked into bread I cannot get enough of them.  So I took them and made my own adapted recipe for brown butter banana bread.

I bet you didn't know that when you blend bananas and sugar it turns into a liquid.

I started with a Tyler Florence recipe for banana bread and just started changing things as I went along.  One of the things I change?  Addition of browned butter.

That picture doesn't look like much. But browned butter is AMAZING.  It smells like Heaven.  Or at least what I imagine Heaven to smell like.  To folks from Chicago it smells like Garrett's popcorn shop.  You know, the one people stand in long lines for?  Yeah that one.  So. Darn. Good. Just the smell of the browned butter made me hungry.

Then I subbed in brown sugar for half the regular sugar.  Mmm.  The browned butter plus the brown sugar gave this banana bread the deepest most complex flavor I have ever had in bread.  It was sweet and nutty and tasted a little like fall.  Okay, I know, its still summer.  But I love how fall tastes.

This banana bread is good enough to eat for breakfast or dessert.  I wonder how it would taste as french toast.  Probably pretty darn good... and rich.  I threw in some chocolate chips and some chopped pecans to round out the flavor.

The recipe was enough for one loaf pan, but you could probably do 12 cupcakes/muffins from the batter if you so desired.  It bakes up a little darker than most banana bread, but it also tastes better than most banana bread.

sprinkle some extra chopped pecans on top for a little flair.  I probably could have put more.

You might want to make two batches of this.  My one loaf went pretty fast when I took it over to my in-laws' last weekend.

Browned Butter Banana Bread

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 overripe bananas
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F, and lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan.

In a small saucepan melt butter over low flame.  Once all the butter is melted, raise temperature to medium and stir constantly. Watch for the butter to foam up and then subside.  Small bits on the bottom should start to turn brown.  Once butter is browned, it should offer a nutty caramel smell.  Remove from heat immediately.  Left too long the butter can burn.  Set butter aside to cool.

In a bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

Mash two bananas with a fork.  Set aside.  With an electric mixer combine the remaining two bananas along with the sugars until light and fluffy.  If it liquefies, don't worry.  This happened to me too and the bread came out okay.  Add the butter, eggs and vanilla and mix thoroughly.  Mix in the dry ingredients until just combined, careful not to over mix the batter.*

Fold in the mashed bananas and the pecans and chocolate chips (if using) until they are distributed evenly throughout the bread.  Pour into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle top with extra chopped nuts if desired.

Now take your aggression out by rapping the loaf pan once really hard on the counter.  This will knock any air bubbles out and ensure a nice even texture in the bread.

Bake in oven for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Rotate the pan occasionally through the process to ensure that it browns evenly across the top.  The top WILL crack down the middle.  This is normal.  The bread is done baking once a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

Cool bread in the loaf pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and allow to finish cooling on a wire rack.  Slice once it is completely cooled.

Try not to eat the whole thing in one sitting.

*Over mixing the batter would work the gluten in the flour too much, and create a less than light and fluffy bread.  It is similar to when pancakes are over mixed.

Source: very loosely adapted from Tyler Florence, foodnetwork.com