Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Plain Banana Bread?

It's been a loooong time between posts - but what a great way to get back into the swing of things. I've had some ripened bananas that were just begging me to turn them into something yummy. I've made "regular" banana bread so many times, I was looking for something a little different.

This exceeded my expectations - this is a wonderful bread - one of my favorites so far. The orange zest adds an amazing punch and compliments the banana flavor, two fruits that I wouldn't have thought to pair with one another.



Orange Banana-Nut Bread
Cooking Light

Yield 1 loaf, 16 servings (serving size: 1 slice)

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
1 1/2 tablespoons grated orange rind
3 tablespoons fresh orange juice
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
Cooking spray

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350º.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

Place sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 1 minute). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add banana, rind, and juice; beat until blended. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until moist. Stir in walnuts; spoon batter into an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 350° for 1 hour and 5 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pan on a wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire rack.