I don’t have a source for this recipe, my only copy is a tattered page torn out of one of those community cookbooks. It’s a great recipe, as those community/church/PTO collection recipes often are! I lost track of it for a couple years and mourned it every time I tried a new banana bread recipe that didn’t hit the mark. But it’s back!
- 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon grated orange zest
- 1 cup mashed brown banana (2-3 bananas)
- 2 cups unsifted all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 cup buttermilk
- optional: 1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans and/or 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease two loaf pans or one bundt pan.
Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl, set aside. In a large bowl, use electric mixer on medium speed to cream butter, sugar, eggs, and orange peel until light and fluffy. Beat in banana.
With mixer on low speed, gradually add dry ingredients, then buttermilk. Beat just until smooth. Fold in nuts and chocolate, if desired.
Spread batter in pan(s) and bake: 40-45 minutes for bundt pan, 50-55 for loaf pans, or until toothpick inserted near center of pan comes out clean.
I would post a picture but everybody ate it too quickly to snap one–it’s that good! I prefer the bundt pan version with or without nuts. The chocolate chips are also yummy but push the bread over into “cake” category because they make it so rich.
