AARON’S GRANDMA’S BANANA BREAD

Yields 1 loaf

When my friend Aaron moved to Seattle from Northern California, we thought it’d be fun to become pen pals and keep in touch by snail mail. He’d type all his letters using an old typewriter and include interesting keepsakes, including his grandma’s tried-and-true banana bread recipe. At this point, I’ve made it a million times, and the only change I’ve made was replacing the commercial egg substitute with applesauce, which is much more accessible. Thanks a bunch, A.O. (and A.O.’s grandma)!

Ingredients:

⅓ cup margarine, plus more for greasing

½ cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ cup unsweetened applesauce

1¾ cups whole wheat or all-purpose flour

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2–3 bananas)

Optional Additions:

½ cup chopped walnuts added after step 4

½ cup vegan semisweet chocolate chips added after step 4

1 teaspoon cinnamon added after step 4

Directions:

1.    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, and grease a loaf pan.

2.    In a mixing bowl, beat the margarine and sugar until the mixture is fluffy and pale.

3.    Mix in the baking powder, baking soda, salt, and applesauce.

4.    Add the flour and bananas alternately, adding ½ cup flour and ¼ cup banana at a time, starting with the flour. Mix well after each addition.

5.    Spoon the batter into the loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour or until the bread turns golden brown.

TONI’S TIPS:

>>Loaf pans are usually about 9 × 5 inches, but you can actually bake this in any oven-safe container. Try a muffin tin (aka “cupcake tin”) if you like smaller, portioned-out bites of banana bread. You’ll just have to adjust the baking time to 30 minutes. It’ll yield 12 muffins.

TESTERS’ TIPS:

>>“I like to undercook this bread slightly so that it’s soft in the middle. Since there are no real eggs, there’s no worry!” —Aaron O. from Seattle, WA

MY TIPS: