PFFT!

Lastnight, Brighton came up with the funniest thing. Out of no where, he started "pfft"ing. Kind of like either a sneeze or like someone going "pfft!" as if to say "whatever!" I did get it on video, but I'm not yet sure how to load that up to google. I also noticed after viewing it 23 times, that he said "whatyoudoing?" in the video...Andrew will be working on how to get that fixed so we can show you.

Today we're baking banana bread right now, we just finished lunch and Brighton is helping me do laundry. I thought it would be fun to let him help me with the banana bread. Well, if by "fun" I meant tossing flour out of the bowl, than it was fun. Well, he enjoyed it anyway.

He now has chores around the house. Which include (but aren't limited to) feeding Feebee, unloading the dishwasher, loading the dishwasher, putting the laundry in the dryer and taking it out of the dryer into the laundry basket (since generally we leave our laundry in for the full cycle and then some, no worries, it's never hot when we remove it...). Here's my recipe for banana bread from America's Test Kitchen's Family Cookbook Below the recipe there's variations. I tend to just like the original...
Makes one 9" loaf
Prep: 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 15 minutes plus 1 hour 10 minutes cooling time.

Tips:
Make sure you're using ripe bananas
Make sure you're using a 9x5 inch loaf pan that is at least 3 inches deep
Freeze ripe bananas so you can use them anytime!

2 C all purpose flour
3/4 C sugar (I substituted splenda for baking)
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3 VERY ripe bananas, mashed well (1 1/2 C)
6 Tbsp (3/4 stick) butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 C plain yogurt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 C walnuts, toasted and coarsley chopped (optional)

Adjust the oven rack to the lower middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously coat a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan with vegetable oil spray (HINT: spray the pan in the dishwasher as to avoid getting the oil all over your kitchen)

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. Whisk the mashed bananas, melted butter, eggs, yogurt, and vanilla together in a separate bowl. Gently fold the banana mixture into the flour mixture using a rubber spatula until just combined. Fold in the nuts (if applicable). DO NOT OVERMIX; the batter will look thick and chunky.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smoothe the top. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs attached, about 55 minutes.

Let the loaf cool in the pan for about 10 before unmolding onto a wire rack to cool for 1 hour.

Variations:
Banana-Chocolate Bread
Reduce the sugar by 2 Tbsp and mix 2 1/2 ounces grated bittersweet chocolate (a heaping 1/2 cup) into the dry ingredients.

Banana-Coconut Bread with Macadamia Nuts
Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spread 1 C chopped macadamia nuts and 1/2 C sweetened flaked coconut on a baking sheet and toast, stirring every 2 minutes, until golden brown, about 6 minutes. Substitute the cooled, toasted coconut and macadamias for the walnuts.

Orange-Spice Banana Bread
Add 2 Tbsp grated orange zest, 1 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg to the dry ingredients.