There are few things that make me mad in the kitchen, but one of the biggest is when food goes bad. It seems like such a waste when I have to throw food into the garbage. This happened to me a while ago visiting Ryan; bananas brown as a tree trunk and salad mixed greens that looked like they came from a swamp. The greens went into the trash, and the bananas were well on their way until… voila! The wonderful epiphany popped into my head…. I can make banana bread with these!! Thanks dad for childhood memories of bringing those yucky bananas home from the office 🙂 With no bakeware my Banana Bread dreams were quickly dashed, so I came up with this little recipe instead. Minus some good bread, you probably have everything else in the house. Give it a try sometime for a weekend brunch or even a breakfast-for-dinner night. It quickly became one of Ryan’s favorite dishes.
Makes: 12 pieces; 6 servings
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cooking Time: 20 minutes Total Time: 20 minutes
1 day old challah or any egg bread
2 ripe bananas
1/3 cup organic peanut butter
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 regular banana for garnish (optional)
Maple syrup
Chopped strawberries for garnish (optional)
For batter:
3 eggs, beaten well
3/4 cup milk or almond milk
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
- In a mixing bowl, combine ripe bananas, peanut butter, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. If it isn’t mixing easily by hand, you can put it in the microwave for 20 seconds to soften it up. If you heat it up, make sure it’s cool when you stuff your toast!
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk together all of the batter ingredients and set aside.
- Cut the challah into thick pieces, at least 1 1/2 inches. In the areas where the loaf is really wide, you can cut them in half vertically to have narrow fat pieces.
- Use a thin, serrated knife to cut the bread through the center to form a pocket (similar to a pita). Be careful not to cut the bread all the way through, or you will have a leaky mess trying to stuff them!
- Use a spoon or a piping bag to stuff the toast with two heaping tbs of filling per piece. You want them to be full and clearly stuffed, but not to the point of exploding. Repeat for all of the pieces.
- Put a large saute pan over medium heat. Add a small dab of butter to the pan.
- Dip each piece in the batter and coat well on all sides. Cook for 3-4 minutes per side until it is crispy and light brown. Add more cooking spray or butter as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Don’t over crowd the pan! If you are making for a few people, cook 3-4 pieces at a time and keep warm on a plate covered with foil.
- Serve two pieces per person and top with sliced fresh banana, a drizzle of maple syrup, and a few strawberries for garnish.
Cooking In Red Socks 