Going Bananas!

     I beg you, my few dear followers, to forgive me for not posting in so long. I have been overwhelmed lately because I am, for the first time in 10 years, getting ready to go back to school! I haven't completely decided if I just finally got motivated enough or if I just finally completely lost my mind. Not only am I going back to school, I also go back to work (as a preschool teacher) in a few days. My 8 year old is also gearing up to go to 3rd Grade and my little ones are waiting as anxiously as I am to hear that there is room for them in the early childhood education program I enrolled them for.
     In any case, I had an extremely large amount of over-ripe bananas from my local store having a sale and me stocking up so I cultivated a couple of new "must-try" recipes.  The first, a banana pudding made from scratch is actually healthy enough to serve for breakfast while the chocolate chip banana bread is really more of a dessert.

Enjoy!

 Homemade Banana Pudding

 1 C Sugar (or sweetener)
 3 eggs (beaten)
 2 TBSP Cornstarch
 2 C Milk
 1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract - be sure to use Pure Vanilla if using a sweetener, I have found the imitation vanilla with sweetener leaves an unpleasant after taste.
 3-4 Ripe Bananas (pureed)
 Dash Salt

 Mix salt, sugar, eggs and vanilla. Mix cornstarch with milk and add to first mixture. Pour in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over med-high heat stirring constantly. Add bananas. Cook until thickened, about the consistency of a pancake batter. Remove from heat, pour into a storage container and cool in refrigerator until set to pudding consistency.


 Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

 2 C Flour
 1 C Sugar or Sweetener
 1 tsp Baking Powder
 1 tsp Salt
 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
 1 C Mashed Bananas (3 small bananas)
 1/2 C Butter
 2 Eggs
 1 C Chocolate Chips

 Preheat oven to 350. Generously grease a loaf pan. In a large bowl mix dry ingredients. Add butter, eggs and bananas and blend well. Stir in chocolate chips. Transfer to loaf pan and bake for 60-65 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.

 So good even the man who doesn't eat bananas said "Yum!"