Rather than throw away the two black bananas sitting on my counter, I baked banana bread. Teacher Appreciation Week is next week, so I used my mini loaf pans and wrapped up the loaves to bring as teacher thank you gifts for my children’s teachers. I always get hungry mid-morning at school and need a little breakfast-y bite. I thought my kids’ teachers might need a little snack too. The mini loaves are a good size for eating at school since they equal about two servings (and taste great with coffee). Teachers can share with a co-teacher or have a bite in the morning and finish the little banana loaf at lunch or at the end of the day.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
• 2/3 c. sugar
• 1 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. baking soda
• 1/4 t. salt
• 3/4 c. regular oats (not instant)
• 1 c. mashed ripe banana (about 2)
• 1/3 c. buttermilk
• 1/4 c. vegetable oil
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• Crisco or Pam
• standard loaf pan (8″x 4″) or 3 mini loaf pans (5 3/4″ x 3 1/4″)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl; stir well with a whisk. Stir in oats.

• In a separate bowl, combine mashed banana, vegetable oil, vanilla extract, and eggs.
• Add wet mixture to dry mixture. Stir until just moist.

• Pour batter into an 8″ x 4″ loaf pan coated with cooking spray or greased with Crisco. Bake for 55 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack about 15 minutes and then gently turn pan over to drop the loaf out of the pan. Serve warm or let cool completely on the wire rack and wrap in foil to store.

Notes

• If using mini loaf pans, fill about halfway with batter. I get about 3 mini loaves per recipe. Reduce the cooking time for the mini size. After about 30 minutes, watch until the top is browned, then test the center to determine if the banana bread is baked through.
• Wrap with parchment paper and have kids decorate with stickers if giving as gifts.
• These work well as a teacher appreciation gift, hostess gift, and housewarming present.

You know I love teacher gift ideas!

I have a few ideas in the hopper for Teacher Appreciation Week and end of the year, but I like to keep the pipeline stocked. Any other suggestions out there?