Buttermilking the heck outta Banana Bread

I freaking love Banana Bread, so Banana Bread Week is like Christmas in Springtime. 

I've been nervous to try it because I love it so much and I don't want to ruin something so perfect. But I tried it anyway. (Mainly because spending $3 on a slice at Starbucks is bananas.)

I Tastespotted and found a recipe that I really like on a little blog called Just a Taste. It's my favorite because of the streusel topping (hello) and the buttermilk. Nom. 

Banana Bread with Streusel Topping
Makes 1 9-inch loaf. Needs to bake for 50 minutes. 

For the bread:
2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 very ripe, darkly speckled large bananas, mashed well (about 1 1/2 cups)
1/4 cup buttermilk (See Laura's post about this.)
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
6 Tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup walnuts, pecans, chocolate chips or shredded coconut (optional)

For the streusel topping:
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tablespoons butter, slightly softened and cut into pieces

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Line a 9-inch loaf pan with parchment then grease the parchment with cooking spray.

Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.

Mix mashed bananas, buttermilk, eggs, melted butter and vanilla in a medium bowl.

Lightly fold banana mixture into dry ingredients with rubber spatula just until combined and batter looks thick and chunky. Stir in any desired add-ins. (I always vote chocolate or butterscotch chips.) 

Scrape batter into prepared loaf pan.

Prepare the streusel topping by combining all ingredients in a bowl and using a fork to cut the butter evenly into the dry ingredients.

Lightly sprinkle the streusel topping over the unbaked loaf. (Go easy - you don't want this to be too thick or it just gets dusty.) 

Bake the bread for 50 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Allow the loaf to cool in the pan for 5 minutes then transfer it to a cooling rack to continue cooling. Slice and serve.

Once it's cooled, make sure you store it sealed up. Great banana bread becomes less so when it's dried out. 

You can also make muffins to easy sharing / less guilty devouring. (And these only have to  bake for about 20 minutes.) 

I'm curious to know, what's your tried and true banana bread recipe?