Sweet

When I was a girl, my grandma used to make zucchini bread. She never called it that, but instead called it sweet bread.

Then after we had eaten it and declared that we liked it and wanted another piece, she would inform us gleefully that it was zucchini bread.

I assume we didn't like zucchini.

But I'm not positive. Because I also remember my mom making slices of fried zucchini that had been dipped in an egg wash and bread crumbs and I'm pretty sure we went gaga over that.

But perhaps the idea of zucchini in a sweet bread would have had us turning up our noses at grandma's labors.

Anyhoo--it was good. And I have always loved sweet breads and cannot make them without thinking of my grandmother.

Sweet breads are a wonderful invention for those of us who choose to plant zucchini.

Or those of us who purchase bananas the very week that our kids decide to take a firm hiatus from them.

I found this recipe for banana bread in one of my Cooks Country magazines and decided to give it a try. The interesting twist to this recipe is that it includes Grape Nuts cereal. I made two loaves. In one of the loaves I used a half of a cup of honey in place of the sugar. I also added 1/2 tsp of cinnamon to both loaves.

Aidan did the blind taste test. It transpired that he liked the loaf made with honey "a bit better, but they are both really good."

I like the little crunchy bits that the Grape Nuts provide. The creator of this recipe suggests toasting slices in the toaster oven and spreading with butter.

Sounds like breakfast.

Gather your ingredients:

Grape Nuts Banana Bread
Judy Kuretsky

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar (or 1/2 cup honey)
3/4 cup Grape Nuts cereal
1 TBSP baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup mashed bananas (about two over-ripe)
1/2 cup whole or low-fat milk
2 TBSP vegetable oil
1 large egg

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 inch loaf pan. Combine flour, sugar, Grape-Nuts, baking powder, and salt in large bowl. Whisk bananas, milk, oil and egg in medium bowl until smooth. Stir wet ingredients into flour mixture until combined.

Scrape batter into prepared pan. Bake until golden brown and toothpick in center comes out clean, 45 to 55 minutes. Cool bread in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The bread will keep at room temperature up to 3 days in an airtight container.

Enjoy!