tasty tuesday's

So I think I'm one of those people that bake when they're nervous....as I type, my 3 year old dog, Roxy is in the ER and so far it's not looking too good. So of course I break out the new mixer and bake up some bread. Once that was done I searched for something else to fill my time...and realized I hadn't posted anything yet today....PRAISE THE LORD! Something else to keep my mind off of things. So our recipe this week isn't a full meal or anything it's just something I went to because I had all the ingredients on hand and it takes a long time to bake and I only have one bread pan so it consumes a lot of time. Sorry folks :(

Creamy Banana Bread
   Don't be frightened by the word bread, by the way. This term is used loosely in this recipe. There's no kneading or rising involved here.

What you need:
       1/2 butter softened (one whole stick) (room temp is best)
       1 8oz cream cheese box (room temp is best)
       1 1/4 cups white sugar
       2 eggs
       1 cup mashed bananas
       1 teaspoon vanilla extract
       2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
       1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
       1/2 teaspoon baking soda
       3/4 cup chopped pecans
       2 tablespoons brown sugar
       2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
What you do:
     Cream the butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Gradually add the white sugar, and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, making sure to beat them well after each addition. Stir in the mashed bananas and vanilla extract. Next, add the flour, baking powder and baking soda; mix until the batter is just moist. (try not to over mix it)
     In a separate bowl mix together the cinnamon, pecans and brown sugar. Set this aside for later.
     Divide the batter in half (enough to fill two bread pans). Add half of your (already halved) batter into one of the pans. Sprinkle your brown sugar mixture over top of that, then finish spooning in the rest of your batter. (So really this is two quarters of the batter, does that make sense?) Then repeat these same steps in the second bread pan.
     Place them into a preheated oven of 350 degrees and bake for about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
  
   There you have it...delicious bread without too much hard labor. Enjoy and I'll keep you posted on Roxygirl!