Banana Bread Question -- Great Update at #8

[Venus193]

How over-ripe do the bananas need to be and how many make 2 1/3 cups when mashed?

These questions may sound stupid, but my store has recently  been stocking bananas that are still a little green.

[AngelicGamer]

For me, there need to be brown/black spots before I entertain the idea of banana bread.  For 2 1/3 cups mashed, I believe it is 4 medium bananas.  I'm not 100 percent sure on that, but I hope it helps.

[Dazi]

I prefer mine nearly solid black.  I won't even think to use them unless they are at least completely spotted brown.  Maybe 4-5 small-medium ones or 2-3 really big ones.  Really though, a little more or less won't make much of difference.

[Venus193]

I was hoping to make banana bread on Friday morning.  If the bananas I bought yesterday aren't up to that, I guess I'll make brownies instead.

[Outdoor Girl]

You can hasten the ripening by putting them in a brown paper bag in a warmer spot, I think.

You definitely want them to have brown spots and be fairly soft when you peel them.  Otherwise, you won't get the flavour.  I made the mistake of making some dehydrated banana chips out of bananas that were just ripe.  They had absolutely no flavour.

2 to 3 medium bananas will give 1 cup of mashed banana so for 2 1/3 cups, you'll need 6 to 10 medium bananas.

I watch the reduced produce rack for bananas all the time.  Sometimes I hit it right and I can get a big bunch of ripe bananas for 50 cents.  Then I peel them, mash them and throw the mash in the freezer until I get a chance to make banana bread.  You can put whole bananas in the freezer and deal with them later but the peeling and mashing part gets real messy.

[jmarvellous]

I save the last overripe banana (or two if I accidentally bought them too yellow) from the bunch anytime I don't get a chance to eat it before it gets there. Once I have 3-4 in the freezer, it's banana bread time!

I have found that I actually like my bread a little less banana-y than 2 1/3 cups of bananas would be, so I just estimate on banana content.

I made a vegan recipe this week that rose surprisingly well and tastes great!

[Venus193]

Just put it in the oven.  I had 6 nanners, mashed to a lumpy state.  Made it with Brown Sugar Splenda, a ghost of cinnamon, and some walnuts.  Here's hoping.

[Luci45]

I watch the reduced produce rack for bananas all the time.  Sometimes I hit it right and I can get a big bunch of ripe bananas for 50 cents.  Then I peel them, mash them and throw the mash in the freezer until I get a chance to make banana bread.  You can put whole bananas in the freezer and deal with them later but the peeling and mashing part gets real messy.

I peel them and don't mash them before I put them in the freezer. Then I just turn the Baggie inside out into the mixing bowl . Include all of the juices that separate out, by the way.

[Venus193]

Update:

Perfect results.  Rave reviews by Brunhilde and her family.  I am so psyched!

[Luci45]

Update:

Perfect results.  Rave reviews by Brunhilde and her family.  I am so psyched!

Like.

[Venus193]

The banana skins were mostly brown when I peeled.  Six nanners made up the quantity I needed and I subbed brown sugar Splenda for regular brown sugar. The loaf pans were small, so I got two loaves out of this:

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/banana-banana-bread/

I also added chopped walnuts.