Monday was National Banana Bread Day, which I observed by making a loaf of banana bread. The problem was, I had interruptions all day long causing me to pause several times in the mixing and baking process. The finished product was not as moist and delicious as I had hoped. This morning I looked at the half loaf sitting on the counter wrapped in plastic. Not wanting to waste good butter on dry banana bread, I decided to improvise.
The result, Banana Bread French Toast Sticks, were a tasty alternative. I cut a big slab of banana bread, trimmed off the edges, cut it into strips, soaked the sticks in egg custard, and cooked them in butter. I served the sticks with sliced bananas and pure maple syrup, garnished with powdered sugar. Now that's an indulgent breakfast!
Warm maple syrup is perfect with bananas. Yum.
If you find yourself with leftover banana bread, make these! Or, make banana bread one day and treat your family and friends to a decadent breakfast the next. They'll think they've been whisked away to a cozy Bed and Breakfast on the coast.
Ingredients
- For the banana bread:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup butter (softened)
- 2 large eggs (lightly beaten)
- 1 ½ cups mashed ripe banana (about 3 bananas)
- ⅓ cup vanilla Greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup chopped pecans
- Baking spray
- For the French toast sticks:
- 2 eggs (beaten)
- ¾ cups milk
- ½ teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoon butter
- Maple Syrup
- Sliced bananas
- Powdered sugar
Instructions
- For the banana bread:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt, stirring with a whisk. and set aside.
- Place softened butter sugar in a large bowl. Beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended, about one minute. Add the eggs and beat well. Add the mashed banana, yogurt, and vanilla. Beat until blended. Add flour mixture. Beat at low-speed just until moist. Fold in pecans. Spoon batter into a regular-sized loaf pan coated with baking spray. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Remove from pan and cool completely.
- For the French toast sticks:
- Cut two 1" thick slices of cooled banana bread. Trim off the hard sides and bottom. Cut each slice into four strips. Mix the eggs, milk and vanilla in a shallow bowl. Place the strips of banana bread in the egg mixture and allow to soak for at least 10 minutes. Melt butter in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Place the banana bread into the hot pan and cook, rotating until each side is golden brown. Serve immediately with warm maple syrup, sliced bananas, and powdered sugar.
