Black Forest Banana Bread

This is not your typical banana bread.

Crammed with cherries, chocolate chips and pecans, there's barely room for the bananas! But this medley of Black Forest Cake flavours makes this loaf of Black Forest Banana Bread a delicious food gift to present to someone this holiday season. Or to make for your family to enjoy!

If you think the intended recipient could use a new loaf pan, give the banana bread in a shiny new pan, wrapped in plastic wrap or parchment paper and/or a new tea towel. Tie it up with a fat and festive ribbon. Or do as I did, and bake the loaf in a giftable loaf pan made of silicone-coated paper. The pans are a President's Choice product. I picked up a package of four of them, complete with ribbons and clear bags, for $10 at my local Zehrs grocery store. I've also seen them at the Real Canadian Superstore so they're likely available in most places President's Choice products are sold. (You can also buy similar pans in a 9-inch square size.) The pans are oven-safe, reusable, washable, and easy release. The banana bread came out easily without any cooking spray being applied before the batter was put into the pan. Because the sides are flexible instead of rigid as you'd find in a metal pan, the loaf did bulge width-wise a little instead of baking up with a rounded top. But I don't think it really affected the look of the loaf. Certainly not the taste! With the addition of the non-traditional banana bread ingredients, this banana bread is moist, delicious, and special. I'll be baking it again. But I may try using glace cherries, and kirsch in place of the cherry juice, just for something different. I may even try making mini loaves by baking the batter in a few small loaf pans. That way I can share the great flavour among a few people on my Christmas list. Black Forest Banana Bread Makes 1 loaf (9" x 5" or 8" x 4") 1 jar (375 mL/10 oz) maraschino cherries (about 1 cup) 1-3/4 cups all-purpose flour 2 tsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 2/3 cup packed brown sugar 1/3 cup butter, softened 1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 2 large) 2 eggs 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips 1 cup chopped pecans (100 g pecan pieces) Lightly spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray. Drain cherries, reserving 2 tbsp juice. Coarsely chop cherries. Combine flour, baking and salt in a medium bowl. Beat brown sugar and butter in a large bowl with electric mixer until well blended. Beat in bananas, eggs and reserved cherry juice until blended. Stir in flour mixture, cherries, chocolate chips and pecans until just blended. Spoon into prepared pan; level top. Bake in a preheated 350F oven until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in centre of loaf comes out clean, 60 to 65 minutes. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove loaf from pan; cool completely. Recipe Source: Gifts from the Kitchen, Publications International, Ltd. 2009