Best Banana Bread

1. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.

2. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, raisins and salt. Set aside. In another bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the vanilla, the eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Add the flour mixture into the banana mixture in 3 increments; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan (I top off the batter with some sugar in the raw; it adds crunch.)

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 60-65 for a large pan, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

TIP: If the top of the bread is getting too dark, but it’s not completely cooked; cover the loaf with some tin foil so it finishes cooking without the top getting too dark or burning.

4. Store in plastic wrap or a Ziploc bag. The bread sets up better (firmer and flavor wise) if you wait 12 hours before eating it, but if you don’t then it is fine.