How about adding chocolate chips and crystallized ginger to your next banana bread? Sounds good, doesn’t it? Actually, it’s amazing.

I read a recipe recently that included those two items. It also included lots of butter and yogurt. Instead of following that recipe, I decided to use my tried and true one bowl, wooden spoon recipe for banana bread, but instead of walnuts, I added chocolate chips and crystallized ginger. Just thinking about it makes me want to head for the freezer where I stashed the remains of the bread to make it less accessible. It’s really that good.

Ingredients

2 C flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 C canola oil
1 C sugar
2 eggs
2 very ripe mashed bananas
1/3 C milk
1/2 C chocolate chips
1/4 C crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Method

1. Mix the sugar and oil together with a wooden spoon. Add the mashed bananas and eggs. Mix well.
2. Add the milk. Keep mixing.
3.Put the flour, baking soda, salt, chocolate chips and crystalized ginger in a separate bowl. Stir it all together until everything is combined.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir to combine.
5. Put the mixture into a well greased 5 x 9 inch pan. I also put a strip of parchment paper in the bottom of the pan. Bake at 350 for about 55-60 minutes.
6. Let it cool in the pan for about ten minutes before you turn it out on a wire rack to cool.

We had this last night when it was still warm and the chocolate was soft and melty and wonderful. The ginger was an occasional delightful undertone, and not at all overpowering.