A week or so ago I bought 6 bananas because Chrissy Teigan told me to. When I occasionally buy bananas to eat, they seem to go brown immediately. When I needed them for a pre-new year’s baking challenge, they would NOT brown. For 10 days! So, I wasn’t intending to start off 2019 with a giant, sugary concoction, but you plan life never goes according to plan, does it?

Ms. Chrissy claims that this recipe took her years to get just right and then ended up breaking the internet. I just had to try it even though I don’t think I’ve made a banana bread since that one time I was married. That recipe had a crumbly peanut butter top, so this challenger had a lot to prove.

Ms. Teigan also suggests greasing and flouring a pan with oil instead of butter. Genius! No more knobs of wasted butter or paper towels. I could just swish the oil around. Here’s what happens – the cake sticks – the result reminds me the less than charming hip-hop lyric, “car ain’t got no roof.”

Here’s the rest of it. Oil greasing…ha!

In typical fashion of Teigan recipes, the cook times seem to be way under – this was no exception. I like an underbake though and so does my neighbor who was gifted most of the cake.

Would I make this again? Absolutely, it’s delicious and beyond easy. A new twist on a classic. I’d like to my make old standby soon to see if it can be removed from first place though. I can’t remember.

Chrissy Teigan’s Banana Bread

• 6 ripe, mashed bananas
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 c. canola oil
• 2 c. flour
• 2 c. sugar
• 1 3.5oz box of Jello vanilla instant pudding
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1.5 tsp kosher salt
• 1 c. unsweetened coconut
• 1 3.5oz bar of dark chocolate, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 325F
2. Grease (with butter!) and flour a bundt pan
3. In a mixing bowl, combine bananas, eggs, and oil.
4. In a separate bowl combine flour, sugar, pudding mix, baking soda, and salt.
5. Slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix on the lowest setting of the mixer. Stop when just combined.
6. Fold in the coconut and chocolate.
7. Bake about 60 minutes or until tester comes out clean. The under bake at 60 minutes yields a goey, banana-y center if that’s your jam.