Today I decided to turn my regular Banana Bread into a delicious cake like creation, and the results were quite rewarding.

I was convinced that adding some chocolate to the recipe, will enhance the texture and flavor of my Banana Bread, and topping it off with a creamy chocolate glaze, will make it that much more decadent.

After all, how can anything chocolate, not taste great!

I am sure all the chocolate lovers will agree with me on this one.

The total baking time took a little longer than I expected, but once the bread looked done (springing back up when lightly tapped), I was happy with the results.

Dark and White Chocolate morsels, melting on top of the baked cake, to form a creamy topping.

Creamy Chocolate glaze on this Chocolate Banana Bread, is indeed the “Icing on the Cake”.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 Tbs. Vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup milk (whole of low fat)
• 2 large, very ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
• 2 cups cake flour (Softasilk)
• 1/2 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 cup dark chocolate morsels

Chocolate Glaze Ingredients (optional)

• 1/2 cup white chocolate morsels
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate moresels

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat the white and brown sugar with the eggs, until a thick creamy mixture forms.
2. Add Vanilla extract, melted butter, salt, milk and sour cream.
3. Add mashed bananas.
4. Mix, to blend in well.
5. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and cocoa.
6. Gradually add to the egg mixture, mixing continuously on medium speed, until smooth batter is formed.
7. Fold in 1 cup of dark chocolate morsels.
8. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
9. Grease a loaf pan with vegetable shortening (Crisco), flour lightly bottom and sides.
10. Pour the cake batter into the pan.
11. Bake on the middle oven rack for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in the middle, comes out clean.
12. I lightly tapped the top of the bread, and once it was springing back, I knew it was fully baked.
13. Remove from the oven, and cool in the pan for 5 minutes.
14. Remove from the pan onto a wire rack (see TIP below), and gently arrange the remaining dark and white chocolate morsels on top of the loaf.
15. Leave them on until melted enough for easy spreading all over the top of the bread, to form a creamy chocolate glaze.
16. Cool off completely before slicing.

Keep at room temperature for serving, or cover loosely with foil, and refrigerate for later use.

Enjoy.

TIP: For easier chocolate glaze preparation, you may prepare a “paper lift” to remove the bread from the pan. Place a large enough sheet of wax paper or aluminum foil, in the pan, so it extends a few inches above the long pan sides.  Place the cake back in the pan, on top of the paper lift.  Arrange the chocolates morsels all over the bread as stated in the directions.  Once the topping sets, you can lift out the bread from the pan, by grabbing both sides of the extended paper, and pulling it upwards, to lift it out of the pan.

Here is another melt-in-your mouth recipe for your enjoyment.  I chose this one as a finally for this year’s recipes mentioned in my preview of Christmas cookie post.

I am getting myself so hungry for sweets, sitting here today and writing up these recipes and salivating over all the pictures of cookies.    Hopefully you find them enticing enough to make them, and share your comments with all of us in the blog land.

Meanwhile, here is a recipe for Ginger Chocolate Truffles.

This recipe makes about 40 pieces.

Ingredients:

• 8 oz cream cheese (one package), softened
• 4 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 5 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled (1.5 min in the microwave, stirring once halfway through)
• 1 cup toasted, ground almonds (for coating)
• Chocolate sprinkles (optional for coating)
• Cocoa powder (optional for coating)

Directions:

1. Add cream cheese into a large mixing bowl, and mix with an electric mixer until smooth.
2. Mix powdered sugar with ginger.
3. Gradually add to cream cheese and mix well.
4. Add melted chocolate, and mix until combined.
5. Cover and chill for at least an hour or overnight.
6. Shape the chilled mixture into 1-inch balls.
7. Roll in almonds, or any other of your favorite coatings.
8. Store in an airtight container in the fridge, for up to 2 weeks (if you can keep away from them for that long..).

Tip: My favorite coating is the cocoa powder. These truffles tend to get quite soft is kept out of fridge for a long time.  For best results, please store in the fridge, in an airtight container.