Banana Bread Recipe + How to Find Joy Daily

I am a banana bread FIEND! When I would go home from college for the holidays, my mom would make a ton of banana bread and I ate it for breakfast every morning. Now I associate it with all the things I would do during those times- relax at home, spend time with my family, and celebrate the holidays. Now, I use my mom's recipe to make banana bread every week as part of my meal prep routine, and I eat it for breakfast every single morning!

One thing I find myself + clients focusing on in sessions is how to enjoy life even when experiencing negativity, stress, etc.  I think everyone hits a rut at some point where everyday seems mundane- wake up, go to work, come home, go to bed, and wake up and do it all again the next day.  If you've ever felt like this- you are not alone. Most of the people I meet with are feeling this, or have felt this at some time in their life... me included!! This year, I have been practicing finding joy even in the most humdrum of days/weeks/months.

How to do this?? What worked for me this year was finding easily accessible activities I enjoy doing. Easily accessible- meaning it has to be quick, cheap or cost free, and close to home.  So, what did I find that brings me joy daily?? Waking up early to enjoy my coffee and banana bread! For the past several months, I have been waking up thirty minutes earlier than necessary in order to get my day started in a way that is truly enjoyable for me- and not surprisingly, I feel much happier throughout the day when I do this!  As humans, we spend a lot of time thinking about our stress, sadness, negative emotions, but we forget to think about our happiness, excitement, and well-being. So, this week, make banana bread, and spend time each day thinking on the small things that bring you happiness :)

Ingredients:

• 2-3 ripe (very soft) bananas
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 3/4 cup sugar (use 1/2 cup for less sweet, 1 cup for more sweet- I use 1/2 cup)
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1 teaspoon baking soda 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C). Butter a 4x8 inch loaf pan. 
• In a medium size mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork until smooth. Stir the melted butter into the bananas.
• Mix in the baking soda and salt. Stir in the sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla extract. Mix in the flour.
• Pour the batter into your loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour at 350° F. Use a knife or toothpick to test the bread- bread is ready when the tester is inserted to the center of the bread and comes out clean.
• Remove from oven and cool completely on a rack. 

Enjoy! :)

Love, Bailey