Toasted Pecan Coconut Banana Bread

We have a toddler and toddlers love bananas.  Almost as much as monkeys.  But they have this uncanny ability to love bananas one minute and hate them the next.  Literally.  So we buy bananas, in bulk sometimes for those days when our munchkin decides her insatiable bananappetite needs 14 bananas now.  And some days, she stops mid banana and decides she hates them.  For a week.  And now I'm left with a truckload of bananas on the counter collecting fruit flies.  When this happens, I throw them in the freezer.  I also keep a freezer bag on the door to collect her half-eaten bananas so those don't go to waste.  When I have enough for a triple batch, about 9 to 12 bananas, I make this bread.  I make it into mini muffins and freeze them in a gallon freezer bag to pull out for snacks or a quick weekday breakfast on the go.

Makes one 9-inch loaf:

2 c (10 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 c (5 1/4 oz) sugar
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 c toasted pecans, coarsely chopped (yield will be 1 cup) (you can substitute for macadamia nuts as well)
4 very soft, ripe bananas mashed well but still chunky
1/2 cup toasted coconut
1/4 c milk, preferably whole, alternatively you could use yogurt, buttermilk or sour cream--I prefer the milk and it's usually what I have on hand
2 large eggs, beaten lightly
6 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 9 by 5 by 3 loaf pan.  Shiny metal one works well.  I use coconut oil in its solid form to grease the pans.

2. Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and nuts in a large bowl and set aside.

3.  Mix the mashed bananas, with milk, eggs, butter, vanilla and coconut in another bowl.  Fold the banana mixture into the dry ingredients using a rubber spatula until just combined.  It will be thick and chunky.  Scrape the rest of the batter into the pan and smooth the surface with the spatula.

4.  Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes.  Cool in the pan for about 5 minutes and transfer to a cooling rack.  You can freeze these loaves whole as well.  If you are making mini muffins, reduce the cooking time until the muffins are golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean, about 15-20 minutes.