Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter or margarine
softened 1 cup sugar
3 eggs
2 ripe bananas
peeled and mashed
about 1 cup mashed banana
3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions
Grease and flour a 5x9x3-inch loaf pan. Heat the oven to 325° F. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. In a mixing bowl with an electric mixer, cream butter or margarine with sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, until fluffy. Stir in flour mixture alternately with mashed bananas. Fold in pecans and orange peel (you may substitute 1 teaspoon vanilla for orange peel). Pour batter into prepared pan.

Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until golden brown and a wooden toothpick, when inserted in center, comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then carefully turn the bread out onto a rack to cool completely. Make this banana bread a day ahead of time for best flavor.