Apple Banana Pineapple Bread

Banana Bread is one of my very favorite things. Recently, I bought and juiced a fresh Maui Pineapple and decided it might add a nice touch to banana bread. In addition to the pineapple, the other gift Hawaii provides to this recipe is the apple banana. It is a slightly sweeter version of the bananas available everywhere else and it adds an amazing additional level of flavor. I actually found some in LA on my last visit. They were grown in Columbia, and they were not labeled apple bananas, but they were similar in size and tasted about as good. They are really small, only about 4-6" long. If you can find them, use them! This bread is amazing.

2 C Flour
3/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp cinnamon

1 1/2 C Banana
1 1/4 C Sugar
3/4 C (minus 2 tbsp) Shortening
2 tbsp Butter
1/4 C Pineapple Juice - fresh squeezed if possible
3 eggs

1/3 C 60% Cacao, Bittersweet chocolate - I buy a bar of Ghiradelli and chop to little chunks.
1/3 C chopped nuts - I used Macademia

1. Combine dry ingredients
2. Blend wet ingredients
3. Add dry to wet
4. Pour nuts and chocolate on top. Mix in a bit if you wish - i did.
5. Pour into buttered 8.5x4 baking dish, to about 3/4 full. This recipe makes more than one loaf so I made 24 tiny muffins or you could make about 6 full size. Cook at 350 for 40 mins, then 325 for 20 minutes more (the muffins will be done sooner, mini-15 to 20 and full size-25 to 30.