Cinnamon Sugar Banana Bread

Nothing makes me happier than stumbling onto a recipe for something so good, I know I'll never need to try any other version. There may be 101 ways to make banana bread for the holidays, but in my humble opinion, this is THE recipe. The smell as it bakes is every fond memory you had of the holidays growing up wrapped into one wafting cloud of cinnamon and sugar.

Cinnamon Sugar Banana Bread
* Makes 7-8 mini loaves that freeze well.
* Adapted from All Recipes - thank you Esther Nelson!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup white sugar mixed with 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, for dusting pans
Butter or nonstick spray, for pans

3/4 cup butter at room temp
2 1/4 cups white sugar
3 eggs
4 very ripe smallish bananas, mashed well with a fork
1 cup apple butter
1 (16 oz) container sour cream (you can use light if desired)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Good grating fresh nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon table salt
3 teaspoons baking soda
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (please 'lighten' the flour by fluffing it gently with a spoon and then use a spoon to gently fill your measuring cups - this is easier than sifting and will ensure you don't use too much flour and end up with cement)
1 cup chopped toasted walnuts or pecans, optional

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 (yes this is correct! 300!)

Grease or butter your loaf pans then dust lightly and all around with the cinnamon sugar mixture. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and 2 1/4 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs, mashed bananas, apple butter, sour cream, vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg until just incorporated. Mix in salt, baking soda, and flour until just mixed. Fold in nuts then divide the batter evenly between the pans.

Bake for one hour, rotating pans halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then carefully invert onto a cooling rack to finish cooling (you may need to run a bread knife around the edges to help them let go.)