3½ cups sifted flour 3 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt 1 tsp baking soda
2 cup mashed, ripe bananas (4 to 6) 2 tblsp lemon juice
¾ cup shortening * 1½ cup sugar**
3 eggs ¾ cup milk
1to 1½ c. (36- 45) chopped pecans or walnuts 2 c. cranberries (optional) ***

Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda
Mash bananas with rotary beater or fork, add lemon juice and mix.

Cream shortening and sugar with electric mixer at medium speed, or with spoon. Add eggs and beat thoroughly until very light and fluffy (4 minutes beating in all). Add sifted dry ingredients alternately with milk; fold in bananas, nuts and cranberries (if used). Beat after each addition.

Pour into 2 greased 8½ x 4½ x 2½ inch loaf pans.

Bake in moderate oven (350 degrees) 1 hour, or until cake tester or wooden pick inserted in center of loaf comes out clean. Cool in pans 10 minutes. Remove from pans and cool on wire rack. Wrap in foil or plastic wrap and let stand in cool place overnight before slicing, or freeze. Makes 2 loaves.

*I use butter instead of shortening (alternative ¾ cup applesauce)
**I reduce sugar to 1 cup; ¾ cup would probably be enough if no cranberries used.
***Use fresh or frozen cranberries, or craisins. If frozen, I recommend thawing before chopping, however, if using craisins, I do not chop them since they are smaller then fresh cranberries.

Yields: 2 loafs (15 slices per loaf) OR 40 cupcakes
Weight Watcher points:
Flour = 31.5 points; butter = 36 points; bananas = 10 points; egg = 6 points;
Cranberries = 2 points; milk = 1 point; sugar = 24 points; nuts = 20 points.
Total points = 130.5; each slice = 4.5 points; OR cupcake = 3.5 points.
(If you make this just Cranberry Bread without bananas and with applesauce instead of butter the total points are 89.5, each slice = 3 points.)
Cupcakes = 2.5 points.