Frosted Banana Bars

Although this is not V's recipe (she's out of town and I'm home stuck with bananas), it delivers moist bars that are a great way to use up overripe bananas, especially when the heat and humidity (which has FINALLY arrived) turn bananas in less than a week. Just a hint - don't substitute the sour cream if you can help it. In most recipes that aren't baked goods, you'll notice that I substitute Greek yogurt for sour cream - a healthier and tastier change. However, when baking, there is something about the sour cream that cannot be matched with yogurt. And make it real sour cream. If it's low in fat, it's high in something else.

By the way, this is is NO way a super healthy treat. It might start out that way, but the frosting alone takes it to dessert decadence. Still, if you use good ingredients, it's a great way to make a snack that lasts for a while and allows you to feel like because there are bananas in it, it's healthier than brownies :-)

Let's start with the bars...

You need:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 c. sour cream
2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
4 ripe and mashed bananas

Cream the butter and sugar. Add the eggs one at a time. Then, add the vanilla extract and the sour cream. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the mix. Finally, add the bananas. Mix together and pour into a 10x13" baking pan. Bake for 20-25 min.

While the bars are cooking, start on the frosting. For the frosting, you'll need:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
4 c. powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Cream the butter and cream cheese. Slowly add the powdered sugar. Then, add the vanilla extract. Mix well until fluffy. After the bars have cooled, generously frost the bars and then cut to your desired size.