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What’s the difference between baking powder and baking soda? Got me. They make things rise, but are they best used separate or together? A quarter teaspoon, a whole, or something else? Turns out baking soda is a main ingredient in baking powder, which seems reason enough to ditch the Arm and Hammer. Surely, one of the great mysteries of baking.

This was on my mind when I stood in front of a table full of ingredients and made banana bread like a blind Zen master instead of a fussy suburbanite with recipe book in hand. (I had pledged in my last blog to cook without a recipe book). My gut decided on equal amounts of powder and soda.

I baked the ingredients below at 350 degrees for an hour, which was probably about 5-7 minutes too long. Result: It took us half a day to plow through the whole loaf, so it couldn’t have been that bad. Wasn’t as sumptuous as a slice from a coffee house, but wasn’t as bad as hardtack. Had a good bit of personality, probably because of the extra egg and increased cinnamon and vanilla. Despite loving nuts, I generally don’t bake with them because I hate my nice, soft, baked good being interrupted by something harsh and woody.

I’d follow this formula again, feeling comfortable with increasing sugar and oil on days when my hips can handle it. Watered-down banana bread has long been the poster child of good health recipes, but I think it screams for richness.

1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 large smashed bananas mixed with three-fourths cup sugar

2 eggs

One-half cup oil

1 tablespoon cinnamon

1 tablespoon vanilla

Handful of dried cherries or chocolate chips

In other matters, my favorite recent purchases are the mouth-burning Wickles Pickles, super-dark chocolate globes from the Whole Foods bulk aisle, and Our Daily Bread’s unbelievably toast-worthy Wheatberry Bread, which I’ve found only at their Florida Boulevard Store.

Eat on.