Black Bottom Banana Bread

1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 2/3 cups mashed ripe bananas (3 to 4 medium)
1 1/4 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan and set aside.

In a large bowl of an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar on high speed, about 1 minute. Stop mixer and add eggs. Continue beating until fluffy, about 1 minute. Add milk and stir until combined. Remove from mixer.

In another mixing bowl, sift together flour, baking soda and salt. With a wooden spoon, stir flour-mixture and mashed bananas into the creamed butter-mixture until combined. Stir in chocolate chips and pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center of bread comes out clean. Remove from oven and place pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Gently remove loaf from pan and cool completely on wire rack.

For best flavor, when cooled, wrap bread in foil and allow bread to rest at room temperature overnight before slicing.