Best-Ever Banana Bread (honestly!)

This was posted by nlb in epicurious. It is from Necessities & Temptations from the Junior League of Austin. I have never, EVER, had a banana bread this good.

• Ready In: 1 hr 20 mins
• Yields: 2 loaves

Ingredients

• Topping

• 6  tablespoons butter
• 10  tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 3  tablespoons milk
• 1  cup  chopped pecans (or more, toasted)

• Batter

• 1  cup butter
• 1 1⁄2 cups sugar
• 2  eggs
• 4  very ripe bananas, mashed (or 1 3/4 c, the bananas have to be so ripe that they're nearly black!)
• 1  teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I add 1 tblsp)
• 4  tablespoons buttermilk
• 2  cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking soda (I also add 3/4 tsp baking powder)
• 1  teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Cream butter and sugar; mash bananas, beat 2 eggs and add to the bananas with vanilla and buttermilk; mix well and add to creamed butter and sugar; sift together flour, soda and salt; add to banana mixture, beat well; pour into 2 greased and floured 9x5x3-inch loaf pans; bake 45 to 50 minutes (I find this bread needs over an hour) or until bread pulls away from sides of pan; add topping.
3. To prepare Topping: Melt butter in saucepan; add sugar and milk; cook until syrupy (like honey); remove from heat and add chopped pecans; pour over bread spreading to all the corners and place under broiler until bubbly and brown.
4. Watch closely (this takes around 1 minute- maybe even less!).