Banana Bread and procrastination
August 12, 2008
My summer reading book this year is Gulliver’s Travels. It’s a classic, full of satire and adventure and fantasy. At least, according to Cliff Notes. I can’t seem to focus on poor Gulliver and his compelling travels when it’s a gorgeous summer day and we have ripe bananas. No, I think I’ll make banana bread instead.
Unlike most people, I don’t make banana bread when unsightly brown splotches bloom all over our bananas. Honestly, I like banana bread so much that I can never wait for them to become overripe. I end up stashing them in a paper bag and waiting about a day, hoping they’ll be aged enough by the next day. I’ve even been known to use perfectly firm, yellow bananas for my bread, just mashing them extra soft with a fork. I know it compromises flavor. I can’t help it.
So like most people, I’ve tried a fair share of banana bread recipes. I’ve teetered from the traditional path a few times – chocolate chips, cocoa powder, nuts and no nuts, dried fruit, coconut – but when it comes down to it, plain and simple banana bread is what I really like. My dad has made banana bread on occasion for as long as I can remember, his favorite being Martha’s recipe (with half cake flour). Me, I still haven’t found The One. But this one came pretty close. It comes from Elise at Simply Recipes. I followed her recipe to a T (except that I sprinkled quick cooking oats over the top) and before long the house smelled like warm bananas. Mmmm. Definitely more enthralling than Gulliver’s Travels.
Elise’s Banana Bread
3 or 4 ripe bananas, smashed
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 cup sugar (can be reduced to 3/4 cup)
1 egg, beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and butter a 4×8 loaf pan. Mix the bananas and butter with a wooden spoon in a large bowl. Mix in the sugar, egg, and vanilla until combined, then the baking soda and salt. Gently add the flour, being careful not to overmix. Pour into the pan and top with quick cooking oats. Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the banana bread cool 10 minutes in the pan before turning out onto a rack and cooling completely.
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Entry Filed under: Breakfast/Brunch. Tags: bananas, bread, breakfast, loaf cake, quick bread.
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1.
Hilary | September 2, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Hi! I’m Hilary I was just browsing thru cooking blogs and found yours. You have got some talent at such a young age! You go girl! I live in Seattle also, my husband loves banana bread and hates nuts in it. Thanks for the reciipe and great pictures!
2.
Nicole | January 3, 2010 at 10:35 pm
I made this bread and it didn’t even last 5 minutes among 4 people, it was exquiste!
3.
Hannah | March 5, 2010 at 2:34 pm
I made the banana bread it was so delicious!!!
4.
Stephany | March 13, 2010 at 12:09 pm
Hi, I wanted to share with you my favorite banana bread recipe.
Banana Wheat Germ Quick Bread
It’s from The Joy of Cooking cookbook
Preheat oven to 350
1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
(or 1 1/4 cup flour and 1/4 cup wheat germ for wheat germ Banana bread Really good)
2 1/4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
blend with:
1/3 c. shortening (I use applesauce)
2/3 c. sugar
3/4 t. grated lemon peel (from 1 or two lemons)
beat in:
1-2 beaten eggs
1 – 1 1/4 c. ripe mashed bananas
you can fold in (1/2 c. chopped nuts) and or (1/4 c. finely chopped apricots)
Place the batter in a greased bread pan. Bake the bread for about 1 hour or until done. Cool before slicing.
5. Bake: Basic Banana Bread « A Seattle Lunchbox | March 25, 2010 at 5:57 pm
[...] Adapted from 17 and Baking [...]
6.
Jackie | May 24, 2010 at 4:47 pm
Attempted this today since the bananas had gone beyond spotting and into fullout brown mode. Super easy to make and smells heavenly! Can’t wait for this loaf to be gone so I can make another one. Luckily, I don’t think it’ll be a long wait at all.
7.
Jayne | June 23, 2010 at 7:58 pm
You know, I tried several banana bread recipes that needed egg whites to be whipped to stiff peaks, butter that needs to be creamed…. the works.
They never turn out moist and soft!
Then last week, my brother who is back from Scotland for his summer holidays asked me to teach him how to bake banana cake. I was jittery but then plucked *some* recipe and started making it. It turned out dry and hard.
I promised him I’ll try to look for a simpler recipe esp for beginners (no whipping egg whites or creaming butter!!). I found Elise’s from your site. And bake I did this morning.
Oh my… this is the most beautiful banana cake I’ve ever made. I even took your advise to cover the top with rolled oats, because it makes the cake look prettier. I made half the batter in a tiny loaf pan and the other half into 6 small-ish cupcakes. I would cut the sugar down to 1/2 cup the next time but this cake, the texture is just perfect :-). I wanted to comment both here and on Elise’s site but her post on this cake is now closed for comments. Here it is then, to sing praises of a lovely pretty freshly made banana cake, fit for beginners and experts (like you!).