Banana Bread

I like bananas a lot and so does my son but we still end up with a lot of over-ripe bananas. This banana bread is a lovely way to use over-ripe bananas. In fact the recipe requires bananas to be as ripe as possible. I used the yellow variety of bananas and they were quite ripe. I removed the black seeds in the centre as I wanted a clearer crumb. You could include the seeds as well if you don’t mind a darker, more spotted looking crumb. I used the recipe from two peas and a pod. Some fruits are so delicious on their own that no dish does justice to it. This is definitely true about mangoes. Mangoes are so luscious, so supremely tasty on their own that I really wouldn’t ever prefer mango mousse or Slice to it.  But there are some recipes that bring out the best of the fruit in a beautiful new avatar. Banana bread is one such recipe, which takes the bananas and transforms it into a wonderfully banana-scented, moist, crumbly bread that tastes like, well bananas.

I am calling it a bread but it really is so soft and moist, it should be called a banana loaf cake. This banana bread needs no adornment whatsoever. Just slice and serve. If you’d like to glamorize it for a dinner party, just serve topped by a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. Super-easy dessert! This banana bread keeps well for a few days in the refrigerator. I packed it for my daughter’s snack box. My kids loved it and so did the rest of my family.    

Prep time: 15 mins
Cooking time: 1 hour
Serves: 6-7

Ingredients

Butter - 1/2 cup, softened
Granulated sugar – 1 cup
Eggs - 2 large
Mashed bananas (I used 5 small yellow ones) – 1 cup
Buttermilk - 4 tbsp
Vanilla extract - 1/2 tsp
All-purpose flour – 1 – 3/4 cups
Baking powder – 1 tsp
Salt – 1/4 tsp
Baking soda – 1/8 tsp

Method

1.      Grease and flour 1 large loaf pan

2.      Sieve together flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda twice. Set aside.

3.      In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together, for about 3-4 minutes. Add eggs, beat well after each addition. Add the mashed bananas, buttermilk and vanilla and mix well.

4.      Add the flour and mix well until you see no traces of flour. The batter would be quite thick. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. The top would have browned nicely.

5.      Let cool for 20-15 minutes. Remove from pan gently. Slice and serve.

Notes:

Mash the bananas just before you’re going to add them or they’ll change colour. Alternately add just a few drops of lime juice to the mashed bananas to avoid discoloration.