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If you ask me my preferences for a good and tasty breakfast, then after the majestic Olive bread, I’d say it’s the banana bread that makes my day. It’s nourishing, healthy, a complete meal, and oh! Bursting with flavor. And when it comes to its sweet aroma, nothing can beat it. So these summers when you are in no mood for boring baked eggs, hash browns, or stuffed omelets, go simple with a loaf of classic banana bread.
The key to making this soft and fluffy lies in how properly you fold the flour mixture within the egg mixture. The bananas should be ripe but not soft and mushy, or they may create an unpleasant flavor in the bread. What we give you here is a simple recipe but feel free to load it up with some raisins, chopped walnuts, pecans, or almonds to give a more nutty flavor.
Ingredients
- 2 Cups All purpose flour
- 5 to 6 Ripe bananas
- 2 large Eggs
- ½ cup softened butter
- ¾ cup powdered brown sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 2 pinch cinnamon powder
- 2 pinch salt
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
Ingredient Notes
All-purpose flour
All-purpose flour usually makes the best bread and cakes, however, it is not gluten-free. Therefore, if you want to make banana bread for gluten-intolerant people, either use gluten-free flour or an almond meal. Note that the almond meal might make the flavor nutty, so do not add extra nuts to the bread mixture.
Bananas
The most important ingredient in Banana bread is, of course, bananas making them one of the most delicious vegan desserts. They should be fully ripe, because the unripe ones are not sweet enough, and cannot make a fine mashed mixture. Bananas should also not be too ripe to the extent they go soft, yellow, and mushy, as they might affect the texture and taste of the bread. Choose 4 to 5 best ripe bananas of medium size and mash with a fork. Keep one or two intact to cut ’em up in slices for decoration. If you are conscious of vegan foods, try these vegan pies.
Brown sugar
You can always choose white sugar instead of brown one, however brown sugar blends well with the flavors of baking spices kike Cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground ginger. Since this recipe requires Cinnamon powder, mix it up with brown powdered sugar for an enhanced flavor. Due to its sweet and sugary nature, you can try this delicious recipe as a cake for the wedding.
Tips to bake banana bread perfectly
Use ripe bananas
But by ripe, we do not mean the bananas that are turning brown or black. This recipe is good if you have some leftover bananas from 3-day-old grocery shopping. Check them for any foul smell before using them. Ripe bananas keep the bread moist and give a much sweeter flavor.
Use brown sugar
Why? Because it imparts more moisture to an otherwise slightly dry mixture. Dark-colored sugar also helps to impart the desired brown color to the bread. You can use other sweeteners such as coconut sugar, maple syrup, or honey, but brown sugar gives the best flavor blend with baking spices.
Moisture enhancing ingredients
Fat. Any bread recipe which has a decent amount of fat will be soft, fluffy, and moist. Though commonly, I use butter you can also use vegetable oil or coconut oil. Other ingredients which contribute to moisture are yogurt, sour cream, eggs, and milk.
How to bake banana bread?
Mixing the dry ingredients
- Place a sifter in a bowl before adding All-purpose flour. This will remove any lumps and impurities and will help you achieve a refined texture of the banana bread.
- Add baking powder, salt, and cinnamon powder and sift into the bowl. Cinnamon is used not only to give the aroma but also to blend well with brown sugar to create the desired flavor. Mix well.
The banana mashup!
In another bowl, mash 5 to 6 ripe bananas well with the help of a fork. Be careful about the consistency, because you neither need solid chunks, nor a fine banana puree.
Creaming the butter…
Take another bowl and put softened butter into it. Do not use refrigerated butter because it will take a lot of time to mix it up with sugar. Always use butter which is at room temperature. use a beater to soften it further.
Add powdered brown sugar and mix well. Crack eggs into the mixture one by one and mix well. Remember not to leave any while mixing otherwise the mixture will not hold the dry ingredients properly.
Add vanilla essence and mashed Bananas. Whisk well
The combination of the two.
The most important step is to fold the dry ingredient mixture into the banana mashup. Use a spatula and carefully fold so as not to break the air bubbles.
A nice tip that always works for me is to take a small amount of flour at first, fold it completely, and proceed with more. Folding the mixture becomes better with practice, so bake the banana bread more often.
The magic unfolds…
Yes! This means that you can start baking now. Set the oven for preheating and meanwhile, Line a baking loaf pan with butter paper and drizzle a bit of oil. Dust with a bit of flour. This will help the baked bread to come out of the mold easily.
Pour in the banana bread mixture. Tap on the slab two or three times to spread it evenly.
At this stage, you can add the nuts of your choice, for example, walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc. This is optional but will give a nutty taste and crunchy texture to the bread.
Bake in the preheated oven at a temperature of 160 degrees Celsius for about an hour. Check with the help of a toothpick. If it comes out with crumbs, bake it for another 5 to 10 minutes.
Take it out of the oven and let it cool. Remove from the pan and slice it up. Serve at breakfast or the evening tea.
Easy Banana Bread (2 Bananas)
Ingredients
- 2 cups All purpose flour
- 6 Ripe bananas
- 2 large Eggs
- ½ cup softened butter
- ¾ cup powdered brown sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 2 pinch cinnamon powder
- 2 pinch salt
- 1 pich Vanilla extract
Instructions
- Mix all the dry redients after sifting them.
- In a separate bowl, peel the bananas and mash them well with a fork.
- Cream butter with brown sugar, add eggs, and whisk them well.
- Add bananas and vanilla extract to this mixture and whisk well.
- Gradually add the mixed dry ingredients. Fold so as not to break the air bubbles.
- Set a baking loaf pan with butter paper and grease it with a bit of oil or butter. Pour the mixture into the pan.
- Bake in the oven at 160 degrees Celsius for one hour. Check with the toothpick, and let it bake for 5 to 10 more minutes.
- Remove from the oven. Cool the bread before taking it out and slicing it up.
