I used to make banana bread for work, on the theory that positive feedback association worked in the technology workplace ...
Someone got competitive once, and called a banana bread bake-off. Despite my belief that banana bread should be non-competitive, I entered and got second. I tink first and second ended up breaking along sytle lines.
FWIW, I like mine moist, to go with coffee.
So, with that wind-up, I basically follow Bernard Clayton's "Hana Banana - Nut Loaf" from his Complete Book of Breads. It is VERY close to your's:
Cream together 6 T room temp butter, 1/3 cup sugar, add 2 eggs. Mix in 1 1/2 c mashed (but chunky, I just use a dinner knife) bananas. Stir in 1 c flour, 1 t baking soda, 1/2 t baking powder, 1/4 t salt, 1/4 t vanilla extract. Stir to blend and add remaining 1/c flour and 1 c walnut pieces (original uses macadamia nuts). Pour into buttered 8"x4" pyrex pan. They say 1 hour at 350F but it usually only went 45 minutes in my oven.
Best wishes.
last time I made this bread, I also mixed some shreded apple. try it, maybe you'll like it, too.
How does one shred apple? That sounds really good.
Now take that same banana bread and cut it into cubes. Don't eat it yet. Dunk the cubes into chocolate custard that you have just made and let them absorb all of the goo. Place the soaked bananabread chocolate custard cubes into ramekins and don't forget to press a ball of chocloate ganache into the lot. Mash it all down, wash your hands and put the ramekins in the oven (190°c) for 25 mins (or when it smells really amazing).
You have just transformed a very common banana bread into a <B>chocolate lava cake.</B>
I tried out this recipe over the weekend because my baby loves banana bread. It took me longer to cook in his oven, about 73 minutes, before the toothpick came out clean.
We were in an argument at the 70th minute and most of his arguments melted away when I presented him with the finished product. I'm not even sure if he came up for air during the first two slices.
I didn't add walnuts at his request but was wondering if there is anything that can go on top, like a crumble mixture that would add a bit of zip to this loaf. Any ideas?
_____________________________________
.:: satireandcomfort.blogspot.com ::.
Hi, how do you butter and flour the pan? The last time I did it, I did it with a spoon and had clumps of flour on some parts of the pan and other parts virtually untouched...Should I use a sieve next time to flour? Any advice?
To butter and flower a pan, hold the stick of butter and spread it evenly inside the pan, then pour some flour in and pat out the excess. You can also spread the butter on with your fingers;it's a little messier than a spoon, but a lot more effective. :)
worked perfectly with whole flour ( more fiber) and some raisins
I usually "butter" a pan with a leftover butter wrapper (folded in half with butter sides in and kept in the fridge), and a little shortening, then toss the used wrapper. This keeps your hands clean.
Then, if you need to flour the pan, sprinkle some flour, tap the pan so it is evenly distributed, then tap out the excess in the trash.
I have also read that if you are making chocolate cake, use a little of the combined dry ingredients instead of flour, so that the resultant cake doesn't have white flour residue on the bottom/sides. ;)
Skip the nuts and add 1/4c or so of "mini" chocolate chips. Mmmm. (Probably not as good as the chocolate lava variation, but certainly easier)
I pour my batter into muffin cups instead of a loaf pan. This usually requires a shorter cooking time and I find the individual servings more convenient.
my oven's temp can only be set to 160C or 180C (increment of 20C)..
so, if this need to be baked at 170C, what do i do? shd i go like 180C for 30min and 160C for 25min.. or? shd i start with 160C first then 180C? MTIA!!
for buttering, i use the wrapping of the butter itself, i keep ziplock baggies of old wrappers, marked with dates for food safety
for topping, i make streusel
softened butter
brown sugar
cinnamon
nutmeg, cloves, etc.
add nuts if your into that
many recipes exist, i mainly wing it, use enough butter to hold it together
use a fork to blend it
some recipes allow you to add it in the beginning (provided dense enough dough), but bear in mind cooking time and oven temp....nothing like burned sugar to ruin something
I would say, try the lower temperature and stick with that temperature (for all we know your stove could be 10 degrees hotter than stated (or cooler...).
Then afer 50 min. start checking the bread to see if it's done. A thin wood skewer (like the cheap ones sold for kabobs) does the trick. Thrust into the center and see if anything sticks when you withdraw.
To make your bread more moist, and more flavorful... Do as I do, cook the bread until everything is ALMOST done (2-5- mins less than recommended). The bread will be done on the sides and the center, but the top of the center will still be slightly gooey. The bread will continue to cook when you take it out of the oven - just set it aside for 5 mins or so to finish cooking!
Using this method DOES cook all of the ingredients fully, but you will not dryout the outsides of the bread. I hate it when I get good bananna bread and the outside is all dry and tasteless.
Happy cooking!
just curious,my mom used to make banana bread,very very good but she added sourcream to the mixture,i dont remember how much but is it healthier and does banana bread taste better without sourcream?
I just tried your banana nut bread recipe and it was awsome! You are right, not to dry, not to moist. A glass of milk went great with it, but it wasn't required. Great site, keep up the good work.
I substituted pecans for walnuts. Also have used rum instead of vanilla when I ran out, and then used half vanilla and half rum. With or without the flour dusting, the bread has come out of the pans perfect after following your instructions. I will make this every week!
The best trick I've ever learned for quick bread (those not requiring yeast) crusts is to prepare (that is, grease and flour) the bottom of the pan, plus maybe just 1/4 to 1/2 inch up the sides, only. This makes the bread easy to remove from the pan but does not overbake or dry the sides. Yum.
[i:c78fa8fa21][size=18:c78fa8fa21]Never cooked much in the past.
Back then I never knew
That I'd be cooking all the time,
Once I learned to Chu.[/size:c78fa8fa21][/i:c78fa8fa21]
;)
Just finished a couple of perfect loaves of banana bread; probably the fifth recipe from this blog that I've successfully served up. Can't think of any better way to say it, "Cooking for Engineers rocks!"
Thanks Michael!
My kids hate nuts, so I put the following topping on banana bread.
This is great, straight out of Better Homes & Gardens:
In a small bowl combine 1/4 cup packed brown sugar and 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour. Using a pastry blender, cut in 2 tablespoons butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (Optional: Stir in 1/3 cup chopped walnuts.)
Hi,
This is the 2nd recipie I am trying from your site. (first one was orza risotto....very good).
I havent eaten banana bread in a long time so I have almost forgotten how the texture/taste is...I think mine came out yummy but a bit tough & not so sweet....did I bake too long (after 55min it was still gooey in the center so I baked for 10 ) ? or is it because I beat the eggs mixture for too long ? is banana bread supposed to be sweet like say a regular cake (without icing) ?
Thanks,
Sonali
Continued from above comment :
But it does look similar to the posted pic...well defined brown outside & not crumbly on the inside.
My banana bread is sweet, but not heavily sweetened (like most cakes). The texture of the bread should be a little chewy but not as dry as regular breads. I think it should also stick to your teeth just a little as you chew, but not too much - but that's how I like my banana bread...
Well I guess mine turned out pretty ok then....not tough tough, as I said earlier but a little chewy tough. & lightly sweet. Yes it was not dry, definitely not like a regualr bread. But next time I will bake only for the given time (55min) & remove & it should carry-over-cook due to its own heat. Thanks for the recipie again !
-Sonali
my bread was off the chain fa real for real it was good as mug son u know :lol:
Substituting apple sauce for the butter works very well -- it adds moisture and sugar and is healthier. You can also reduce the amount of sugar.
I baked the bread in buttered muffin pans, filling 5/6 of the way up for 20 min. Worked very well. Increasing banana also helps keep it moist and flavorful. Brown sugar as a topping made for an excellent sweet crispy flavor.
i love this recipe...it's so easy and fool-proof...i'm planning on trying some other recipes from this site soon...that was the best banana nut bread i've had
What can I say? Yum!
I was just wondering, would banana muffin mix, be the same as the banana bread recipe?
wow, this sounds really great. I'm gonna try soon!
thank you!!
Sabine (Austria)
ja fiz umas vinte verzes, sempre deu certo, com ameixas, com passas, com amendoin, com coco, com castanha de caju, com aveia em vez de farinha, com farinha integral, com um pote de yogurte, este ficou monstro, foi comido emdez minutos
vale a pena
I tried this out twice and it worked perfect both times. But a smile on a friends face =). You were right on the money with the consistancy of the bread -- this recipe is Perfect. Not too cakey, not too rocky. I noticed that both times, it also tasted better on the second/third day after baking it. I guess after it absorbed some air. I also added about 1/3 cup raisins and 1/3 more nuts than the recipe called for but it turned out great!
Sonali-
it's probably tough because you blended the flour in too much. Overmixing flour=gluten development=tough quickbread. This mixing method, where you fold the liquids into the dry, just until moistened, is what my ma calls the "muffin method". Take it easy and you'll have tender lovely muffins/quickbreads every time.
I'm going to make this right now, for brekkie! Thanks for an awesome website, sir. I knew those frozen bananas would come in handy someday.
I add pecans and a tablespoon on cinnamon instead of vanilla. Yummy!!! My family loves my banana bread.
My recipe makes great muffins also. We like to slice them in half and put a slab of peanut butter between the layers.
My banana bread is in the oven now, but I added some spices (cinamon, nutmeg, a bit of cloves ground up and a pinch of ginger) to the original recipe.
Adding spices isin't much extra work, and adds lots of flavour.
Thank you for sharing your delicious recipe. It instantly replaced our old Banana Nut Bread recipe!!!
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups bananas, mashed (about 1/14 lbs. or 4 medium)
1 cup pecans, chopped, toasted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Orange Pecan Topping
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped, toasted
1 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons orange juice, fresh
1 teaspoon orange rind, grated
OR
Cinnamon-Crisp Topping
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped, toasted
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Beat butter and cream cheese at medium speed with electric mixer, until creamy.
Gradually add sugar, beating until light and fluffy.
Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating just until blended after each addition.
Combine flour and next 3 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture, beating at low speed just until blended.
Stir in bananas, pecans, and vanilla.
Spoon batter into 2 greased and floured 8 x 4 inch loafpans.
Bake at 350º for 1 hour, or until tests clean. (Shield with foil the last 15 minutes to prevent browning, if necessary.
Cool bread in pans on wire racks 10 minutes.
Remove from pans, and cool 30 minutes on wire racks before slicing.
Orange Pecan Topping:.
Sprinkle pecans over batter before baking.
Cool bread 10 minutes, remove from pans.
Stir together sugar, orange juice and orange rind.
Drizzle evenly over warm bread.
Cinnamon-Crisp Topping.
Stir together brown sugar, toasted pecans, flour, melted butter and cinnamon.
Sprinle mixture evenly over batter.
Bake and cool bread.
:)
Hi There
A year ago I made a delicious banana loaf, where I mashed the banana until smooth for the recipe, But recently saw a recipe where you chop the banana into chunks then fold into bread mixture... once baked and cooled, when I sliced it open , I noticed that the banana patched in the loaf were purple !! Does anyone know if this is a normal reaction? I immediatley baked a second loaf to see if I had perhaps done something wrong, but the same thing happened!
It still tastes good though. Can anyone shed a little light on my confusion?
:( :)
What I'd like to see, is the banana measurement in all banana bread recipes expressed in cups instead of in "bananas". Often supermarkets sell bags of very ripe bananas quite cheaply, and a baker must cut out large pieces of bruised areas. I try to estimate the # of bananas that might equal - but then, bananas also come in different sizes.
Sonali -
Another thing that will make non-yeast breads more tender is using "soft wheat" white flour. It has less protein and wheat gluten than regular white flour.
I have been baking banana bread for years (Betty Crocker), but I found a great recipe using yogurt in Cooking Light.
Anyway, the way I ripen the bananas is this:
When the bananas start to get there brown spots and no one in the house will eat them, I put them in the freezer and start a collection (watch them diving out of the freezer - it does hurt!).
They turn brown and all the sugars and starches break down and leaves you with brown bananas and a wonderful mush in the middle.
This leaves you with a wonderfully ripened banana and mush to put into your bread.
[b:d468e21d63]I made this bread today, is fantastic, is delicious....
Thank for this recipe[/b:d468e21d63]
This is my second recipe from this site, I have it in the oven right now. My first was the pumpkin pie, I made one for Thanksgiving a couple of weeks ago and my girlfriend loved it so much she begged me to make another one the next week. She didn't even used to like pumpkin pie. We both love banana nut bread, so I couldn't wait to start this one.
I do have a question, my gf and I were discussing this: she says baking powder never goes bad and told me to use the one in the fridge (the one we use for odor-absorbing), but I couldn't imagine that it would still be good for cooking so i went out and bought a new box. She won't stop telling me that I'm anal about my (attempts at) cooking. Was she right?
P.S. I LOVE Cooking for Engineers, I'm a computer geek by profession and the directions for all the dishes are perfect for a step by step guy like me!
Baking powder and baking soda last a long time (typically, a couple years) and in a dry environment, but will lose it's efficacy if it comes in contact with moisture. The open box of baking soda (I assume it's baking soda and not baking powder) in your fridge is probably not as potent as a fresh box.
:) Thank goodness for Google! I needed a fast recipe for Banana Nut Bread to carry to work tomorrow - first site I landed on was Cooking for Engineers. Now I have spent so much time here, I'm going to be up late baking! I am a certified foodie, and adore the art of cooking. My scales will agree to that fact. Thanks for your work - I'll be back!
What alterations would be needed to make this without the added sugar (e.g., more flour)? Everyone says your recipe is "not to dry, not to moist"--I'd hate to ruin it! :-) Thanks.
When I make these (as muffins) I always but in an extra half a banana, replace 1/3 of the white flour with wheat stone ground flour, replace 1/3 of the white sugar with brown sugar, add in an extra 1/4 tsp vanilla, and top with a sprinkle of brown sugar. I am at 5800' and this really helps make the muffins moist and flavorful. Usually if you mess with baking recipes they turn out funky, but these changes don't effect baking (~20 min)
Hi,
I am using a non-stick baking loaf pan. Is dusting flour and butter still require? Please advise.
Thanks.
Thank you for the super receipe! I tried baking two loaves yesterday and it turned out perfect. I followed the amount of ingredients used exactly with no alterations. Infact, it tasted better if kept overnight. I like the tips of keeping over-riped banana in the freezer and can bake it anytime we like it. By the way, two more loaves are baking in my oven now.
I prefer to butter and dust the pan even if it is non-stick. It's a guaranteed easy release then.
For those who are Tired of greasing and dusting their pans, and still end up with broken bread Loafs
For any kind of loaf bread recipe,which calls for greasing and flouring the loaf pan, try this little trick.
Invert your bread loaf pan, take a large rectangle piece of heavy duty Aluminum Foil, and put it on the raised top of your pan(which has been inverted). Now press and shape with your hands, remove the foil and put the loaf pan right side up.
Carefully put the foil insid the pan, reshaping with fingers and securing, so the foil completely lines the pan. Make sure to have a little extra foil on the edges, and fold under. Now you can use a cooking spray to coat the inside of your bread loaf pan, pour you batter and bake.
After you bread is done, leave you bread on a cooling rack for 10 minutes or so. Now you can release the foil from the edges with you fingers, lift up you bread and the let it cool. You may now loosen the foil around the loaf care fully, and remove the foil.
I love the format of your recipe cards. Your recipes are awesome too. :)
A couple of weeks ago I made an applecake with a topping of a mixture of pecan nuts, chopped, demerara sugar (a coarse brown sugar - I don't know if it has a different name in the US) and cinnamon (1/2 tsp) sprinkled on top then drizzled with maple syrup. It was great on my applecake and I think it would be good on banana cake too. Enjoy!
This recipe has been the most helpful I've found... I live in Ecuador and my wife loves it when I cook this for her.
I loved the raph at the end of the recipe... indeed it's for engineers!
To whomever posted the recipe: congratulations!
Thank you.
Marcos Sifrin
Quito, Ecuador
I made a loaf of this banana nut bread and it turned out wounderful thank you for the recipe
the very first comment on this page is about the hana banana nut loaf. i followed the recipe.. wondering if the last 1/ c flour was actually a 1/2 cup. initially i put in a 1/2 cup and pondered if the accident was the / or if the 2 was missing. instead of doing more research i added another 1/2 cup of flour for a grand total of 2 cups. which is WRONG. please dont repeat this mistake. i've ruined not only perfectly good banana's but macadamia nuts too !!!
please change the 1/ c flour to say 1/2 cup !!! i put a total of two cups of flour and ruined my banana bread.. thanks.
After buttering bottom and sides of loaf pan, dust with cinnamon sugar instead of flour. Bread will have a crunchy cinnamon-toasty crust on the bottom and sides.
This is the only Banana Nut Bread recipe I use (with the orange glaze) and although it sounded like a strange combination at first; it tastes absolutely heavenly! The cream cheese gives it a very smooth but rich flavor. As a matter of fact I'm on my way to the kitchen to make some for the upcoming holiday. It also freezes well if you wanted to make some ahead for gift giving. Give it a try!
Hi! I've made this bread a couple of times by now, always succesfully. The first time I was out of butter, but I remembered sometimes olive oil was used for cakes here, so I tried. My version of the bread is:
2 bananas
A bunch of nuts, yes...
6 TBsps of olive oil
100 gr of sugar
Vanilla extract
+/- 170 gr of self raisin flour
2 eggs
And no variations when cooking it. Have a try, it's so delicious and moist ;-)
I had stuck a couple of bananas in the freezer so they wouldn't go bad, thinking, "I should make banana bread." I had never made it before, so I wasn't too sure what to do. I followed this recipe as written and it turned out great! Not too dense, not too cakey, not too bready, not too dry - it was just right. I'd recommend that people start checking their loaf before 55 minutes, though, if it looks done - my toothpick came out totally clean after about 45-50 minutes. Thanks again for the excellent recipe!
for a little variety, try some powdered cardamom in your banana bread. i use 1 level tsp. - the proportions for my recipe are pretty close to the one above, but with more batter, so try 3/4 tsp. if using the above quantities. it's an unusual spice, but i think it works really well with bananas.
:) I used this recipe a few weeks ago. This bread is great.Thanks.
hi! =D i tried making the bread but encountered a few problems...
1. the whole top layer of the bread burnt (i followed the correct temperature settings!)
2. the mixture inside started oozing out from one side of the baking pan.. when the top layer was cooked
i was thinking, is it because of the number of eggs i put in.. in your recipe you indicted, "2 large eggs (250g)".. but when i weighed 250g worth of eggs, it turned out to be 4 eggs.. probably the eggs here in singapore are much smaller than those over there.. does that mean that one egg of yours weighed 125g?? that must be a massive egg! hahaha! =D
my bread mixture seemed alittle "watery" when everything was mixed it.. i'm not sure if it's meant to be that way because it's my first time making bread..
in the end i just removed the burnt layer, and chucked the bread back into the oven to bake.. and it still turned out yummy.. =D
2 large eggs is about 100 g. 2 large bananas is about 250 g. The only mention of 250 g in the recipe is for the bananas.
oh no! how very embarassing.. hahaha! ok thank you for pointing that out! =D
I had two goals for making banana bread:
1. Using up the bunch of lady finger bananas from my backyard, and
2. Making something relatively healthy that I can eat quickly in the morning.
So I tried the above with the following changes:
1. No sugar, substitute 1/3 cup honey and 1/3 cup unsulphured blackstrap molasses (--> more potassium and iron)
2. Substitute whole wheat flour
The molasses made for some very moist bread, although I needed to double the baking soda to account for its acidity as well as add 15 minutes to the cook time. Additionally lady fingers are so sweet to begin with that you don't really need to wait for them to turn brown. Overall a success.
Vegans tend to use bananas as a binder substitute for eggs when making things like brownies (which, coincidentally, is insanely good w/bananas). I'm sure It wouldn't be hard to leave out the eggs/butter in this recipe, assuming you used molasses or apple butter (as suggested above).
I had a few extra bananas and I was looking for a good banana bread recipe, but wanted to make it a little more healthful, so I basically used a similar recipe but used half splenda and half sugar. Also substituted vegetable oil instead of butter and it turned out very well.
I definitely want to do it again but make it even healthier by substituting something for the oil. I've used applesauce before so that is always an option, but I was also considering low or nonfat yogurt. Any idea how that might turn out?
I love the way you setup the recipe cards.... such a concise way to represent the recipe.
this recipe.. is amazing. i adore it with all my heart. my bananas were not brown-spot ripe and i was slightly worried and added a pinch more sugar.
came out... FANTASTIC. thank you.
family secret for banana nut bread-
Add crushed pineapple. It keeps the bread unbelievably moist.
I just baked a banana nut bread using this recipe with the addition of one more banana. I also split the batter and baked it in two small loaf pans for a shorter baking time (approx. 35 min. baked together).
The result: sweet, fluffy, cakey...but a little too overbaked on the corners (but this might be due to my oven's heat circulation).
I had found a previous recipe that excluded baking powder and the result was a dense and moist bread. Mind you I got many compliments for it, but I miss my mom's homemade banana nut bread (which includes baking powder), but unfortunately the recipe card is lost somewhere in her messy kitchen drawers.
This recipe reminds me of my mom's recipe, and that's why I love it.
A solution to the overbaked corners can be resolved by adding water in an oven-safe bowl or tray and letting the steam moisten the heat while baking. I will do this next time now that I know the end result.
Most of the recipes i know are from
foodista and Im so happy that you have a recipe here for banana bread. My attempt to make one before failed, but after reading all the tips here, I am encouraged to try again!
Thanks!
foodista fan
every time i make banana bread it's always soggy in the middle. I bought an oven thermometer thinking it wan't heating up enough. I lowered the temp 25 degrees when using Pirex. Tried a metal pan.
Help
I am giving the comment about how to transform banana bread into muffins a try. I am so glad that I found this website, as I love cooking and I appreciate the detailed descriptions and I also love the electrical engineer that I am married to.
YUM!!!!! I followed the recipe exactly except for:
I used one extra banana that I had;
I left out the nuts only because I had already folded the dry with the wet ingredients and did not want to over do the mixing-----but, actually, the bread without the nuts was superb!!!;
and I baked in a white pyrex dish instead of metal---I still baked at 350 for 55 minutes. It turned out great! I definitly found a recipe for banana bread that I will stick with. Hubby gave his approval too!!
I wonder upon this site while researching Grade "B" maple syrup. I only majored in Math one year and Engineering Physics for one year before deciding on a career as an Industrial Photographer but I decided to try this recipe anyway. I have a recipe for Banana nut bread but I am always looking to improve things. I am glad that I found this site.
[i:d54533beb8]I looked up the easiest banana bread receipe i could find. i'm NOT the cook in our home..but i'm learning to make things here and there..and had three ripe naners ready for the trash...when it was suggested to me..to make bread. Well..the only thing i changed was adding raisins instead of nuts and everyone loved it..my son and hubby polished the whole thing off before i even got a piece. I'm taking that as a compliment lol
ty so much! :D [/i:d54533beb8]
I just baked this! its Yummy! Enjoying it with a glass of Milk!
Thank you. :)
I haven't had a load of banana nut bread turn out since I changed altitudes. This one was great--perfect texture. Thank you.
Try using mini chocolate chips in the recipe - nummmmm!!!
Also, if you're having trouble buttering and flouring a pan, this works for both metal and glass, but don't try it with stone (cracks!!!). Place pan in refridgerator for about 10 minutes. Melt butter (stove, micro, leave out in hot sun - ok, maybe not that last one- :D ). T
ake pan out of fridge, pour butter into it. Place back into fridge for another 10 minutes.
Then place flour in pan and rotate pan, coating all surfaces.
Yeah it adds some time, but it works for me and cuts down on some of the mess of trying to spread butter off the stick/wrapper.
I stumbled onto this site a couple days ago, favorited (Is that a word - oh well) it immediately and have been cruising it ever since. This is a great site, well written, well though out, love the way it is laid out (not just the recipes, but the eintire site).
Way to go Michael, and a big Kudo to all the other posters. Thanks for the great suggestions!
While using your basic Banana Nut recipe...instead of vanilla extract I use ALMOND, and I use AGAVE nectar (2/3) cup instead of white sugar, I also put organic cherries on top after the batter is in the pan. I also found that glass works better then metal. The cherries float down into the batter and I end up with a cherry almond gluten free agave nectar infused bread. It does need to be baked a little longer because of the amount of WET ingredients have been increased from a normal loaf. You can eat more of this and feel good because of the lower glycemic index...yet it tastes just as good as any b bread has ever tasted.
Enjoy!
I had never made banana bread before. I made 3 different loaves from 3 different recipes and while the other 2 came out kind of dry, this one was amazing. It was also very easy to make, although it looked more difficult than the others. This is the recipe I will always use!
Excellent bread!!! I mean Perfect bread. I made some changes, I use whole flour and brown sugar, also I added 1/4 t. cinnamon.
Awesome site, thanks for sharing.
This recipe turned out great as muffins! They took somewhere around 15 minutes to cook. I added maybe a teaspoon and a half of cinnamon and about 1.5 cups of oatmeal. Awesome!
I made a banana bread on the weekend and the ingredients were the same just different measurements but I decided to use whole wheat flour. My bread was very flavourful but quite dense and I am wondering if its because of the whole wheat flour. If it is can you please tell me how I can make this recipe using whole wheat. thanks!
using 100% whole wheat will produce rather dense bread(s)
... some folks call 'em "bricks"
try
1/4 whole wheat - 1 part whole wheat to 3 parts white flour
or max
1/3 whole wheat - 1 part whole wheat to 2 parts white flour
Thanks so very much Dilbert for your comments on whole wheat I will definitely make the adjustment.
Can we swap walnuts for some other nuts???
I just made this exactly per the recipe and it's really good. I'd still like to find an even denser recipe but I will definitely make this again.
If your banana bread ever comes out great except it's too brown on the outside edges . . . after bread has cooled, place it in a ziplock bag and refrigerate overnight -- it will be evenly moist in the morning, no more "hard crust."
Made a tripple batch today. I ran out of white sugar and substituted with brown. Incredible little sweet crispness to the crust. Try it..truly fabulous banana nut bread.
My go-to banana bread recipe is in the Joy of Cooking - the edition before the current one. It makes the highest loaf I've ever seen - moist and cakey, not small, dark or dense. I like walnuts, so I make it with nuts. After it's cooled, a slice toasted with butter is ... a religious experience. Cheers.
I use freshed ground flour...wheat or spelt. Instead of white sugar, I use sucanat...it adds a fabulous maple flavor! I always double the recipe and use 3 cups of mashed bananas for 2 loaves. I just bake an hour or a little more...until a toothpick comes out clean. I use non-stick spray for the pan.
I made this recipe x 6, but in 5 loaf pans. The bread rose to nice rounded tops.
While I blended ingredients together for all 6 loaves, I added the ingredients one loaf at a time (i.e., recipe calls for 1 tsp of salt, I added 6 x 1 tsp of salt rather than 2 Tbls.)
The only variations I used in this recipe are:
1) I like the cooked flavor of vanilla so I added an extra 2 tsps for a total of 8 tsps of vanilla.
2) I like both walnuts and chocolate chips so I added equal 1/2 cups of chocolate chips for a total of 1 cup of nuts/chips; and
3) after chopping the nuts there was a fair amount of fine, almost powdery, chopped nuts at the bottom of the bowl, I chopped the remainder of the chocolate chips to about the same fineness, added about 1/3 cup of sugar, mixed them all together and sprinkled it on the top of the loaves before baking. It makes a nice look and a bit of a crunch to the tops.
This was some of the very best banana bread I've ever made! It tastes wonderfully and is perfectly moist/dense. The recipe says bake for 55 mins. @ 350. It took approximately 1 1/4 hours to bake. I surmise that the discrepancy in the time is due to the amount of batter in the loaf pans. I baked 4 loaves in the oven at once then the final loaf by itself; either way it took approximately 1 1/4 hours.
Great recipe! Thanks
I baked my banana bread for about 52 minutes at 350. It was a little overbaked, in my opinion - when I inserted the toothpick at 52 minutes, it came out clean. Next time I'll guard it more carefully. The flavor is fantastic though. I love eating it cold with cream cheese.
the butter that should be used for banana nut bread... should it be the regular butter or unsalted butter?
>>slated on unsalted
doesn't matter, there is so little salt in "salted" you're unapt to taste any difference.
there are no "official regulations" re salt content, but typically it's a 1/4 teaspoon in 1 stick (i.e 1/4 pound) of butter.
bananas 'themselfs' got way more salt than that
On July 25, 2006 at 04:33 PM, Guest Jacki (guest) said...
Subject: Query about banana loaf
Hi There
A year ago I made a delicious banana loaf, where I mashed the banana until smooth for the recipe, But recently saw a recipe where you chop the banana into chunks then fold into bread mixture... once baked and cooled, when I sliced it open , I noticed that the banana patched in the loaf were purple !! Does anyone know if this is a normal reaction? I immediatley baked a second loaf to see if I had perhaps done something wrong, but the same thing happened!
It still tastes good though. Can anyone shed a little light on my confusion?
:( :)
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I have made a couple of banana loafs with golden syrup & a sliced banana in the bottom & found using ripe bananas are fine but the greener the banana the more pinky/purple the banana goes something to do with the sugars & the potassium in the unripe banana.
Has anyone else found the same?
My college roommate discovered this recipe back in 2006, and it graced our kitchen table one stress-filled Tuesday. For some reason, it was baked the next several weeks on Tuesday, and became somewhat of a tradition (still is!) amongst ourselves and several other friends. We've tried various recipes over the years, but this is the one we always come back to. I've made this countless times for guests and to bring to gatherings, and I'm continually asked "where'd you get the recipe?!" My only alternation - chocolate chips instead of walnuts. Thanks for such a great recipe!!
so much like bread....all kinds of bread...banana nut bread...looks great...I will try to do it at home... :P
I have tried quite a few banana bread recipes and the Joy of Cooking Banana Nut Bread recipe is by far the best. However, as in any good recipe, I feel it needs slight alteration. Here is a easy improvement for a more moist, flavorful and fun loaf. Good for parties and everyday snacking!
3 over ripe Banana's or frozen and then thawed (no one will notice how bad they looked before they were cooked!). Mashed/creamed.
6 Tbs. (90 mL) butter melted
1 tsp. (5 mL) Pure Mexican Vanilla
2 large eggs
1-1/3 cups (167 g) all-purpose flour
2/3 cup (130 g) sugar (Or just over)
1/2 tsp. (2.3 g) baking soda
1/4 tsp. (1.2 g) baking powder
1/2 tsp. (3 g) salt
1/2 cup (70 g) Milk Chocolate Chips
Top with rainbow sprinkles for more color and a sweet crunch.
Simply cream wet ingredients together top with dry, mix until smooth and bake for 50-55 minutes at 350f. Toothpick will not come out dry and yes that is okay! Contents will cook after removed from oven; leaving the loaf moist. Best served immediately or after being covered and aloud to set over night.
Hope this variation brings color and enjoyment to your life!
For sure, I'll enjoy this recipe. I can't wait to taste it!
I had high hopes, as I loved Chu's cheesecake recipe. Alas, this was not what I'd hoped for. IMO this recipe needs:
Lemon Zest
Sour Cream
A touch more vanilla
My chief complaints are its overly subtle flavor and dry-ish crumb. The recipe was followed exactly and I am always successful baking. I will definitely not make again.
I found this recipe 5 or 6 years ago and I still make it regularly. It is the perfect banana bread, and it is so easy to make. Like others, I always get asked for the recipe. Thanks!
One thing I have found is that the stand mixer makes a very good banana masher. When I'm making banana bread I put the butter and sugar in the bowl, cream then as best as possible, add the banana then the egg, then the dry ingredients. This also makes it easier for my children to help out and gives a consistent smoothness.
If I wanted to have a fluffy--[er] bread, could I beat/froth the egg whites before adding?
My grandmas banana bread always had these little black things throughout the loaf. Does anyone know what these are? I follow her recipe and mine doesn't have them. Hope someone has the answer so I can get some sleep. hahaha Dee Dee
banana seeds.
typically overripe bananas are used - fresh banana seeds are a neutral color, they darken as the banana gets softer.
I finished baking this bread and I have a question is the bread suppose to look moist inside? ? I followed the recipe. I think I probably put little more banana I didn't measure it (I used on long banana and 2 smaller ones). Is it suppose to be like that I do like moist bread but not sure if it's suppose to look like that. I did have a slice it taste good and it's moist but not sure it suppose to look moist inside
If you can comment and let me know it be great first time baking the bread.
yes - it is moist inside.
should not be "gooey" - but moist is good
the usual 'test' is sticking a toothpick/skewer to the center - it should come out clean. if there's any 'goo' on the wood, it needs more bake time.
It doesn't look gooey..... I wish I could post a picture. It come out like some bread not gooey tho.
i love bread but now sweet one ! i love whole wheat .
and as a greenhand ,i got a great scale on line . very useful and great for a beginner .
The wet ingredients are: two ripe bananas, 6 Tbs. melted butter, 1 tsp. vanilla extract, and two large eggs. For the dry ingredients: 1-1/3 cup flour, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. baking powder, 2/3 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/2 cup chopped walnuts. Combine and whisk all the dry ingredients except for the walnuts. The use of both baking soda and powder are necessary to provide enough leavening for the proper consistency of the bread. The baking soda is just enough to utilize the slight acidity of the bananas to create the desired carbon dioxide bubbles. Baking powder (which is a mix of baking soda, a base, and cream of tartar, an acid) provides even more leavening power.
Mash the bananas, melted butter, and vanilla extract together. Lightly beat the eggs together.
Mash the banana mixture with the eggs until smooth and well blended.
Pour the banana mixture onto the dry ingredients. Add the walnuts.
Fold the ingredients together until no more white flour is uncovered while folding.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 55 minutes at 350°F.
After 55 minutes, the loaf of banana bread should be done. A wooden toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for ten minutes.
Remove the loaf from the pan and let cool on the wire rack. Serve warm or fully cooled. The loaf can be wrapped in plastic and stored at room temperature for about four or five days.