Classic banana bread

Classic banana bread is a family favorite and is easier to make than you think but there’s a secret ingredient needed to make the best moist banana bread.

It must be nice to be a banana bread. Everybody likes you. Even the people who hate bananas like it. And it’s so easy to see why. There are few things as deliciously comforting than eating a slice of fresh banana bread slathered in butter. The thing is though, it often feels to me like my generation just don’t know how to bake a good banana bread. Most of our moms and pretty much all of our grandmothers knew the secrets but those secrets got lost along the way and I fear soon, our children, and their children, won’t know the joy of this simple bake at all.

The secret to the best banana bread

But, fear no more because I am here. And I am not shy about sharing secrets (it’s probably best you don’t tell me any). The secret to the best banana bread is rotten bananas. Yep, you read right. A slightly overripe banana will not do and don’t even bring a perfectly ripe banana near the batter. You want bananas with pretty much completely black skins. The blacker, the better. And that black skin is probably going to result in a pretty gross, mushy, almost slimy banana. Now I know, it’s not always easy to work with ingredients that are overripe, but be strong and just get on with it. Because the end result is SO worth it. The thing is that as a banana ages, and ripens, the sugars caramelize. That’s where that intense banana flavor we are after comes from. It’s pretty much like adding banana essence to your batter, without having to. If you are not keen on letting your bananas age on the windowsill, pop them into the freezer. The skins will go black and when you defrost them, they will be soft and mushy.

Then, something I have come across, is that it’s a good idea to use both baking soda (bicarb) AND baking powder. The two combined gives you the rise you are after and makes the banana bread a little lighter. Something that is definitely needed since there is so much moisture in the batter from the bananas. The baking soda will also result in that deep, dark brown color. Because this batter is so heavy, you need to ensure that it has baked all the way through before you open the oven door (something I never get right, hence the ditch down the center of my loaf). This is really a very, very moist loaf of banana bread so drying out isn’t as much of a problem with over baking. Rather leave it an extra five minutes if you want that glorious rise but, if like me you just can’t wait, then go ahead and get that sucker out of the oven.

So, now you have the secrets you don’t have any excuse not to bake banana bread. And let’s face it, most of us have bananas ready to be binned in our homes so instead of doing that, turn it into this delightful loaf. It’s the right thing to do.

Classic banana bread

Classic banana bread is a family favorite and is easier to make than you think but there's a secret ingredient needed to make the best moist banana bread.

5 from 4 votes

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Course: Baked goods

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 1 loaf

Author: Alida Ryder

Ingredients

• 125 g butter room temperature
• 200 g sugar
• 2 eggs
• 350 g rotten bananas, mashed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 250 g flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

• Pre-heat the oven to 180ºc and grease and line a standard size loaf tin (around 20cmx12cm) with baking paper.
• In the bowl of a mixer, beat the butter and sugar together until light and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
• Beat in the bananas. At this point, your batter will split and it will look like you've messed it up. You haven't, just keep going.
• Sift together the dry ingredients then stir into the batter.
• Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf tin and place in the oven.
• Bake for 45 minutes until a skewer inserted comes out clean. Cover with foil halfway to prevent over browning.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool before removing the banana bread from the tin.
• Slice and serve.