Banana Bread
Today I am sharing the recipe of the most wonderful banana bread you will ever taste! It is moist but not dense, bursting with the sweetness of the bananas and the brown sugar. You will also notice a hint of cinnamon and the delightful crunch of your favorite nuts (if you plan to add them).
This is one of those comfort recipes that comes together quickly with just a few simple ingredients. It also makes for a perfect homemade gift, a perfect snack, a breakfast on-the-go, or even as a dessert. It is the best way to use up overripe bananas so that they don’t go to waste. And your house will smell heavenly as it bakes in the oven.
You Will Love This Recipe Because:
– It is not overly sweet.
– Lots of banana flavor with every bite!
– It is not dense or gummy, rather soft, moist and crumbly.
– Stays moist for days! So you don’t even need to warm it up.
– Freezes well.
– No need for any fancy equipment making clean-up very easy.
– You can leave it plain or add nuts, raisins or chocolate chips. So many variations!
How To Ripen Bananas?
The best bananas to use for banana bread are those that are overripe. The peels should be brown, and the bananas inside should be squishy. These bring out the bold and sweet banana flavors. If you do not have any ripe bananas on hand and you want to make this recipe, here are some some ways to go about it:
1) Counter-top Method: Cover them and leave them on the counter top for at least 24 hours.
2) Oven Method: If you want them to ripen quicker, place them on a baking sheet and bake in the oven at 350˚F for 10 to 15 minutes.
3) Air fryer Method: Place them in the air fryer at 300 F for 6-8 minutes. This is my favorite method since it is quick.
They will come out of the oven / air fryer looking ugly, brown and very soft. But this is exactly what you need for homemade banana bread!
If you do have overripe bananas but you are not ready to bake with them at the moment, DO NOT throw them away! Simple unpeel them, chop them up, place in a Ziploc bag and then freeze them. When you want to use them, thaw the banana pieces at room temperature, drain off any excess liquid, mash, then use as instructed in the recipe. It is important to drain off any excess liquid, as this can affect the consistency of the batter.
How To Store Leftovers?
Leftovers can easily be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week. It can be warmed for about 10 seconds in the microwave if desired or even enjoyed cold with a hot cup of coffee, tea or milk.
Can Banana Bread Be Frozen?
Yes absolutely! Just follow the instructions:
– Cool the banana bread completely.
– Cut them into slices and then individually wrap each slice in cling wrap or aluminum foil. I like to freeze the bread in slices because slices thaw much quicker than a whole loaf. But you can definitely freeze the whole loaf too.
– Place wrapped banana bread slices in a Ziploc bag or reusable container. It can be frozen for 3-4 months.
– Thaw wrapped or unwrapped in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 3 over ripe bananas (see Notes#10 to ripen them)
- 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour (see Note#2)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom powder (optional)
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg powder (optional)
- 1/2 cup oil
- 3/4 cup brown sugar (tightly packed)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 eggs (at room temperature)
- 1/3 cup plain yogurt (or sour cream) (at room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup walnuts (+1 teaspoon flour)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Prepare a loaf pan (9 x 5 inch). Line with parchment paper with some extra parchment paper hanging on the sides. This makes it easier to LIFT the banana bread out of the pan easily.
- Take 1/4 cup walnuts, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of all purpose flour over them to coat them. Keep aside (this prevents them from sinking to the bottom).
- In a bowl, mash the bananas with a fork and keep it aside. It is ok if there are a few chunks.
- In another bowl, SIFT the dry ingredients- all purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, cardamom powder and nutmeg powder (if using). Use a WHISK to mix them. This allows the ingredients to evenly distribute.
- In another larger bowl prepare the liquid batter by adding oil, brown sugar and sugar and mix until well combined. This can be done using a stand mixer or hand beater and may take around 1-2 minutes.
- Gradually add 1 egg at a time, making sure to mix well after each addition. Continue to mix for 1-2 minutes. The batter will start to look light and fluffy.
- Then add in the yogurt (or sour cream) and vanilla and give one final mix.
- From here onwards, use a spatula (we do not want to liquify the bananas or overmix the dry ingredients).
- Add the mashed bananas to the liquid batter and mix with the spatula.
- Then in 2-3 batches, gradually add in the dry ingredients and FOLD with each addition. Do not overmix! Stop folding when you no longer see any dry ingredients (a few streaks are ok).
- Add in the 1/4 cup of the walnuts we had coated in Step 3 and fold it in the batter gently.
- Pour the banana batter into the loaf pan and scatter the remaining 1/4 cup of walnuts on the top.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 55-60 minutes.
- Check for doneness around the 55 minute mark. The toothpick should come out with a few crumbs on it. If it comes out wet, give it an extra 5 minutes.
- Once done, remove the loaf pan from the oven and place it on the cooling rack for 10-15 minutes.
- Then gently lift out the banana bread (using the overhanging parchment paper) and allow it to cool completely on the cooling rack.
Notes
- Bananas must be over ripe or the bread will taste bland..
- It is very important to measure all purpose flour accurately. This can be done by spooning it into the measuring cup, not scooping it with the measuring cup. This will ensure that you don’t use too much.
- Fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients by hand using a spatula. Using an electric beater can cause the loaf to be dense.
- Fold just until no flour can be seen. Overmixing will make a dense loaf.
- The walnuts are tossed with a bit of flour before adding to the batter to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the batter while baking.
- Always sift dry ingredients through a strainer. This breaks any lumps.
- In this recipe a loaf pan has been used. If a larger pan size is used, it will result in a flatter bread and the baking time will be reduced.
- You can leave out the nuts and replace them with raisins or chocolate chips or leave it plain.
- If using frozen bananas, make sure to thaw and then drain the liquid before mashing them.
- To ripen bananas use either of the following methods 1) Counter-top Method: Cover them and leave them on the counter top for at least 24 hours. 2) Oven Method: If you want them to ripen quicker, place them on a baking sheet and bake in the oven at 350˚F for 10 to 15 minutes. 3) Air fryer Method: Place them in the air fryer at 300 F for 6-8 minutes.
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