Banana Bread or Cake?
There is a story to most things and everything always has a reason!
Writing a blog has enhanced my learning process ten-fold and is one of the best rewards of being a teacher at heart.
There is a National Banana Day in USA, just gone by on 23rd of February. I am rather surprised as I have never heard of it, have you? So lets add to the celebration with a belated but fun recipe to share.
It was only during the great depression that the Banana Bread became a household word. With food shortage on the rise the housewife was forced to be innovative and frugal.
Over-ripened bananas found a niche of their own and soon the banana cake/bread was in vogue. It is best eaten fresh, but can be toasted or even frozen. Eaten as a tea cake, thickly sliced it is often served with butter or even a hard cheese. It goes well with a cup of tea and a bowl of soup. There are many variations to it, walnuts, pecans and chocolate chips being the top 3 favourites to add-in. Served as a loaf, muffin or cupcake it is rather versatile.
Best described as a cake-like bread. Yeast was often used initially, ( perhaps prior to soda being commercialised for baking) which has slowly been replaced by baking soda and baking powder. Hence lets just say its sweet like a cake, and baked like a quick bread.
Ingredients
7 baby bananas, golden and ripe (or 3 normal sized)
2 eggs; beaten with a fork and at room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup melted salted butter
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda mixed in 1 tbsp warm water
1 3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
Prepare a loaf pan. Line the base with parchment paper and butter it all over.
Method
In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork. Add the sugar and eggs. Mix with a wooden spoon until it all is well amalgamated. Add the butter and give it another mix. Now add all the dry ingredients and mix it with the wooden spoon. Do not over beat, but mix it well enough for it to be all one thick batter.
Pour into the prepared loaf pan. Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes on 350F/180C and another 10 at 375F/190C to crisp it up.
Tips
Use golden baby bananas which are fully ripe.
Use any sugar of choice. However dark brown sugar gives it a deeper taste and looks almost chocolaty!
The baking soda will start bubbling when warm water is added. This ensures that the leavening agent will work while baking and helps it give it a kick start.
Using a wooden spoon will give the cake the perfect mix. Use a rubber spatula to clean the bowl off.
More recipes available at Amazon
Niloufer's Kitchen: A Sweet Trio
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKVHPA2
There is a story to most things and everything always has a reason!
Writing a blog has enhanced my learning process ten-fold and is one of the best rewards of being a teacher at heart.
There is a National Banana Day in USA, just gone by on 23rd of February. I am rather surprised as I have never heard of it, have you? So lets add to the celebration with a belated but fun recipe to share.
It was only during the great depression that the Banana Bread became a household word. With food shortage on the rise the housewife was forced to be innovative and frugal.
Over-ripened bananas found a niche of their own and soon the banana cake/bread was in vogue. It is best eaten fresh, but can be toasted or even frozen. Eaten as a tea cake, thickly sliced it is often served with butter or even a hard cheese. It goes well with a cup of tea and a bowl of soup. There are many variations to it, walnuts, pecans and chocolate chips being the top 3 favourites to add-in. Served as a loaf, muffin or cupcake it is rather versatile.
Best described as a cake-like bread. Yeast was often used initially, ( perhaps prior to soda being commercialised for baking) which has slowly been replaced by baking soda and baking powder. Hence lets just say its sweet like a cake, and baked like a quick bread.
.JPG) |
| Banana bread thickly sliced ready to be toasted. |
.JPG) |
| The Loaf Pan |
Ingredients
7 baby bananas, golden and ripe (or 3 normal sized)
2 eggs; beaten with a fork and at room temperature
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup melted salted butter
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda mixed in 1 tbsp warm water
1 3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
Prepare a loaf pan. Line the base with parchment paper and butter it all over.
Method
In a large bowl mash the bananas with a fork. Add the sugar and eggs. Mix with a wooden spoon until it all is well amalgamated. Add the butter and give it another mix. Now add all the dry ingredients and mix it with the wooden spoon. Do not over beat, but mix it well enough for it to be all one thick batter.
Pour into the prepared loaf pan. Bake in a preheated oven for 40 minutes on 350F/180C and another 10 at 375F/190C to crisp it up.
Tips
Use golden baby bananas which are fully ripe.
Use any sugar of choice. However dark brown sugar gives it a deeper taste and looks almost chocolaty!
The baking soda will start bubbling when warm water is added. This ensures that the leavening agent will work while baking and helps it give it a kick start.
Using a wooden spoon will give the cake the perfect mix. Use a rubber spatula to clean the bowl off.
More recipes available at Amazon
Niloufer's Kitchen: A Sweet Trio
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FKVHPA2
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