banana bread

Banana bread

banana bread

The best banana bread I’ve arguably ever had was from a random shop in Hilo, Hawaii, while my family and I were driving around the island. It was wrapped in ceramic wrap, and the smell of banana was heavenly. Every bite was perfectly moist, including the crust. The secrets to moist banana bread?

• Extra ripe bananas. I’m talking the peel is all wrinkly and brown and super thin, to the point where it’s difficult to even peel the banana.

• Brown sugar. The same way that brown sugar lends moistness to cookies and other bakes, a 1:1 ratio of brown sugar to white sugar lends moistness in addition to sweetness.

• Sifting dry ingredients and folding gently. No overmixing.

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Quick notes/tips before starting

• This recipe can be halved and baked in a loaf pan. The bake time remains the same.

• If baking in Texas muffin trays, the bake time can be shortened to 25 minutes.

Ingredients

• 2 sticks (1 cup/227 g) butter

• 6 large ripe bananas

• 4 large eggs

• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar

• 1 cup (220 g) brown sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 2 tbsp milk powder

Items

• 8x8” loaf pan

Instructions

Microwave The Bananas (Optional)

When I’m super short on time, I skip this step, but it allows the banana to get to the perfect texture.

1. Poke holes in the bananas with a fork.

2. Place them on a plate and microwave for 5 minutes.

3. Let them rest for 5 minutes until cool enough to peel them into a bowl.

Make the banana bread

1. Preheat oven to 350 F.

2. Mash the bananas with a fork until relatively homogenous—some chunks are fine.

3. Brown/melt the butter (optional: if browned, add in 34g of milk).

4. Pour hot butter over the mashed bananas.

5. Mix until cool enough to add in eggs, i.e. don’t scramble your eggs. Whip.

6. Mix in sugar, baking soda, salt, milk powder, and vanilla extract.

7. Sift the flour. Gently fold in all-purpose flour, 1/2 cup at a time. Do not overmix.

8. Butter/line the loaf pan.

9. Bake for 1h 20 min.

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Thoughts

1. Applesauce for potentially a more moist banana bread.

2. Seven bananas worked out well, but the batter barely fit in the 8x8” pan. Would probably work out with two divided loaf pans though.