Nana’s Banana Bread
16 Apr 2020, Posted by in Chris' Corner
Everyone has had at least two kinds of banana bread in their lives. One was moist flavorful and rich while the other was dense, hard and bland. While it is a culmination of eight ingredients, the ripeness of the bananas is by far the most important part of this recipe. An under ripened (green) banana will give you the less desirable loaf. Cream the butter and sugar long until light and fluffy, use the correct amount of baking soda, and use overripe bananas to achieve the ideal banana bread texture.
Bananas natural produce ethylene gas (acts as a plant hormone) which triggers the ripening process. As the bananas ripen the starch breaks down. Green bananas are high in complex carbohydrates which are broken down into simple sugars as the bananas ripen and turn brown. The break down increases the sweetness and concentration of flavor. I like to bring my bananas to about 80% brown 20% yellow. If you ripen the bananas too much the peel will break open and begin to sour.
The recipe below is call Nana’s Banana Bread. Down in the south Nana is an endearing name for one’s grandmother and this recipe just may remind you of the great baked goods your Nana used to make. The recipe is simple with most ingredients already available in your pantries with the assistance of those bananas you forgot you bought last weekend.
Nana’s Banana Bread
Yield – 9” Loaf Pan Prep Time – 15 min Cook Time – 1 hour Ingredients- 125g butter (softened)
- 200g granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 whole eggs
- 350g ripened bananas (mashed)
- 225g AP flour
- 5g baking soda
- 5g kosher salt
- With a paddle attachment on medium speed, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla extract.
- Add one egg at a time on low speed until fully incorporated.
- Add the mashed bananas on medium-low speed. (the mix will look broken/separated at this point)
- Mix and sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
- Add the flour mix to the wet ingredients on low speed until fully incorporated.
- Butter and flour loaf pan or spray with pan release oil.
- Bake at 325°F for 1 hour or until a toothpick pulls out clean.
