Going Bananas?

Maninas: Food Matters is looking for one perfect ingredient and offering her readers a chance to win this fabulous book, One Perfect Ingredient, Marcus Wareing. One ingredient I have often baked with are Bananas. There are tons of recipes online for Bananas, Bananas, Bananas and I have a terrible time throwing them out when they're about to go off. And who can resist a special treat?



It's been a while since I posted a banana recipe. If you've been reading my blog since the beginning, you'll know I'm notorious for having leftover bananas around and feeling obligated to bake something rather than throwing them out.

Well, I believe I may have found the 'perfect' banana bread recipe (thus far) and lo and behold it's a Nigella Lawson recipe, which she adapted from Jim Fobel's Old-Fashioned Baking Book: Recipes from and American Childhood. Admittedly, after making that awful rhubarb pie, I was a bit hesitant of the possible outcome of this cake. Will this recipe work? I proceeded with caution.

A number of changes were made along the way. You can find the original recipe for her Banana Bread ----> Here or in Nigella's Book, How to be a Domestic Goddess.

I opted for the chocolate version- hey, I can't help but be a chocolate lover and after all, there are 4 bananas in this recipe so it's naturally GOOD for you. I also added a handful of chocolate chips (they're good for you too), reduced the amount of sugar and butter, and traded the sultanas (raisins) for dried cranberries. The outcome was spectacular, so my advice to you is HOLD ON TO THOSE BANANAS and MAKE THIS BANANA BREAD!


Chocolate Banana Bread
(Adapted from Nigella's Banana Bread, How to be a Domestic Goddess)

100g dried cranberries
75ml dark rum or bourbon
150g plain flour
25g cocoa powder
2tspn baking powder
half tspn bicaarbonate of soda
half teaspoon salt
100g unsalted butter, melted
75g sugar
2 large eggs
4 small very ripe bananas, (about 300g w/o skin)
handful of chocolate chips
handful of chopped pecans
1 tspn vanilla extract
23x13x7cm loaf tin, buttered and floured or with a paper insert

Put the dried cranberries and rum in a smallish saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from the heat, cover and leave for an hour if you can, or until the cranberries have absorbed most of the liquid, then drain. ( I only left it for half an hour.)

Preheat the oven to 170ºC/gas mark 3 and get started on the rest. Put the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, bicarb and salt in a medium-sized bowl and, using your hands or a wooden spoon, combine well. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar and beat until blended.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, then the mashed bananas and chocolate chips. Then, with your wooden spoon, stir in the pecans, drained cranberries and vanilla extract. Add the flour mixture, a third at a time, stirring well after each bit.

Scrape into the loaf tin and bake in the middle of the oven for 1 to 1 and a quarter hours. When it's ready, an inserted toothpick or fine skewer should come out cleanish. Leave in the tin on a rack to cool, and eat thickly or thinly sliced, as you prefer.

Previously, on You Say Tomahto:

Rethinking the Banana Muffin-(This is how it all began-great 1st time baker recipe)
Banana Mocha Ice Cream (w/o an ice cream maker)
Oh Dear, My Bananas Are going Off Again-Banana, Walnut and Date Loaf
Orange, Banana & Cranberry Loaf

If you feel you have the ultimate banana recipe and would like to share it, please feel free to do so whilst commenting.