BREAKFAST BANANA LOAF

“Baking is like washing--the results are equally temporary.”  ― Patricia Briggs

A moist, spicy, nutty bread to uplift the gloomiest winter breakfast. If you don't have a loaf tin you can always bake it as a cake and cut out slabs in the sizes you want. Try to use overripe bananas, yes the ones with the black spots and smudgy bits (not completely decomposed though obviously). Bananas that have seen better days will bake beautifully and add a lot of sweetness to your batter.  

 

 

Serves 6

 

What you’ll need:

 

3 bananas (preferably overripe)

60 ml vegetable oil

60 ml softened butter

160 gm sugar

3 eggs

225 gm flour

100 gm raisins

100 gm almonds/walnuts

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

½ tsp salt

 

How to:

 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C and grease 2 loaf tins (or one medium sized baking dish).

 

2. Mash the banana and oil together and put aside.

 

3. In a separate bowl, cream the sugar and butter till the mixture turns pale and fluffy. This might take some time so keep at it. Much easier with an electric whisk but it’s possible even by hand.

 

4. Beat the eggs into the sugar mixture, one by one. Then add your banana mush and stir gently.

 

5. In another bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, spices and salt. I usually sift the flour mixture a couple of times to try to build as much air into it as I can.

 

6. Add flour mix to banana mush and mix everything together. Add the raisins and nuts and fold together again.

 

7. Spoon batter into loaf tins and bake for about 30 mins or till your inserted toothpick/knife/chopstick comes out clean. Let cool. Unmould.

 

8. I’d say warm them up a little every time you’re going to serve but they’re going to taste amazing anyway.