A good, moist banana bread requires the ugliest, ripest bananas you can find. The darker, the better. I buy extra bananas and let them sit for days until they get just right.
When bananas are that ripe, they're easy to mash. I peel them, toss them in the bowl and mash them with the mixer. Here's what 4 mashed bananas look like...
The second secret to a dense, delicious bread is buttermilk. It really does make a difference. I bought the larger carton because I had "Creamy Buttermilk Chicken" on this week's menu.
After mixing all the ingredients, I do something kind of unusual...and it's Shannon's favorite part. After pouring the batter into my stone loaf pan, I sprinkle the top liberally with sugar. When the bread bakes, the sugar creates the tastiest, crunchy topping.
Here's the final product right out of the oven...this is a very heavy, dense and moist banana bread with the crunchy sugar topping.
This is a technique I learned from my Grandma Clara. Every time I take something I baked out of the oven, I cover it with a clean dish towel to cool. It may not make a difference, but that's just what I do...Here's my recipe...Enjoy!
3/4 c butter
1 1/2 c sugar (+about 1/4 c to sprinkle over the top)
1 1/2 c (about 3-4 medium) over ripe bananas
2 eggs, well beaten
1 tsp vanilla
2 c sifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 c buttermilk OR 1/2 c milk plus 2 tsp lemon juice
Cream butter and sugar. Blend in bananas, eggs and vanilla. Sift dry ingredients together and add to banana mixture. Mix in buttermilk. Pour into greased loaf pan. Sprinkle the top evenly with about 1/4c of sugar. Bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 1 hour 15 minutes or until a knife inserted in center comes out clean. Check half way through baking and if top is getting too brown, loosely place a bit of tin foil on top to keep from over browning.
Happy Eating!!
No comments:
Post a Comment