I know. I am supposed to always be chasing rainbows but this has been the driest winter in history so, with rainbows few and far between, my thoughts turn to banana bread. We like bananas so I buy a lot of them and we don’t always eat them before they over-ripen. So I make banana baked goods. Maybe it is Paula Deen’s fault, (isn’t everything these days?) but it seems all the banana bread recipes I find are laden with eggs, oil, butter, margarine, sour cream, etc. They come out sodden with oil, too heavy to lift, and the texture of greasy spackling. I do not believe one’s hand should have oil on it after consuming a slice of banana bread. So I search in vain for the perfect recipe. As I type this, there are two loves in the oven, adapted from this recipe for Extreme Banana Nut Bread found on AllRecipes.com. With over 1.100 reviews it still has close to five stars but there are lots of suggestions for improving the final product. The recipe is poorly worded making it kind of backwards to prepare. I used a few of the suggested changes when making the batter. I ususally try to duplicate a recipe exactly the first time I make it, but when an overwhelming number of reviewers recommend the same chage I go with that.
Fast forward an hour. The banana bread was a hot mess! It was burning on the top and sides while still being raw in the middle. I think I know what I did wrong. At the last minute I added an additional banana because I hadn’t added quite as much as the recipe called for. I think I threw the liquid ratio off in the batter. Are these not the sorriest looking loaves of Banana Bread you have ever seen?
But here’s the good news. It tastes wonderful. Many reviewers said the crust tasted like the top of a banana nut muffin. I agree. Michael and I have been tearing it up all day, eating the crust. I refuse to be disappointed with this attempt. I think with a little more tweaking, some cinnamon added, plus a little orange zest for brightness, this just might end up being my perfect banana bread recipe. We’ll know soon because this is what my fruit basket looks like tonight. Come to mama!
Nancy says
ps. that should have read “then you don’t need a dish, knife or fork. Works for me.
Nancy says
Mary, I have to make cupcakes because any cake I make turns out like your banana bread – burnt sides and soggy middle. I’ve been told the oven thermometer needs to be calibrated.
It’s just easier to make things into cupcakes – then you don’t even need a knife or fork.
Oh I love banana bread especially if it has pecans in it. My mother used to make it often.