Banana Bread Revisited

My kids always complain that whenever they make one of my recipes it doesn’t taste like mine. They accuse me of leaving out steps or ingredients on purpose and I realized they are probably right. Well, maybe not on purpose, but I have definitely left out information.

When I originally wrote down or saved different recipes I did it exactly as written BUT when I made the dish, baked the bread, cookies or whatever I would tweak a little here, maybe change the order when adding ingredients, maybe add an extra step or two. Add a few extra ingredients or spices. But I never changed the information in the original recipe because it was all in my head. Sometimes the directions didn’t make sense or there wasn’t enough information given but because I’ve been cooking forever I knew about tempering eggs before adding them as a thickening agent, even though the recipe instructions didn’t say that. I know what to look for when it says “cream the butter and sugar”. You know, that kind of stuff. I also find that many American recipes have no flavor, there aren’t any spices or herbs listed in the recipe other than salt & pepper. So I tend to add a little extra and then forget what I added the next time I make it. All this to say…

I was making my banana bread and really looked at the instructions, most of them time the only reason I look at a recipe is for ingredient amounts. The original recipe pretty much says dump everything together and then add the mashed banana. Bake for 40-50 minutes. That’s it. There is absolutely nothing wrong with doing that but it’s not how I do it. One of the things I noticed in my daughter’s bread is that you can see the chunks of banana. It’s not bad if that’s what you like, but it doesn’t look or taste like mine and that’s what they have issues with. So I figured I’d revisit my banana bread recipe and add pictures with some of the steps to help newbie bakers have a better idea what it means so when the recipe states “cream the butter and sugar” you’d know what that means and how it’s supposed to look.  I have so many recipes that when I read the original recipe I cringe. No wonder my girls have problems.

Banana Bread – the way it was originally written.

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup banana, mashed
1 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix butter, sugar, and eggs together. Fold in dry ingredients sifted together, add mashed bananas and nuts. Bake in loaf pan, 9×5 inches, 40-50 minutes.

Step 1: Mash bananas with fork. It usually takes 3 bananas to get 1 cup of mashed bananas. Of course, that’s depending on the size of the bananas. The best bananas are over ripe ones. You know those unattractive ones that are turning brown. Can you use newer bananas? Yep. I’ve done it before. I find that the banana flavor isn’t quite as strong in the bread and that it doesn’t mash up as nicely as the more ripe ones do. But it still tastes great!

I like putting my bananas on a flat plate and then cutting them into more manageable chunks before mashing them. Using the back of a fork start mashing and keep on mashing them until there are no chunks and it’s pretty soupy looking.

Can you use a potato masher? I’ve never tried but I don’t see why not. The only problem I see is the type of potato masher you use. I have one with large holes in it and I don’t think it would do a very good job. I do have a newer Pampered Chef one that might work better but frankly it’s easier to clean a plate and fork than a bowl and masher, don’t you think?

Step 2: Mix the dry ingredients together in a small bowl. When you see “dry ingredients” they are usually talking about flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and/or other spices. If it says “sift” you can forget that step unless you’re making macarons or something else that requires a very fine consistency of flour. To make sure there aren’t any lumps of flour, just in case, I use a whisk and mix everything together. This way I also know the baking powder and spices are really incorporated.

Step 3: Cream butter and sugar. I like whipping my butter up a bit first before adding sugar.

Add the sugar and continue mixing until it’s soft and fluffy. It does take a few minutes, be patient.

Keeping mixing the butter and sugar. It should be fluffy and not grainy.

Step 4: Add the eggs and continue mixing.

Don’t forget to scrape down the sides of the bowl once in awhile.

Step 5: Add the dry ingredients. Leave the mixer on low and stir in the dry ingredients just until you can’t see any flour or dry ingredients at all.

Step 6: Add the mashed banana, and nuts if using, and once again mix just until well incorporated. You’ll find your mixture to be very thick until you add the bananas. I love pecans in my banana bread. Unfortunately I’m the only one so I never get a chance to eat it the way I like it.

Step 7: Pour into your prepared baking pan. I’ve always had problems with my bread sticking to the bottom and corners of the pan until I saw a pin for another bread recipe. I spray my pan with non-stick coating spray and then take a piece of parchment and line the pan leaving a bit of paper on each side of the pan as handles.

I like using the single parchment sheets and then tear those in half. The part sticking out the top can be used as handles. I spray the pan first and that way the parchment stays flat, then I give it another quick spray but it probably isn’t necessary.

Step 8: Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 50-55 minutes. It does depend on your oven. Sometimes it takes 60-65 minutes in mine. I like doing the nose test, if I can smell it then it is probably done or very close to it. You can also use a toothpick or cake tester and poke down the middle of the bread. If it comes back with raw dough then it needs a couple more minutes.

Step 9: Cool on a baking rack for about 15 minutes and then carefully pull it out of the pan and let cool completely. I think it tastes better the next day and slathered with butter. But, hey, that’s just me.

Banana Bread

1/2 cup butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup banana, mashed
1 cup pecans, chopped

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 9 x 5 inch loaf pan. Mix dry ingredients in small bowl and set aside. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs until incorporated. Fold in dry ingredients and mix just until flour is completely mixed in. Add mashed bananas and nuts. Pour in prepared pan and bake 50-55 minutes.

It’s these little nuances that are missing from most of my recipes and I think that’s why when my kids make one of my recipes it turns out differently than mine. So I guess I need to dig in and fix all of my recipes. Eventually I do want to print them out into a family cookbook for everyone.