Classic moist banana bread with crunchy walnuts, a household favorite.
Banana nut bread is a nostalgic treat for me. I recall walking through my front door and smelling the wonderful aroma of freshly baked loaves of banana bread that my mother would prepare for us when we came home from school. Throw a slab of salted butter on top and let it melt into the tender, moist and fragrant bread. True nostalgia.
Secrets to moist banana bread
Overripe bananas - Find the spottiest bananas that are softer to touch or let bananas ripen on the counter for a couple days. Ripe bananas are sweeter, help retain moisture and amp up the wonderful banana fragrance. If your bananas are super ripe, you can reduce the amount of sugar you add to the bread.
Dark brown sugar - Retains more moisture than white granulated sugar and helps yield a softer texture and also gives a richer flavor. Brown sugar will also help give your bread a lovely browned exterior.
Oil instead of butter - A neutral oil helps with maintaining moisture much longer than butter and helps develop a more even crumb. Best oils would be a neutral oil such as vegetable, canola, or corn for banana bread.
This recipe is interchangeable. You can use this base for zucchini bread or pumpkin bread. Just swap the bananas with whatever you like and swap out for cinnamon with other flavors accordingly. My mother also uses this recipe with ripened jackfruit to make jackfruit bread. It's also wonderfully sweet and fragrant with a tropical hint.
Ingredients:
3 cups all purpose flour
2 cups of ripened bananas, mashed
1 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil or any neutral oil
3 eggs, room temp
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp of baking powder
1 tsp of salt
1 tsp cinnamon powder
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
This recipe yields two loafs. I use two 9" x 5" loaf pans.
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line the loaf pans with parchment paper.
2. Mix dry ingredients by sifting flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon powder then set aside to prepare wet ingredients.
3. In a separate bowl, mash bananas then add dark brown sugar, granulated sugar, oil, vanilla extract and stir until well-incorporated.
4. Add the eggs and stir gently in just incorporated, do not over mix. Add in the dry ingredients and walnuts and mix until just incorporated.
5. Pour the batter into the pans and place in the oven. Bake for 50 - 55 mins.
6. Remove from oven and set aside to cool before serving. Enjoy!