This is the best banana bread recipe! I have made these a gazillion times and it’s still, to this day, one of my favs. It’s super moist and dense which gives you that perfect banana bread texture. I also include tips and tricks to get a perfect bump on your loaf!
You may have noticed that I have another banana bread recipe. That one was designed to match a movie scene, so the ingredients are slightly different. But I believe this version is better.
Loaf Tin Size: 23x13cm/9x5inch
INGREDIENTS:
BATTER: DRY INGREDIENTS-
- 200g Plain flour
- 1tsp Baking Soda
- 1tsp Salt
- 2tsp Cinnamon
- A Pinch of ground Ginger
- A Pinch of ground Nutmeg
- A Pinch of ground Cloves (adjust the last 3 spices to your liking)
BATTER: WET INGREDIENTS:
- 3 Large Extra Ripe Bananas
- 100g Caster Sugar
- 60g Dark Brown Sugar
- 1 Large Egg, room temp
- 60g Melted Unsalted Butter
- 1tsp Vanilla Extract
OTHER:
- Unsalted Butter, cold
- 1 Banana
STEPS:
- Preheat the oven to 150°C and line a loaf tin with butter and parchment paper. You will need a long rectangular strip of parchment paper and lay it perpendicular to the loaf tin. You need the parchment to hang out of the tin to create two flaps. This will make removing the bread easier later. Add extra butter to any exposed corners and surfaces to ensure the bread doesn’t stick
- Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Whisk it well and set it aside
- In a large bowl, smash peeled bananas with a whisk until its chunky but a bit “liquidy”
- Add the rest of the wet ingredients to the mashed bananas and whisk until homogenous
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet and whisk until it’s mostly combined, then switch to a spatula and fold
- Pour the batter into the buttered loaf tin and spread it out evenly
- Peel and slice the extra banana in half along its long side. Lay them onto the batter with the inside exposed
- Slice a 0.1cm thick slice of cold butter, and cut it into thin strips. Arrange these strips of butter along the batter where you would like the loaf to rise and split open. This can be in a straight line or a curved line.
- Transfer it to the oven and bake at 150°C for 50-60min
- Around 50min of baking, I like to check it with a skewer. When the skewer comes out clean, let it cool for 10min and then remove the cake from the tin onto a cooling rack.
- Leave the bread overnight before slicing it (PLEASE DO THIS: I know overnight seems ridiculous, but I promise you, the banana bread texture will change overnight and become even better)
WHY THE BUTTER STRIP
The butter will prevent that area from baking as quickly, this will force the batter to rise from that area and create a perfectly straight opening along the top of the loaf. With the bananas placed on each side, you can also use the butter to create a perfect S shape and encourage the loaf to rise in that orientation!
