Would I lie to you?
What’s that you say? You already have a trusty banana bread recipe? This one is better… What’s that? It’s your great great grandmother’s recipe that won the blue ribbon at the Oklahoma state fair in 1909? This one is better.
Banana bread seems so simple, yet there seems to be a lot of bad banana bread out there. Dry, bland, nutless excuses for possibly the king of all quick breads. Here I present to you the king of kings, a recipe borrowed from here and there, perfected over years. You want to argue with me, you better be able to put your bread where your mouth is.
What you need:
*1 cup pureed RIPE bananas. Now, a lot of recipes specify a number of bananas, but how is that going to be consistent? Usually between 2-3 yields a cup. I just whisk the hell out of them in the stand mixer, but do whatever works for you, don’t just mash them with a fork though. This will not do.
*1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
*3/4 cup white sugar
*1/4 cup brown sugar
*1/2 cup European style butter. This is important. Always use “European Style” butter for baking. Need an explanation why? Plugra is available just about everywhere.
*2 eggs
*2/3 cup sour cream
*1 teaspoon baking soda
*1 teaspoon baking powder
*1 teaspoon orange zest
*1 tablespoon orange juice
*1 big handful pecans (not optional.) What, you usually use walnuts? Inferior nut.
*2 teaspoons vanilla extract
*1 teaspoon cinnamon
*2 tablespoons brown sugar
*dash of nutmeg
*dash of salt
Lets get it on:
Preheat oven to 350, grease a normal sized loaf pan.
Toss your pecans in a small pan with the cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Toast on low until sugar has melted and caramelized and you nuts are toasty. Once cool, chop ‘em up.
Cream together your softened butter and sugars. Get it good and fluffy.
Add eggs, vanilla, orange zest & juice, mix well.
Add flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Mix well.
Fold in sour cream, banana, and pecans.
Pour into loaf pan and bake for about 50 minutes. It is crucial not to overcook and dry out your ‘nana bread. Take it out of the oven just at the point where you think it MIGHT not be done. Trust.
Let cool, at least mostly, before you start grabbing it with your grubby paws. At top is pictured with butter and TJ’s apple honey butter. Top with whatever you wish, or just top with more banana bread.
Side note: is it normal that Moriarty LOVES bananas? You can’t eat one in peace without him wanting to get at it, and he sat in the kitchen with this look on his face most of the time I was baking this.
You're going to share, right?
That’s it. Don’t let anyone tell you it’s unhealthy to just eat mac & cheese for dinner. Also pictured is some cheddar herb beer bread, which I may post a recipe for at a later date, but you don’t really need anything else. Eat until you feel somewhere between guilty and uncomfortable.
