Banana Bread

I haven't yet try baking with fruits as yet …….not for cake and bread, or even cupcakes. But today I had a pretty good chance of baking one as my FiL gave me some very ripe bananas that he has peeled off the skin and kept in the fridge for me after hearing me said the other day, that I would like to try baking something with bananas……hehe, he remembered J
On my way driving home, my head is already searching for the recipe that I have in collection about baking with bananas. I saw this recipe "Banana Bread" on the website the other day and because it has so many good comments about it, I decided to take it down and give it a try one of these days. I am curious too on what will be the difference between this Banana Bread and a Banana Cake in texture………which mean I will be baking a Banana Cake very soon, hahaha.....….stay tuned oh :P
What I found out is, this bread requires a longer baking time, but overall, the texture of the bread was fine, very dense, aromatic and unlike cakes……..it doesn't gives you the richness that a cake does, that will make you feel guilty after having a second piece (hehe)……….and it's not that sweet, so it actually taste really good with a cup of coffee or tea for afternoon tea. Oh yes, one more verdict about this bread is, don't expect it to be moist like a cake, but it's also not that dry too lah.........that it'll stuck in your throat :P, maybe because it falls under the 'bread' category………could it be?
Anyway, I hope you will like this and I have planned to add 2 tablespoons of milk into the batter the next time if I ever make this banana bread again ……just to see if I can add a little moisture into it, ^_^ Happy Banana Bread baking …….cheers!

Banana Bread (Makes 8 – 10 slices)
 Ingredients
250g all-purpose flour (I used Self Raising Flour, therefore I cut down the Baking Powder to ½ tsp only)
2 teaspoons baking powder (I used on ½ tsp)
125g unsalted butter, softened
160g castor sugar
4 ripe bananas, mashed
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F. Grease and flour a 19x11cm loaf pan. ( I used a 22x11cm loaf pan instead because I don't have a 19x11cm size)
2. Sift the flour and baking powder into a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy in a separate bowl, then add in the mashed banana and mix well.
4. Add in the eggs, one at a time until all the ingredients come together, add in the vanilla extract.
5. Fold in the dry ingredients into the butter mixture part by part until fully combine, being careful not to overmix.

6.   Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, or until the read is cooked when tested with a skewer. Leave to cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool. Serve in thick slices with butter and a cup of coffee is perfect!

p/s: I just found out that the banana bread is even better consume the day after....it has become a bit moist after a day.....:)

Happy Banana Bread Baking ;)