Please follow this link for a banana bread recipe that has endured generations, and that your family and guests are sure to love!

http://samoa6.hubpages.com/hub/Simple-Homemade-Chocolate-Candy

I've made this recipe mid-week and only just got around to taking a photo to go with the blog. Just in time too, cause there is only about a third of loaf left - a very popular little bread that ia.

The idea for a banana bread came from  Shiao-Ping's blog (which does look amazing by the way), but I wanted something a little bit ligher and more brioche-like. I had three super ripe bananas left in a fruit bowl and a jar of peanut butter with my name on it, just begging to be spread on toast and munched up.

Here we are, a light, fluffy banana bread that is just so perfect with a bit of butter, topped with lots of peanut butter - super crunchy type too - yumm.....

Full recipe and more photos on my blog here

Rediscovering Waldkorn bread this week. I can only take credit for mixing it all up and shaping it as tight as I managed this time around; I'm using a "soezie mix". I'm trying to break down what is in there to make it THAT dark a loaf. Any help in deconstructing is appreciated. And no, alas, the flour formula is not on the bag... Crumb pics to come when the loaf has cooled down enough (after seriously ripping a beautiful bread to pieces I have found the patience to properly cool at last)

My bananas were turning on me, so I decided on a banana bread. with toasted almonds, walnuts, vanilla, cinnamon and a lemon zinged icing. If anyone is interested in the entire recipe, give me a shout. I'll post some crumb pics of this one later as well. The banana bread was baked on the waldkorns residu heat; I'm not wasting my oven heat any more after getting in this year's gas bill...

happy baking every one, greetz from Amsterdam

Freerk

I made some banana breads tonight. They were delicious – better than ever before with some tweaking the baking temperature. As I was tasting it, I got to thinking about the book from which I got the recipe.

Banana Bread from Crust & Crumb

Banana Bread crumb

Peter Reinhart's Crust & Crumb was one of the first two baking books I acquired when I started baking again after a 25 year lapse. (The other was George Greenstein's Secrets of a Jewish Baker.) While my baking library now contains some two dozen books, C&C remains one of my favorites, and, as I look at it today, the reasons are clear. First, it contains a couple formulas I return to again and again – the best formula for San Francisco-style sourdough bread I know and the formula for Banana Bread.

This book was my introduction to so many basic concepts, including the orderly steps in bread baking, from mis en place to tasting, and the function of each in achieving “a loaf of bread that is rhapsodically beautiful and exceptionally delicious.” Reinhart's amalgamation of science, art, craft and philosophy, all expressed in beautiful and lucid prose, captured me. He emphasized the rigorous application of knowledge and technique but also the ultimate importance of “feel” for the dough, acquired through disciplined and reflective practice. That is the path he defined to become a “bread revolutionary.”

Crust & Crumb was published in 1998. Reinhart's introductory chapter is titled “The Bread Revolution.” It is of particular interest now, given our recent discussion of that topic. Reinhart's perspective is of special interest because of the role he has played in this phenomenon. He reviews the recent history of bread baking in America and the influences of various people and events and also delves into his personal history, albeit briefly. He concludes the book with a chapter on The Bread Baker's Guild of America and how it nurtured the young bakers who ultimately put the USA on the world bread map through victories in the Coupe du Monde, notably the second place finish in 1996 which included Craig Ponsford's winning first place in the bread division.

I love this book. Many newer books have advanced “the bread revolution” since Crust & Crumb was published, but it continues to have an unique place in my bread baking library, and I think it remains a valuable resource to anyone striving to make great bread.

Happy baking!

David

Hello Everybody,

I cannot for the life of me get my banana bread to bake evenly.  I have tried different loaf pans.  I think I have not gone throug 4 or 5 of them now.  Each as the same result.  It seems that the bread is always darker around the bottom half then on the top.  For some reason, I can't get it to cook evenly throughout the entire loaf.  I'm cooking it at 350 degrees, for over an hour.  The oven seems to be at the right temperature.  So not sure what else do to?  Anybody have any suggestions?

Thanks.

http://www.thefreshloaf.com/recipes/bananabread

I haven't posted to my blog in a while, so it's high time I do :-)  I've been away on vacation for a few weeks, which is why I haven't participated lately, nor have I been baking either. My husband and I just got back from a road trip to Charleston, South Carolina. Beautiful town... ever been? I took lots of photos along the way, and if it's alright, I'll share just a few here, but I promise to relate this entry to baking. I'll even try to keep the vacation shots smaller than the food pics. Well, we'll see ;-)  But business first. That way, if you don't want to look at vacation pics, please feel free to sneak quietly out the back after you see the banana bread.

The weather was gray and rainy for a good bit of our trip, so when the sun smiled on us for one whole day, we put on our walking shoes and headed downtown. We traversed our way through the streets, admiring the architecture and beautiful old mansions, the many small graveyards tucked in here and there, and dined on some pretty great seafood (something we miss here in the heartland). Just as the sun was getting low, we happened upon a sort of open-air market, where locals can hawk their wares.

We meandered through oodles of sweet grass baskets, art, leather, jewelry, spices, etc., until Roger zeroed in on cookbooks. He was on a quest for gumbo recipes. The booth's owner directed him to a few of the popular ones, and then handed him Charleston Receipts, "America's oldest Junior League cookbook in print." I flipped to the copyright page to see when it was published and found that the first printing of 2000 was in November of 1950. It must have been an immediate hit, because they printed 3000 more just one month later. And the thirty-third printing in 2007 brings the total to over 800,000 by my calculations. That's a lot of books. I haven't even looked at the gumbos yet, because I'm still flipping through the baking sections. I love old cookbooks. Anyway...  

As we were packing up to leave Charleston, we had a couple bananas left from a bunch we bought at the beginning of the week. They were already past the point of good eating, so I threw them in the bag to cart back with us, estimating that they would be about perfect for making banana bread by the time we got home. And wouldn't you know it, there's a "receipt" for that :-)

Banana Bread

1 3/4 cups sifted flour (I still have some White Lily from a previous trip south, so I used that)
2 teaspoons baking powder (I used Argo, of course)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening (I chose unsalted butter)
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 cup mashed banana

You mix this one just like a butter cake---cream the "shortening" and sugar, beat in the eggs one at a time, sift together and add the dry ingredients alternately with the liquid (in this case, the bananas). The batter is turned into an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2" loaf pan and baked at 350F. The recipe says about 70 minutes, but mine was done in 45-50.

I'm not at all sure who to give proper credit for this recipe, because the conventions used in the book aren't explained. I'm going to guess the contributor was a Mrs. Robert Wilson, Jr., but she got it from Gabrielle McColl... or, it might be the other way around. I really don't know. Thank you Mrs. Wilson and Gabrielle McColl, whoever and wherever you are!

Now I must tell you, either the temperature was too high or my pan was too dark, because the edges are a bit over-browned. I will bake at 325 next time, with convection, which I find is usually perfect for anything in a deep pan like this. Regardless, the crumb is just wonderful---moist, tender and fine-textured. I think a double recipe could make a fine bundt cake. It might even be a nice layer cake, made with cake or pastry flour. This is dessert.

[Okay, this is your chance to duck out]

And now, on with the slide show...

Charleston
  
Top Left:  A view of the harbor from the pier at Waterfront Park   Top Right:  Some typical homes in Charleston   Bottom Left:  One of many small graveyards   Bottom Right:  Even if you've never been to Boone Hall Plantation, you might recognize the historic 'Avenue of Oaks,' featured in various movies---supposedly, they were planted 300 years ago (they're grander than they look in this tiny picture, even though they lost a lot of limbs to hurricane Hugo).

As breadheads, you might like to see a little of Asheville, North Carolina, because there is an annual artisan bread festival held there in the spring. I've been, and I highly recommend it. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to see the Biltmore Estate before, so this time we stayed a couple nights in Asheville on our way to Charleston, to spend the better part of a day there (we could have spent two), and an afternoon on the return trip to "stretch our legs" and take in the scenery at Chimney Rock State Park.

Biltmore Estate
  
Top:  Biltmore House---I'd call it a Mansion with a capital M, or perhaps Chateau is more fitting, but the brochures all call it the 'House.' (Sorry... some things just can't be made smaller than banana bread.)   Left:  I don't know what to call this walkway---the arbor? I think that's wisteria.   Center:  This is much too pretty to call it a greenhouse. Um... how about conservatory?   Right:  Ahhh---there's a winery!

Chimney Rock State Park
   
Center Left:  That's Chimney Rock, the 315-foot pinnacle for which the park is named. It overlooks Lure Lake in the valley below   Far Right:  Just one section of Hickory Nut Falls, a 404-foot fall. Another movie star.

As nice as our time was, the weather was so rainy and dreary out east that we decided to head home a day early and catch Octoberfest along the 'Weinstrasse' (Highway 94). It's a beautiful drive along the Missouri River bluffs, especially in fall. Lots of wineries from just west of St. Louis County all the way to Hermann, Missouri and beyond. The weather was perfect...

Missouri Wine Country
 
Left:  One of the gorgeous views from atop Osage Ridge at Montelle Winery, Augusta, MO   Right:  Enjoying a little 'Original Cyn' and live music at Blumenhof, in Dutzow

It's good to be back home.  -dw

Thanks to buddye for posting the Sourdough Banana Bread recipe the other day. I made it last night and it's wonderful -- lighter than traditional banana bread, but very sweet and moist. Plus, it helped me use up some spotty-looking bananas and a bunch of extra starter in my fridge. Thanks!

I posted a photo and recipe at Flour Girl, where I also share a few details about my first day as a culinary-school student (in the post below the banana bread ...).

I'll be posting every day after school, so feel free to follow along as I try not to embarrass myself too terribly.

Thanks and happy baking!

Flour Girl

I have been playing around with multiple Banana Bread recipes and I have ended up with my own recipe that I personally enjoy.  It's mildly easy to prepare and takes about an hour and ten to make.  This recipe makes two small loaves.

Nevans Banana Bread (with chocolate streusel)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In one bowl mix:

• 1 1/2 cups of flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon of cinnamon
• 3-6 over-ripened bananas.  (this is a choice of taste, the more bananas, the more mushy your dough gets but the more flavor)

In another bowl mix:

• 2 eggs
• 1/2 a stick of butter
• 1/3 cup of dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup of white sugar

Mix these two bowls into one and add a handful of chopped walnuts or pecans if you choose, and even a handful of chocolate chunks is always fun.  Grease your loaf pans with butter and pour the dough.

Streusel Topping:

Mix this in a saucepan on the stove in order.

• 1/2 a stick of butter
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 1/2 cup of brown sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp of Cocoa
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• (optional) Handful of walnuts or pecans
• (optional) 1/2 tsp of ginger

Mix this well until butter is well mixed so that there is a crumbly feel.  Add to the top of the loaves, this amount should cover both loaves entirely.

Bake for 40 minutes.  Check at 30, if streusel starts to burn, add alluminum foil, hasn't happened to me yet.  After 40 minutes, shake the loaf pan to make sure that the loaf isn't liquidy on the top, this is another ten minutes if it is.

Let sit for 10 minutes to cool and finish cooking itself. 

To extract from the pan I seperate the sides with a spatula and then surround the loaf pan with foil and flip.  The foil allows you to flip the loaf back on to its bottom after you take off the pan.

Voila!  Enjoy a good breakfast, or snack.