Chocolate-Chip Banana Bread

This is an easy recipe for a sophisticated dessert which is perfect for breakfast or any other time of day.  We always have overripe bananas, and we always have eggs and flour at hand. Toss them together in a mold and bake to an amazing bready cake for breakfast or a relaxing snack. Personally I use heavy cream and butter; it is a trick I learned from my mother for an extremely moist cake. If you are unsure or you simply don’t have it on you, substitute with the equivalent amount of butter and start baking.

Spread some breakfast butter on it for perfection, drink it with some black coffee and enjoy the treat you made, you deserve it!

Prep Time:  15 minutes   Cook Time: 55 minutes to 1hr&10 minutes, depending on the oven  

Yield: 20 slices, each about 5cm thick

List of Ingredients:

• ½ cup (125gm) Unsalted Butter, room temperature
• ½ cup (125ml) Heavy Cream
• 1 cup (200gm) Light-brown sugar
• 3 Large eggs at room temperature
• ½ cup (125ml) Whole Milk
• 2 very ripe bananas, Mashed with a fork
• Zest of one small Orange, about 3 tablespoons
• 1 teaspoon Baking Powder, ½ teaspoon Baking Soda, salt
• Dash of ground cinnamon and a dash of freshly-ground nutmeg (optional)
• 2 cups (250gm) All-Purpose Flour
• 1 and 1/2 cup (150gm) Dark Chocolate, Chopped

Method of Preparation:

• -        Preheat the oven to 170°C (Gas Mark 3).
• -        Grease and flour a 35 X 25 X 8cm Banana Bread Mold.
• -        Turning the hand mixer on medium, cream the butter, cream and sugar together until pale and well incorporated.
• -         Add the eggs one by one,  and continue beating.
• -        Pour the milk, add the bananas and orange zest then turn the hand mixer to low and beat until all is incorporated.
• -        In a separate bowl mix the salt, baking powder and baking soda with the flour. Sift into the batter. Add the spices, if using.
• -        Using the wooden spoon, fold in the flour VERY gently and don’t over-mix. Just a couple of stirs until the flour disappears and you can no longer see white lumps.
• -        Pour in the mold and sprinkle the chocolate evenly on top.
• -        Bake in the oven for 55 minutes. Before removing from the oven, use a tester to see if the center is cooked. If the skewer comes out with a few crumbs, keep cooking for another 10-15 minutes. You know the banana bread is fully cooked when it is swollen on top with some cracks, nicely browned and the edges have slightly moved away from the mold.
• -        Turn the mold at halftime to ensure the heat is well distributed. Do NOT open the oven door before at least 35 minutes.
• -        Remove from the oven, let cool completely for about a half hour then invert on a rack and slice evenly.
• -        Spread with butter, strawberry cream cheese or plain.
• -        If wrapped tightly, the banana bread stays at room temperature up to 5 days in a dry cool weather.

#A_Kitchen_Tip

Is this your first time to make banana bread? You probably want to read this in order to avoid some expected first-time problems. (Adapted from this article and this article)

-        Banana Break is under-cooked in the center and overcooked on top:

This is because you may have used a very thick mold such as pottery or glass. If you have the choice, use a metal one because it spreads heat more evenly.

You may also want to make sure your oven is hot enough. Not having an oven thermometer doesn't mean you can’t bake awesome cakes. Spoon some of the batter in a cupcake mold and see how much it takes to be fully cooked. It shouldn't take more than 20 minutes at 170 degrees. You also should know your oven, and your experience will tell you if your oven is too hot or not hot enough.

Over-mixing the batter after the flour has been added helps it release the Gluten which is the main protein in weight. Its molecules form stubborn bonds together which ends in a doughy texture not a cakey one, and naturally under-cooked. Fold in the flour gently and stir just until it disappears.

-        Banana Bread puffed up nicely in the oven, but subsided and sank when it was removed:

Watch out from putting too much baking powder and baking soda. Baking soda is extremely strong and both of them release their gases once they are poured in the batter, aka they start working right away, so you want to toss the batter in the oven once it has been mixed.

Accordingly, make sure your rising agents aren't old. Test them with some water and vinegar, and if the solution doesn't rise and foam then they probably stopped being active and they should be replaced.

Make sure your wet ingredients are the correct proportion to the dry ingredients. If the recipe says 2 ripe bananas then don’t use 4! Too must moisture in the batter will result in under-cooking the center (no matter how long you cook it more btw!).

As mentioned above, the baking time, baking mold and heat are crucial. Know your oven, use the correct mold and you shouldn't expect any unpleasant surprises.

I wasted those ingredients. So now you don’t have to!