Introduction
From traditional recipes to ones found online, many recipes for making banana bread vary. Banana bread, an almost cake-like sweet can make your mouth water instantly–that is if you know how to make it properly.
Ingredients
The most important ingredient, and while this may surprise people, is sour cream. The purpose of the sour cream is not to make it taste like it, but to give it a moist and sweet taste. The following items are what you will need to make sure your batter is as it should be:
- Measuring cup
- 2 bananas; sliced ( more brown spots=a sweeter taste)
- ½ cup of melted butter
- 1 cup of white sugar (I recommend brown sugar but either is fine)
- 2 eggs (room temperature)
- 1 tsp. of vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp. of baking soda
- ½ tsp. of salt
- ½ cup of sour cream
- ½ cup of chopped walnuts (optional)
- Wire rack (for cooling the bread)
- 9×5 loaf pan
Directions
Prior to making the batter and beginning the journey, you must preheat your oven. Preheating it will allow the oven time to get hot enough. This is very important because if the oven is not hot enough in certain areas or not hot enough at all, the bread will bake unevenly. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Followed by that, you want to grease you 9×5 loaf pan (with cooking spray, butter or shortening). Then you want to begin the batter.
When preparing the batter, it is crucial that you get the correct measurements of the ingredients. While many eyeball things with cooking, baking is much different. One false move and it will ruin your creation. In a large bowl, stir together the melted butter and sugar until it becomes a paste consistency. Add the eggs and vanilla, and mix well. Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, and salt) with the butter mixture (butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla) until smooth. Finally, fold in the sour cream, walnuts and bananas. You may use a baking spatula or a spoon to mash the bananas up, if you choose to do so.
Baking
After making the batter, you then want to pour your mixture into the loaf pan. The loaf pan should be evenly covered with your choice of greaser. Bake the bread at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for approximately 60 minutes or until it is golden brownish. Cool the loaf pan for about 10-12 minutes. This will allow the bread to cool down and allow safe removal from the pan. If you remove it too soon, it may fall apart.
My recommendations
After making this recipe multiple times, I have got it down to a science. With that, comes personal changes or tweaks that I have done to get it to taste exactly how I want it to.
If you are cooking for a sweeter taste, I recommend using bananas that are more riper and using brown sugar over white. The darker the banana is, the sweeter it is. When it comes to the brown sugar, it tends to be more on the sweeter side and the color of the sugar also gives the bread a more darker color than using white. If you want your bread to be more moist, I recommend adding another tablespoon of sour cream. This may also make the bread slightly more light in color, but do not worry it will not alter the taste. Lastly, When combining the dry, and wet ingredients use an electric mixer. Then switch to a spoon or a baking spatula to mix in the sour cream, walnuts and bananas.
Conclusion
In conclusion, baking banana bread may sound hard but is relatively easy. Nothing is better than coming home from work or school, and just cutting a slice of banana bread and enjoying every crumb of it. If you are looking for a moist and sweet banana bread, you have come to the right place. After several times of making this recipe, you will enjoy it and savor every last crumb.
