Banana Bread. We’ve all made it. We’ve all loved it. It is ubiquitous in the canon of American desserts. It has made its way to every coffee shop, corner store, and home kitchen. It is fit for breakfast. It is fit for an afternoon snack. It is fit as a late-night craving fix.
What else is there to be said?
Well, let me interject. There is one thing to be said.
Why make banana bread for just one? *
Note: This recipe is based on Alison Roman’s “Better Banana Bread” in page 272 of her book, “Sweet Enough”.
Yield:
Two 9 x 4 x 4 inches loaves (I used a Pullman pan)
Ingredients:
400g ap flour
70g buckwheat flour
10g baking soda
12g salt
226g butter (at room temp)
220g granulated sugar
220g light-brown sugar
200g or 4 large eggs (at room temp)
640g bananas
200g sour cream (at room temp)
+ 1 banana, split in half
+ 50g granulated sugar
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Prepare two 9 x 4 x 4-inch loaf pans with clarified butter or oil, and line with parchment paper overhanging the vertical sides of the pan.
Place 113g butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Let heat, without stirring, for 5-7 minutes or until butter smells lightly nutty and has turned a hazelnut-like color. Let cool.
In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, salt, and baking powder.
Place the remaining 113g butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Add both sugars and cream on medium-high until light and fluffy (2-3 minutes). Stream in the cooled, browned butter and cream for 2-3 minutes more.
Add the eggs in, one at a time, and beat on medium-low speed until the mixture is smooth and homogenous in color (~1 min after the addition of each egg).
Meanwhile, mash the banana together with the sour cream in a medium bowl and whisk until thoroughly incorporated.
Thoroughly scrape down the bowl of the stand mixer. Add in 1/3 of the flour mixture (~164) grams, followed by 1/2 of the banana sour-cream mixture (~420g).
Add the next third of the flour (164g), followed by the remaining banana sour-cream mixture (420g)
Finally, remove the paddle attachment and fold in the remaining flour mixture.
Divide the batter among the pans (~1000g batter per pan), top with banana halves, and the remaining 50g of granulated sugar (~25g per loaf).
Bake in the middle rack of the oven for 45 minutes - 1 hour, rotating after 25 minutes. The cake will smell noticeably caramelized, look slightly domed, and read an internal temperature of 210°F when finished.
After removing from the oven, let cool in the pan for 25 minutes. After, release the parchment from the sides of the pan and place it on a wire rack to fully cool. **
* Banana bread is an excellent candidate for freezing. It is also an excellent candidate to lug on the bus, or train, or even to carry like a baby on your way to meet people.
** Cake will keep well-wrapped for 2-5 days. It is best enjoyed on the second and even third day.
