Banana Bread/Banana muffin

Banana bread is a great and delicious way to use up overripe bananas, it is moist, dense and flavourful. The bananas really need to be overripe for the flavour to be bold and the bread, sweet. I love when I can salvage an ingredient that otherwise is headed for the bin.

The beautiful thing about this recipe is, it is very easy, straight forward and forgiving. Also, it can be used for Banana bread or turned into a muffin by just changing the loaf pan to a muffin pan and decreasing the baking time.

Overripe bananas can also be used in making puff-puff or banana pancakes.

Different types of nuts can be mixed into the banana bread batter or sprinkled on top to give a bit of crunch e.g. Peanuts, cashew nuts, walnuts etc.

The following tips will help make your Banana bread fail-proof:

• Do not overmix Banana bread/banana muffin batter, once the dry ingredients are moistened, stop mixing, or you will end up with a tough, heavy, flat and crumbly Muffin.
• I prefer to use either a wooden spoon or a balloon whisk as against an electric mixer in order to control my mixing.
• Also, know that lumps are good, they are part of what gives muffins their lumpy crust.

 To make Banana bread/banana Muffin

3 or 4 very ripe bananas
1½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1∕3 cup butter, melted
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla essence
1 tablespoon rum, optional

Preheat oven to 180°C, brush 12 muffin cups or one 9×5 inch loaf pan with butter or oil or use paper liners.

Peel and mash bananas in a bowl with a wooden spoon or potato masher, leaving some chunks.

In another bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

To the banana, add melted butter, sugar, egg, vanilla essence, and rum, mix very well.

Stir in flour mixture till just combined.

Fill the muffin cups up to two third full (sprinkle chopped nuts on top).

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until a skewer inserted in the middle, comes out clean.

If using a loaf pan, bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted in the middle, comes out clean.

Cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove and cool completely on a wire rack.

This will be a Banana bread.

Enjoy your bread or muffin with a cup of tea, coffee, afterglow mocktail, or any other drink.

Note

• To give your banana bread a delicious twist, use 3 tablespoons butter + 3 tablespoons peanut butter (or cashew butter) to replace the 6 tablespoons butter.

You will also enjoy my Plantain Mosa and Plantain bread/muffins. All made with overripe plantain. While you are at it, try my Easy Pound cake, Healthy beetroot cake, Sweet potato muffin and Cinnamon Muffin.

Do you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please leave a comment below.

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