banana loaf

I saw three bananas left on the bunch of bananas that Da and I bought recently. The bananas were already overripe and were in no condition to be eaten on its own.

I thought of baking a loaf of banana bread using my breadmaker machine but I changed my mind and decided to bake a banana loaf in my oven instead. The texture of the banana loaf is something between that of cake and bread as it involves the use of plain flour instead of self-raising flour. I believe that many people would categorise the banana loaf under "bread" instead of "cake".

Be that as it may, the overripe bananas were perfect for what I had in mind. When you bake banana bread / cake / muffins, it is advisable to use overripe bananas as they are sweeter and softer. The whole kitchen is filled with the lovely aroma of bananas when your banana cake / bread / muffin is being baked in the oven. The aroma lingers on for quite a while after you have finished baking.

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
450g ripe bananas (mashed) - equivalent to about 3 or 4 bananas
1/3 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup castor sugar
1 egg (beaten)
1 tsp banana essence

METHOD

1. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees celsius.

2. Grease and lightly flour a 5" x 8" loaf pan.

3. Sift the plain flour in a mixing bowl. Set aside.

4. In a separate small bowl, sift the bicarbonate of soda, ground cinnamon and salt. Set aside.

5. Mash the bananas in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and mix well.

6. Stir in the sugar, egg and banana essence to the mashed bananas.

7. Add the sifted bicarbonate of soda, ground cinnamon and salt. Mix well.

8. Fold in the sifted flour and mix well.

9. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan.

10. Bake at 175 degrees celsius for 1 hour or until a skewer inserted in the middle of the banana loaf comes out clean.

11. Cool thoroughly before slicing to serve.