Banana Bread

This is a really lovely banana bread which I had nothing whatsoever to do with; my nephew made it and brought it with him when he came for lunch yesterday.

It’s moist, flavourful and spicy; it's also much darker and richer than the banana bread I usually make, from St Delia’s Complete Cookery Course, circa 1984 (!) I’m sure Delia will be gutted to know that she has now been cast aside like an old sock because, having prised the recipe out of him, I shall be using this one in future!

I’m reliably informed (by said nephew whose sister, my niece, now lives in Sydney) that banana bread, lightly toasted and buttered, is a favourite breakfast in Australia. Now, why have I only just found this out? Just think of all those lost years when I could have legitimately been eating cake for breakfast! There has obviously been a serious gap in my education, this is the sort of useful information I should have known… it’s nothing short of a disgrace! 

2 eggs

270g light soft brown sugar

3 over-ripe bananas, mashed

270g plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp ground ginger

1½ tsp ground cinnamon

a handful of pecans, roughly chopped (reserve 8 whole ones)

140 g melted butter

Beat the eggs and sugar together until well combined then mix in the bananas; add all the other ingredients, except the butter, and mix well; add the butter and mix to form a very soft batter.

Turn the mixture into a well-greased 2lb loaf tin, lay the whole pecans on top and bake at 180C for about 45-50 minutes until risen and cooked through. Test with a skewer and bake for a further 10 minutes if necessary.

Cool on a wire rack and store in an airtight tin.

Update: 12/7/11

I am happy to report that toasted banana bread with a little unsalted butter and some homemade marmalade is an absolutely scrummy breakfast! Well, I had to try it, didn’t I - it would have been rude not to!