Banana loaf or-anyway-you-want-it-cake.

No you don't have to make this as a loaf cake. My mother-in-law makes it in an 8-inch tin and slices it like a round cake.

Something about banana cake tells me it has to be in a loaf, unless there are multiple layers and an abundance of icing!

I promised my Nana that this was the EASIEST banana cake recipe and it has proved so popular with her neighbours, that they bring her old bananas in hope that she'll make it again!

Ingredients:
1 large very ripe banana, although I usually use 2!
5 oz. self raising flour
1 egg
5 oz. Caster sugar
2 oz. butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

 

Put oven on - 170'c. 

Mash banana and put aside.

Beat butter and sugar together until smooth and creamy.   Because there isn't enough fat, it sort of forms a solid lump.  Keep going.  I turn the speed down and it becomes smooth.

Add egg and mix in.

Add banana and mix in.

 

In a separate bowl, mix your dry ingredients - flour, bicarb and salt.

 

Fold the dry ingredients into the batter using a METAL spoon.

 

At this point I sometimes add chocolate chips or nuts.

 

Pour into a lined tin.

 

Bake in a loaf tin for 35 mins or 45-50 mins if you add chocolate chips.

 

 

Today I'm experiementing by making smaller loaves in mini tines.  Already the batter is rising over the tin, despite being two thirds full... (The batter does make 6 but 4 fit on this baking tray!)

 

I've baked these for 20 mins so far.  Adding another 5...

 

 

Ta-daaaaah!!

 

 

170'C for 25 mins.  Going to my Aunt's house for lunch tomorrow. 

Can't wait to put these in pretty bags for her!

 

 

 

The mother-in-laws method:

 

"Put everything but the flour and Bicarb. into a liquidizer for 1 minute at low speed.

Pour into bowl and all flour and bicard and mix.

I cook mine more as a cake in a loaf tin at 170'c for 40 minutes or a 7" round tin for 25 mins."

 

 

 

Banana muffins with fudge pieces

In celebration of moving in with my boyfriend (horray!!!!!!) and having some bananas to use up in the fruit bowl, I decided not to make the usual banana bread recipe but to look for some banana muffins to make.

We were helping his parents move to Plymouth and I decided to take them as a snack idea. I hope they were appreciated.  They are Nick's favourite baking recipe of mine so far.
I add fudge pieces to make them extra gooey in the middle.

Recipe adapted from the All Recipes website.  My notes are added in purple...

Ingredients

Serves : 12 

• 200g (7 oz) plain flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 large bananas, mashed (Make sure these are overly ripe.  This adds extra flavour.)      
• 150g (5 oz) caster sugar (I decided to split this as 100g of caster sugar and 50g of brown sugar)      
• 1 egg
• 75g (2 1/2 oz) butter, melted
• You could add some spice such as a tsp of cinnamon.
• 1 bag of fudge pieces.  (I found these in the baking aisle at Asda)      

---

Directions

Prep:10min  ›  Cook:25min  ›  Ready in:35min 

1. Preheat the oven to 180 C / Gas 4. Place 12 paper baking cases in a muffin tin.
2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and salt; set aside.  (I added some spice to the flour mixture here)
3. Combine mashed bananas, sugar, egg and melted butter in a large bowl. Fold in flour mixture, and mix until smooth. (I beat the sugar and butter first and then add the egg, then the banana).
4. Add the fudge pieces and fold them in so that you don't knock much air out.
5. Spoon evenly into baking cases in muffin tin. (Make sure the batter is close to the top of the cases so that you get that glorious muffin top!)
6. Bake in preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until muffins  (original recipe) spring back when lightly tapped.