Banana Bread 香蕉蛋糕

I don't remember when the last time I made banana bread was... It must be at least three or more years ago. This is one of the easier recipes that started my interest in baking when I was young (I mean in my teenage and early twenty years).

In the past few years I spent more time baking yeast breads and other cakes and pastries that I almost forgot about it. Recently a book by Joanne Chang called Flour has been published. I would not wait to get a copy of it from my local library. Banana bread is a famous item in Flour Bakery (I got a chance to try some of the products when I was in Boston recently and they were GOOD!). I usually do not buy baked goods from "American" bakery stores because most of them are overly sweet, but Flour Bakery is different.

Since I have a few very ripe bananas sitting on my kitchen counter, there's no reason not to make it. It's a relatively healthy recipe because it uses canola oil. It's a good breakfast or afternoon snack choice.

Mmm, it has the right amount of sugar and it is soft and moist. Terrific!

makes a 9 x 5 inch loaf

Ingredients:
1½ cups/210g unbleached all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

¼ tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp kosher salt
1 cup/200g sugar
2 eggs
½ cup/100g canola oil
3½ very ripe banana, peeled and mashed/340g

2 tbsp crème fraîche or sour cream (see note)
1 tsp vanilla extract
¾ cup/75g walnut, toasted (325⁰F for 10 minutes) and chopped

1)  Preheat oven to 325⁰F. Butter or oil a 9 x 5 inch loaf pan.
2)  Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt in a bowl.
3)  Beat the eggs and sugar in a stand mixer with the whip attachment for about five minutes on medium speed, or eight minutes using a handheld mixer. The batter should be light and fluffy.

I accidentally used the paddle instead of the whip.

Notice the color changed from bright to pale yellow after five minutes of beating.

4)  Turn the mixer down to low speed and slowly pour in the oil in three or four additions. If you pour it all at once, you would deflate all the air that you have just beaten into the batter.
5)  Add the banana, sour cream, and vanilla and continue to mix on low until combined.
6)  Fold in the flour and nuts with a spatula until just combined and no flour is seen. Pour the batter to the pan and bake for 1 to 1¼ hours.

7)  It should be golden brown and the center springs back when you press it. If your finger sinks when you poke it, let it bake a few more minutes.

8)  Let it cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes before popping it out to continue cooling on the rack.

Note: crème fraîche can be replaced by sour cream. If both are not available, skip it and use 1 tbsp baking powder instead of baking soda.

Nice bottom !

香蕉蛋糕

我還記得年輕時時常焗的便是這款香蕉蛋糕,它所用的材料簡單,做法又容易,但最近這幾年時間我都放在學習及鑽研焗麵包及其他糕餅,差點忘記了它 !但最近在波士頓的一間餅店主人Joanne Chang新出了一本食譜叫"Flour"(與她的餅店同名),裏面便有她店內最出名的香蕉蛋糕的食譜,所以我便急不及待做了。還記得最近去波士頓時也有光顧那間餅店,食後使我難忘, 如眾多華人一樣,我對於『老外』的糕餅店望而止步,因為實在是太甜了,但Flour卻與眾不同。這款香蕉蛋糕食落滿有香蕉的香味,入口鬆軟之餘又有合桃的口感,實在是太正了!

可做一個長形九乘五寸蛋糕

材料:

中筋麵粉  一又二分一杯/210g
梳打粉  一茶匙
肉桂粉  四分一茶匙
鹽  半茶匙
糖  一杯/200g
雞蛋 二隻
菜籽油  半杯/100g
熟香蕉  三隻,去皮後壓成茸
酸奶油  二湯匙*
雲呢哪香油  一茶匙
合桃碎  四分三杯,放325⁰F爐內烘約十分鐘至香

1)  預熱焗爐至325⁰F,焗盤塗油備用。
2)  將麵粉、梳打粉、玉桂粉及鹽過篩,備用。
3)  用打蛋器將蛋及糖打至淡黄色,約五至八分鐘。
4)  將打蛋器降至慢速,邊打邊加入菜籽油,不可一次過倒入,要慢慢加,讓油一點點地與蛋醬混合,約一分鐘時間。再加入香蕉茸、酸奶油及雲呢哪香油,以慢速拌勻。
5)  加入麵粉和合桃,用抹刀(spatula)輕手拌勻(fold),再倒入焗盤。
6)  放入焗爐焗約一小時至一小時十五分鐘,蛋糕表面應該呈金棕色,用手指輕按會回彈,如按後會下沉,便須要多些時間。
7)  出爐後要放架上待凉至少三十分鐘,然後才脫模,在架上至完全凉後才可切片食用。

* 如果沒有酸奶油，那麼梳打粉要用一湯匙泡打粉代替