I mentioned to Rosie recently that I was working on a recipe for banana bread. There was silence…. for a good while. I naturally started wondering if there was a problem?
The problem for me was that I had a whole pile of overripe bananas that I needed to use but, as I eventually discovered, that was never going to be Rosie’s problem, because she wasn't having a banana in the house. About the only edible thing in the world Rosie won't eat is a banana. So, this one's not for her!
But for anyone else who likes bananas, this not-too-sweet, nicely textured and basically foolproof banana bread provides a good reason to leave them in the fruit bowl. Wait until they're soft and dark and way past their best, and they’re just right for making this very tasty, very handy bread, which is very nice plain, and even better toasted and spread with butter. It freezes well too.
Jan
GLUTEN-FREE BANANA BREAD
Dry ingredients:
250 gm Revenge gluten-free almond plain flour mix (see below)
125 gm ground linseed
2 teaspoons xanthan or guar gum or psyllium husks
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
1 teaspoon bicarbonate soda
1 teaspoon salt
200 gm sugar
Wet ingredients:
150 gm Greek yoghurt (I used Tamar Valley)
200 gm very ripe bananas (2 large) mashed well
1 teaspoon good quality vanilla paste
3 large eggs, beaten
125 gm butter, melted
1 tablespoon lemon juice
Butter a loaf tin, 23cm x 13cm x 7cm, and line it with baking paper. Heat the oven to 180°C.
Mix all the dry ingredients together, stirring till evenly blended.
Combine yoghurt and bananas, whipping them together with a fork to smooth out the lumps. Add vanilla and eggs, mixing well, and then add the melted butter and lemon juice.
Pour the wet ingredient mix into the dry ingredients and fold over briskly to create a stiff batter. Transfer to the tin, smooth the surface and bake for 40 minutes. Cover the top with a piece of foil to prevent it burning and cook for another 20 minutes, checking that a skewer inserted into the centre of the loaf is withdrawn clean and dry.
Leave in the tin for 10 minutes before cooling on a rack.
REVENGE Gluten-Free Almond Plain Flour Mix
280 gm almond meal
210 gm besan flour
280 gm fine white rice flour
175 gm corn flour
Mix up a batch, store it in the fridge and use it in most baking situations as a substitute for plain wheat flour.