Hi friends! I recently stumbled across a recipe at the blog (I am Baker) titled Perfect Banana Bread. I had my doubts. I had made some banana bread a few weeks ago that was pretty stinkin' good. However, I had two and 1/2 VERY ripe bananas that needed to be used and I figured I best prove whether this truly was the Perfect Banana Bread.
It WAS. It IS. Perfect.
You must try it. You won't believe it doesn't call for one lick of butter. You won't believe it has yogurt in it. You won't believe how unbelievably delicious it is.
I'm quickly learning that my oven does not bake at the temperature it SAYS it is baking at. This recipe requests a "325* preheated oven". Hah. I have a oven thermometer in mine right now and the hottest it's getting is 154*. However, I'll have you know, 154* will still bake banana bread, it just takes about 2 hours. :-)
Finally, the recipe. Full credit for this fantastic loaf of goodness goes to i.am.baker!
Perfect Banana Bread
2 eggs
1/3 cup vanilla yogurt
½ cup vegetable oil
1 cup ripe mashed bananas
1 ½ cups white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees and prepare chosen pan. (I used a dark, non-stick large loaf pan)
Blend together the eggs, yogurt, oil, extract and bananas in mixer with low speed.
Add in sugars and fully incorporate. Then add flour, baking soda, and salt and mix until just combined.
Pour into prepared pan and bake 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
(I would start checking your banana bread at 45 minutes. The time to bake just depends on the accuracy of your oven. Like I mentioned before, mine took two hours... hmm, I wonder if that contributed to the moistness of the bread? I suppose that would be the equivalent of baking it in a slow cooker?!)
So, here are the ways I deviated from the recipe, for what it's worth:
- I used 2 1/2 bananas (1/2 of the 3rd was moldy...) which equated to more like a cup and 1/2. I didn't measure, but that's about what it looked like.
- I didn't have vanilla yogurt so instead I used fat free Oikos plain yogurt. Win-win - it's better for you and the bread still was delicious! Oh, I also guestimated on this measurement - I'm a fan of less is more in the dirty dishes department, and yogurt doesn't come in 1/3 cup sizes. At least not on Kwaj. :-)
I hope you try it, and if so, please let me know if you too agree it's the Perfect Banana Bread!
Another bonus: If you measure like I do, it only gets one bowl, one measuring cup, one measuring spoon and a bread pan dirty! My kind of baking!
9 comments:
Oh, the challenge =) I was certain I'd already found the perfect banana bread recipe, but one that calls for yogurt in place of butter just begs to be baked & compared! I'll have to add pecans, though, to make it a fair contest.
Deena, I'm glad you're going to try it! My feelings will not be hurt in the slightest if your recipe is still better, but if it is, you have to share it! :) Glad you tried and enjoyed the lemon sugar cookies also - they were certainly a huge hit around here. I'll be making them again this weekend! :)
I am up for the challenge too as I also, claim to already have a perfect banana bread recipe. ;-) I'm intrigued by the no butter as my usual has lots of butter and buttermilk! Plus, I get to use my own homemade yogurt! Fun! I have to add the pecans to make it fair though, too ;-) The folks here love it so I make banana bread quite often! Many do not have ovens and it is not customary for them to bake at all but, they really love baked goods! There are local bananas galore which, are the best too!! I wish we could bring a bunch when we come but customs would NOT go for that! I plan to try the lemon cookies too, just haven't gotten around to it but I did "waste" quite a bit of time on the blog you referenced and printed out a couple other recipes too! Have a great day!
The results are in and Miss Rissa wins hands down with her Perfect Banana Bread! My hubby has been snitching pieces before the loaf is even completely cool & has proclaimed it the best banana bread I've ever made ... and that's saying a lot from the man who is NOT a banana bread fan!! I used the plain Greek yogurt & it is SO moist & tasty (just like my all-time favorite chocolate cake made w/ oil & vinegar, called Whacky Cake, that I've been making since I was about 7). But you were right about the long baking time ... it took about 2 hrs & my oven holds the temperature just fine. I'm wondering if the recipe is meant to make 2 loaves. That's how I'll do it next time ... and you can be sure that this recipe will live to see a lot of next times! Thanks for sharing it.
whoa boy... now I'm curious. Could it really be better than the one I use?? guess I'll have to put it to the test. I'm not a banana bread fan either, that's why I love the recipe I've used for years. hmmmm... will it be going to the scrap pile??
I've always baked banana breads and pumpkin breads and zuchinni breads, etc. in bundt pans to get heat into the middle and shorten cooking times. That might work for this one... we'll see.
and, I also spent a fair bit of time at the web site you gave credit to. thanks for sharing all the info.
Oooh Deena, I'm so glad you (and hubby) liked it! I too LOVE that website and find much inspiration for my baking from her. Now it's your turn, Mom and Sarah! Sarah, how about I just make it for you when you come? :)
Ok I must admit I haven't done very much baking much to my husband's dismay. So when I saw your recipe and here were over ripe bananas sitting on the counter, I decided to make your recipe. We loved the bread. We think it need walnuts, our nut of choice. I have a new gas stove with convection fan and it took 50+ minutes for 2 loves!! Thank you!!
ok. there's two bananas ripening on the counter (they usually don't last that long around here) so you'll know soon. how-so-ever, I made the chewy lemon sugar cookies this weekend, and ésos son muy deliciosos! I just sent them off to work with dad so I wouldn't eat the whole platter!
Chewy lemon sugar cookies still reside in our kitchen...some are held captive in the freezer & only a few get released at a time ;-)but they all live up to their *chewy* claim even after some days in a plastic bin. Great recipe!
Post a Comment