The Best Banana Bread

I love trying out new things in the kitchen, I get a little too excited about how are they going to come out, how some of the flavours match together, how some of the colours and smells are just made to be bonded. I try to cook something new almost every day, there are just so many things that I want to try! It just seems to me that it would be like reading the same books or watching the same films over and over again if I were to cook the same meals repeatedly.

It does make me think, how inexperienced I am, I have not cooked so many things yet, and I have not perfected many of the things I have cooked already!

I have not cooked anything with blackberries yet, apart from my signature muffins. So this weekend, after picking a load, I have made myself a celebratory smoothie:

HOWEVER, I have tried quite a few banana breads. I don’t really know why, because I don’t really like bananas (BAM I bet you didn’t expect that from a health freak?). And out of all of them I am prepared to share this one with you, because it is gorgeously moist, cakey but not too heavy, it’s just perfect.

The recipe is adapted from here.

Ingredients for 1 small loaf:

285g plain flour

1 tsp bicarbonate of soda

½ tsp salt

110g butter + extra for greasing the dish

225g brown caster sugar

2 medium eggs

4 ripe bananas

85ml buttermilk (don’t skip it – it’s the main ingredient!!)

1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 180C. Sift the flour with soda and salt into a large bowl. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, mashed bananas, buttermilk and vanilla into the butter/sugar mixture and mix well. Gently fold in the flour mixture.

Grease your tin (20cm x 12.5cm) and pour your cake mixture in there. Bake in the middle of the oven until well risen and golden brown.

The bread disappeared so quickly, I am seriously considering baking 2 or 3 next time.

Enjoy!