Friday 1 November 2013

Banana Bread

It's hard to believe that most of the year has gone by and we're into the last two months of 2013! For the final two months of the year, Cook Like A Star will be cooking with Australian chef Bill Granger - a self taught chef and food writer who owns several restaurants around the world. If you don't already have his books, you can find Bill's recipes all over the web including here and here. 

I've tried several of Bill's recipes and I like his fuss free cooking which produces delicious results. The hosts for the Bill Granger event is Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo of Eat Your Heart Out and myself. You can link up your November blog post at any of our blogs mentioning that: 

This is for Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo of Eat Your Heart Out and Mich of Piece of Cake. 


Bill's Banana Bread was the first recipe I tried and I enjoyed this soft yet springy loaf filled with the fragrance of ripened bananas and topped with crunchy almonds. The aroma of bananas mixed with cinnamon wafted from the oven while it was baking and I couldn't wait to sink my teeth into a slice.


To make it a healthier version, I substituted the butter with olive oil but I am sure it would be a lot more delicious with butter. Use really ripe bananas and I don't think we need all the sugar that is called for in the recipe. In fact I reduced it by a large amount and it was sweet enough for my family. 



Banana Bread (2 loaves)
A Bill Granger Recipe

Ingredients
  • 45g brown sugar
  • 30g almonds, chopped
  • 255ml sour cream (I used yoghurt)
  • 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 100g unsalted butter, melted (replaced with 100g olive oil)
  • 230g caster sugar (I used 180g)
  • 2 medium eggs
  • 250g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 250g mashed ripe banana {2-3 bananas}
Method
  • Preheat your oven to 180 degrees celcius. Grease and line two loaf tins {10 x 18cm}. 
  • In a small bowl mix the brown sugar and almonds. This gets sprinkled on the top before popping in the oven.
  • In a large bowl, mix together the bicarb soda and the sour cream and leave to stand for 5 minutes.
  • Stir in the melted butter, sugar and eggs.
  • In another bowl, mix the flour, the baking powder and cinnamon and then gradually add to the wet ingredients… folding gently. Add the mashed banana. Don’t overmix.
  • Divide the batter between the two tins. Sprinkle them with the sugar and almond mixture. Place in the oven and cook for 50 mins to 1 hour ( I baked mine for 35 mins).
This is for Cook Like A Star hosted by Zoe of Bake for Happy Kids, Baby Sumo of Eat Your Heart Out and Mich of Piece of Cake. 




31 comments:

  1. crushed almonds on top sounds new... the texture must be heavenly!

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  2. wow... look yummy... can i have few pieces please?

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    Replies
    1. by the way, may i know how to join Cook like a Star - November to December 2013? any terms & conditions?

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    2. Hi Joycelyn, just cook any Bill Granger recipe and post it on your blog and link that post to the linky below. That's all :)

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  3. love to see banana bread again after making it a while ago!

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  4. I don't think I have ever tried one of Bill Granger's recipes so hopefully I can find something for this challenge. I love the idea of adding almonds to the top for a change.

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  5. Looks so soft with the used of banana and yogurt. A healthy choice replace butter with olive oil.

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  6. this would be dangerous in my house, haha!

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  7. So busy planning for our break this week that I forgot Bill Granger starts this month! Ugh, need to get into the kitchen this weekend and make something. By the way, your cake looks very moist.

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  8. Mich, your banana cake looks so soft and moist. This is one of my fav cake!

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  9. Hi Mich, your banana cake look so moist and delightful. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

    Have a nice weekend.

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  10. Hard to believe it's already November...sigh...time flies, huh?
    The banana bread looks super, Mich.
    Have a bright and beautiful weekend!
    Angie

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  11. I am all about making your baked goods healthier with exchanges. Your banana bread looks so moist. I cannot believe it is already November, where did the time go?

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  12. This banana bread looks good & so moist! Love the texture! YUM!

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  13. Love the little specks of banana on your loaf! They make the loaf look so inviting!

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  14. The texture of this cake looks WONDERFUL to me
    And I really like the topping :)

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  15. Mich, sounds like a yummy bake! I must try it too :)

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  16. Mich , time flies so fast , isn't it ? So much food to try/cook , so little time :D This lovely banana bread reminds me that I haven't baked it for quiet sometime :P

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  17. i hv tried nigella's banana bread and i find it really nice. If i hv time, i would probably try this out.

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  18. Hi Mich,

    After seeing your Bill Granger's banana bread post and knowing that you have baking banana bread recipes for other CLAS, I like to confirm that you are BIGGEST banana bread fan that I ever know :p

    Just curious, do you think this is nicer than other that you have baked before?

    Zoe

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  19. Hi Mich,
    Very nice crumb texture! Have not baked a banana cake in the longest time, will bookmark this and who knows, it might just happen!

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  20. I love banana bread, this one looks so yummy!

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  21. Your cake looks delicious Mich. And we all want to make banana bread from time to time to use up leftover bananas. Looks really soft and inviting.

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  22. This looks so moist and really, really good! I would be tempted to eat the whole thing very quickly!

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  23. Hi Mich,
    Lovely cake! And I like the almonds over the top! A slice would be good with a cup of tea!

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  24. Love banana bread, especially very moist one. Haven't made one for a while and your delicious banana bread tempted me to bake one soon!

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  25. Now theres something i haven't made for Tyler in a while. Your recipe looks very light and fluffy. Love it!

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