I don’t know about you but I seem to fight a constant battle between what I should buy and what I want to buy. Bananas are a prime example. Whilst I like the taste of a banana I’m not keen on the texture, but I know that they are good for you so when I walk into a shop and see them hanging on their racks just inside the doorway I feel like I should buy a bunch. Which I do, only for them to languish in the fruit bowl in the kitchen for days on end.
I found myself with a lot of bananas today that were going soft and squishy and so decided to use them by making a Banana Bread. I’m not sure that bananas in a bread are as good for you as eating a banana, but I take the view that anything with fruit in it has got to be healthy! I added chocolate to mine which balances the naughty and the nice. The bread is so good it’s tempting to go out and buy some more bananas just so I have an excuse to make it again.
Ingredients
- 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
- 125g unsalted butter, melted
- 150g dark brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 125g Greek yogurt
- 175g plain flour
- 50g cocoa powder
- 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 100g dark chocolate chips or chopped dark chocolate
Method
Preheat your oven to 180c / 350f / Gas Mark 4
Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin. In a large bowl, whisk together:
- mashed bananas
- melted butter
- dark brown sugar
- eggs
- vanilla
- Greek Yoghurt
In a second bowl sift together the dry ingredients
- flour
- cocoa powder
- bicarbonate of soda
- baking powder
Fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture until just combined. Do not overmix. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour into the loaf tin and sprinkle a few extra chocolate chips on top. Bake for 50–60 minutes until a skewer comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. It always takes longer than a cake due to the density of the bananas so don’t be alarmed if it takes longer than you think. Leave in the tin for 15 minutes before transferring to a wire rack.