Mo's Banana Bread

Quick breads are pretty amazing. You mix up the batter in one bowl in a matter of minutes, pour it in a loaf pan or two, and then let it bake for an hour. Simple. 

I can't recall where I ran across the framework for this banana bread recipe. I read so many recipes that I lose track of where I find them, and I do mean "read". I read the intro, I read the ingredient list, I read the notes, I read the feedback. I have to visualize all of it and then I have to decide if the recipe is feasible: availability of ingredients, ease of making, weird techniques, and so on.

I do know that I was searching for a lower fat, lower sugar, possibly gluten-free banana bread. Because the bananas have natural sweetness and even unsweetened applesauce is sweet, there's very little sugar in the recipe. I named the recipe for a friend of mine who needed gluten-free options for herself and her son.

Ingredients:

4 very ripe bananas

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup applesauce

1 TBSP baking powder

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

2 cups flour

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease one standard loaf pan and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, mash the bananas well with the brown sugar and vanilla extract. Add the remainder of the ingredients. Mix thoroughly but quickly to incorporate all the dry ingredients. Scrape into the prepared loaf pan and gently tap the pan against the counter to distribute the thick batter more evenly.

Bake for about an hour or until a knife or skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes or so and then gently turn the loaf out of the pan and allow it to cool completely before serving and storing.

Cook's Notes:

1. As always, you can add about a 1/2 cup of nuts, chocolate chips, or dried fruits. If you add in too many goodies, the bread be as moist nor will it hold together.

2. Applesauce is used instead of any fats in this recipe. While it's a good substitute in small batch recipes such as this banana bread, applesauce is not oil and therefore it will not behave as oil. Oil in baked goods coats the flour and helps prevent starches from forming which inhibits the creation of gluten. However, if you mix any batter long enough, you can push through and develop gluten which will cause your quick bread (or brownies or birthday cake) to be tough and dry. Applesauce contains pectin. Pectin gels to a certain extent, but it simply doesn't have the same properties as oil. To that end, like brownies, don't over mix the batter!

3. Let's discuss flour. I think the best proportion of flours for this recipe is one cup of all purpose flour and one cup of whole wheat flour. The whole wheat flour adds a nice nutty flavor as well as some fiber but I've found that using all whole wheat flour makes the quick bread too dense and dry. You can also substitute a gluten-free flour blend with pretty good results.