I have tried many banana bread recipes and now I have finally found the perfect one for me: not too sweet, not too banana-y, not too wet, not too dry, just perfectly moist. I have made it three times in a row now and it has turned out perfect each time.
prep time 20 min cook time 50-55 min
ingredients for 2 loaves
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup vegetable oil (I use peanut oil)
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 2 cups flour
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped almonds (walnuts or hazelnuts work well too)
- 1 cup (2 small) raw zucchini, shredded and squeezed
- 1 cup (2 normal size) mashed ripe bananas
OPTIONAL for frosting
- 150 g dark chocolate and a handful of chopped hazelnuts OR
- 150 g powdered sugar and poppy seeds or sprinkles
1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F .
2. Grease and flour two 13 x 23 cm loaf pans.
3. Shred zucchini and mash bananas and set aside.
4. In a large mixing bowl, beat eggs, sugar and oil together.
5. In another bowl add flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, vanilla and nuts and mix together.
6. Mix the dry ingredients to the egg and sugar batter.
7. Add zucchini and bananas and continue to mix until blended.
8. Pour into greased and floured loaf pans and bake at 180C for 50-55 min or till the toothpick or cake tester comes out clean.
9. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan to completely cool on wire rack.
10. Put the frosting on a cool cake. Melt the chocolate, pour it on the cake and add the chopped nuts while still warm and semi liquid. Or make the powdered sugar frosting adding a few tablespoons of hot water, mix well, pour it on the cake and add poppy seeds or sprinkles.
Tip: Remember to squeeze the shredded zucchini for the excess liquid. If you find the bread a tad too rich, you can decrease a bit the amount of oil and the amount of sugar ( maybe 1 1/4 cups instead of 1 1/2).
Tip: The riper the bananas, the sweeter they are.
BUON APPETITO!
Looks absolutely divine!