As you know it’s
not like me to make a cake but this morning I decided to make banana
bread because there were 2 very brown bananas that were in danger of
decomposing in my fridge. I tend to put any overripe bananas into the
fridge for this very reason and I find that in the fridge they become
well seasoned for inclusion into this recipe. One thing I am keen to
do is not waste food so this was my incentive to make this very
simple bread. You might ask what is the difference between banana
cake and banana bread? For me this recipe is more of a bread as it
only uses one egg (instead of up to 3) and also tastes really yummy
spread with butter.
I have to thank Pat,
an old client of mine, for this recipe; Pat had worked as a Cooking
Technician in a school before she retired. It was her job to pre cook
the recipe that the students were to make that day so that they could
see what the finished product looked like with her vast range of
experience she was a fount of knowledge and an inspiration for me
when it came to trying out new recipes.
3oz butter or
margarine (at room temperature)
4 oz caster sugar
(you could substitute brown if you prefer)
5oz self raising
spelt flour*
½ tsp of
bicarbonate of soda
½ tsp of ground
ginger
½ tsp ground green
cardamom
½ tsp ground
cinnamon
½ tsp mixed spice
1 egg beaten
2 very ripe bananas
4oz dried mixed
fruit
Prepare a 2 lb loaf
tin by greasing and lining it with baking parchment. Preheat the oven
to 180 c or gas mark 4/5.
Mix all the dry
ingredients together in a bowl adding the dried fruit and stirring it
well to coat with the flour. In a large bowl cream together the
butter or margarine and add the dry ingredients stirring gently till
well mixed. Beat the eggs and mashed bananas together and add to the
remaining ingredients. Stir well (the mixture will seem quite thick
but moist) using a wooden spoon and turn the mixture into the loaf
tin. Tap the tin on the worktop a few times to level the ingredient
and place in the oven for 1 hour or until cooked and golden brown.
Check the centre is cooked with a skewer or cocktail stick. If
necessary return to the oven until cooked through – use some foil
shiny side up to cover if there is any sign of burning.
Leave to cool before
removing from the tin; keeps well for one week in an airtight
container. Can be frozen.
I've never come
across self raising spelt flour so I make my own. Just add 2tsps
baking powder to 150g flour.
