It was on Day 27th of this lockdown period in France that I decided to bake my banana bread recipe since my bananas might spoil already. It is not easy nowadays to buy flour at the grocery. If the other countries are running out of toilet paper, in my French town, the stores are trying to control the number of certain products that you may buy – particularly pasta, flour, eggs, rice, among others. Advisories are all over the store to remind everyone on how much we can only buy these certain grocery items.

I ran out of food on the 25th day of the lockdown (I tried to maximize whatever I had in the pantry because I really don’t want to go out. I want to be an honest person who applauds the frontliners every night at 8PM here in France) so I went to the grocery with a strategic list on hand. It wasn’t a lot but I believe that it will probably last for the next 3 weeks if we are still in this situation. So with that in mind, and with the bananas that I accidentally left inside my fridge and have gone super ripe, I decided to do something out of it (and also, to try to make my store-bought bread lasts longer than a week). In this banana bread recipe, I want my bread a bit moist and with nuts for that extra crunch.

So here goes my recipe:
INGREDIENTS
2 to 3 very ripe bananas, peeled and mashed
1/3 cup melted butter (or 75g), unsalted or salted
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar (1/2 cup if you would like it less sweet, 1 cup if more sweet)
1/4 cup brown sugar, optional
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
1 1/2 cups of wheat flour (or all-purpose flour)
1/2 cup semi-crushed walnuts, optional (Up to you how would you like your walnuts crushed. Also your choice on what kind of nuts you want to add. I don’t like it be reduced to powder form, but just enough to give the bread that additional crunch)

PROCEDURE

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C)
2. Butter in a 4×8-inch loaf pan or use oil (More often, I use oil and brush all sides)
3. In a mixing bowl, mash the ripe bananas with a fork until completely smooth.
4. Stir in the melted butter into the mashed bananas. You can melt the butter in the microwave for about 30 seconds or as long as it melted
5. Mix in the baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir in the sugar, egg, cinnamon powder and vanilla extract.
6. Mix in the flour.
7. Mix in the crushed walnuts.
8. Pour the batter into your baking pan. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour at 350°F (175°C), or until a toothpick (or fork or knife) inserted into the center comes out clean.
9. Remove from oven and let it cool in the pan for a few minutes.
10. Remove the banana bread from the pan and let it cool completely before serving. Slice and serve.

I keep it in the fridge if there are leftovers. I warm it up in the oven for about 3-5mins in 120C for breakfast. Sometimes, I slather it with butter. Yum! 🙂

How about you? What makes you busy at this current situation we have right now? Stay safe and healthy!