There's no better way to use over-ripe bananas - this Banana Walnut Loaf is a simple yet delectable cake-style loaf. It takes less than 90 minutes to serve, and is an extremely forgiving recipe. Warning, will run out fast!
Preheat oven to 170°C (340°F) or 145°C (295°F) if using a fan oven.
Line a large 10"x 5" loaf pan with parchment or baking paper. The ingredients are scaled based on this pan size. This cake is so good that demand will soon outstrip supply, so unless you're baking this for your personal stash, or are prepared to give away all of it, you may want to bake two loaves. Remember to adjust the recipe accordingly!
Soften the butter by keeping it outside the refrigerator at room temperature for 30 minutes
Soften, but do not melt it. Using melted butter will not yield the same texture. Shortcuts are tempting, but using the microwave for this may not be a good idea!
Pulp the bananas into a creamy mass. A great stress-buster if you choose to do it by hand. However, if you like a clean crumb without uneven bits of banana pulp, pulse the bananas in a blender for a few seconds. Remember, we're not making a milk shake or smoothie so be careful not to go overboard and liquefy it completely.
Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, GMS powder and salt until completely integrated. Don't trust the resulting mixture since all ingredients are the same colour and use a dry wire whisk to blend it completely!
Crush the walnuts, we will be sprinkling the walnuts over the loaf batter just before we pop it into the oven. If you want to use unbroken halves (they do look better on Instagram!), don't bother crushing them. Using larger pieces does affect your ability to slice the loaf cleanly. Full disclosure - though my images show whole pieces, I personally prefer using crushed walnuts now.
Take the softened butter and beat in roughly half of the white sugar and half of the brown sugar in a stand mixer until creamy. When you put in the powdered sugar, use a spoon to blend it in coarsely to avoid creating clouds of flying sugar when you turn on the mixer!
Add the eggs, cream of tartar and vanilla essence and blend in the rest of the sugar a little at a time until a thick well-blended batter forms. Save just a little bit of the sugar to sprinkle over the top of the loaf once done. While blending, keep scraping the sides and bottom of the mixer bowl.
Add the banana pulp, and mix until batter is well blended. The batter should be quite runny at this point. Don't worry, this is exactly how we want it!
Add flour mixture half a cup at a time and mix until just blended. Continue until all the flour is mixed in.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Tap the pan firmly on the counter a couple of times to release any trapped air bubbles.
Sprinkle the walnuts evenly over the top.
Place the pan in the middle rack of the preheated oven. Do this quickly, the idea is to not keep the oven door open for more than a few seconds. Causing the oven to lose heat is one avoidable mistake that can ruin the end result.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes. Turn the loaf around about 30 minutes into the bake. Do not, I repeat do NOT open the oven door for the first 25 minutes, this will cause the loaf to deflate and is another common mistake! After turning the loaf around, check to see if the top is browning too quickly. If it is, then cover the top of the loaf with aluminium foil and turn down the temperature by about 5-10°C.
At about 50 minutes, if a toothpick inserted completely into the loaf comes out clean, turn off the oven. If not, check again after 5 minutes. Resist the temptation to keep stabbing at it every few seconds. Leave the pan in the oven for about 10 minutes after turning it off. Remember, ovens are like people - each one has its own personality, and some are hotter than others! The same recipe can take a different amount of time in two similar ovens, this is absolutely fine. The more you learn about your oven, the better you will be able to judge bake duration for subsequent recipes!
Carefully take the loaf out of the pan with the parchment, and leave it on a wire rack to cool. Sprinkle the leftover sugar over the top while still warm.
Serve when cool. Refrigerating the loaf will make it easier to slice. If you do refrigerate it, it will taste better if you warm it a bit before you serve. Bon Appétit!
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Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 170°C (340°F) or 145°C (295°F) if using a fan oven.
Line a large 10"x 5" loaf pan with parchment or baking paper. The ingredients are scaled based on this pan size. This cake is so good that demand will soon outstrip supply, so unless you're baking this for your personal stash, or are prepared to give away all of it, you may want to bake two loaves. Remember to adjust the recipe accordingly!
Soften the butter by keeping it outside the refrigerator at room temperature for 30 minutes
Soften, but do not melt it. Using melted butter will not yield the same texture. Shortcuts are tempting, but using the microwave for this may not be a good idea!
Pulp the bananas into a creamy mass. A great stress-buster if you choose to do it by hand. However, if you like a clean crumb without uneven bits of banana pulp, pulse the bananas in a blender for a few seconds. Remember, we're not making a milk shake or smoothie so be careful not to go overboard and liquefy it completely.
Sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, GMS powder and salt until completely integrated. Don't trust the resulting mixture since all ingredients are the same colour and use a dry wire whisk to blend it completely!
Crush the walnuts, we will be sprinkling the walnuts over the loaf batter just before we pop it into the oven. If you want to use unbroken halves (they do look better on Instagram!), don't bother crushing them. Using larger pieces does affect your ability to slice the loaf cleanly. Full disclosure - though my images show whole pieces, I personally prefer using crushed walnuts now.
Take the softened butter and beat in roughly half of the white sugar and half of the brown sugar in a stand mixer until creamy. When you put in the powdered sugar, use a spoon to blend it in coarsely to avoid creating clouds of flying sugar when you turn on the mixer!
Add the eggs, cream of tartar and vanilla essence and blend in the rest of the sugar a little at a time until a thick well-blended batter forms. Save just a little bit of the sugar to sprinkle over the top of the loaf once done. While blending, keep scraping the sides and bottom of the mixer bowl.
Add the banana pulp, and mix until batter is well blended. The batter should be quite runny at this point. Don't worry, this is exactly how we want it!
Add flour mixture half a cup at a time and mix until just blended. Continue until all the flour is mixed in.
Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Tap the pan firmly on the counter a couple of times to release any trapped air bubbles.
Sprinkle the walnuts evenly over the top.
Place the pan in the middle rack of the preheated oven. Do this quickly, the idea is to not keep the oven door open for more than a few seconds. Causing the oven to lose heat is one avoidable mistake that can ruin the end result.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes. Turn the loaf around about 30 minutes into the bake. Do not, I repeat do NOT open the oven door for the first 25 minutes, this will cause the loaf to deflate and is another common mistake! After turning the loaf around, check to see if the top is browning too quickly. If it is, then cover the top of the loaf with aluminium foil and turn down the temperature by about 5-10°C.
At about 50 minutes, if a toothpick inserted completely into the loaf comes out clean, turn off the oven. If not, check again after 5 minutes. Resist the temptation to keep stabbing at it every few seconds. Leave the pan in the oven for about 10 minutes after turning it off. Remember, ovens are like people - each one has its own personality, and some are hotter than others! The same recipe can take a different amount of time in two similar ovens, this is absolutely fine. The more you learn about your oven, the better you will be able to judge bake duration for subsequent recipes!
Carefully take the loaf out of the pan with the parchment, and leave it on a wire rack to cool. Sprinkle the leftover sugar over the top while still warm.
Serve when cool. Refrigerating the loaf will make it easier to slice. If you do refrigerate it, it will taste better if you warm it a bit before you serve. Bon Appétit!