Recipe: Brown Butter Cardamom Banana Bread

[sonia]

A friend gave me this recipe from Milk Street Kitchen by Matthew Card and I converted it to gluten-free and dairy-free as noted. I think you could use any gluten-free flour mix. My conversions from grams to cups are generously rounded up or down for convenience. Tasty and unusual!

Note: Measuring the bananas in a 1-cup dry measuring cup was important; the difference in moisture between 4 small and 4 large bananas could throw off the balance of the ingredients.

2 cups (10 ounces) flour
- 1 1/4 cups (190 g) white rice flour
- 1/2 cup (50 g) sorghum flour
- 1/4 cup (30 g) tapioca starch
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) salted butter
- Miyoko's Creamery cultured vegan butter
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cardamom
2 cups mashed banana (about 4 very ripe bananas)
3/4 cup packed (5 1/4 ounces) dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon white sugar (optional)

ETA: Can mix in 1/2 cup walnuts chopped small just before pouring batter into pan.


Time
About half an hour to mix, 50-55 minutes to bake, and then another hour recommended cooling time before storing.

Tools
9x5" loaf pan
medium pot for melting butter
large mixing bowl
whisk

Methods
Oven at 350F with a rack in the upper-middle position.

Grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour(s), baking powder, baking soda and salt.

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Once melted, continue to cook, swirling the pan often, until the butter is fragrant and deep brown, 2 to 3 minutes. (Miyoko butter didn't brown. Maybe I didn't turn the heat up high enough.)

Remove the pan from the heat and immediately whisk in the cardamom. Carefully add the bananas (the butter will sizzle and bubble up) and whisk until combined. Add the brown sugar, eggs and vanilla, then whisk until smooth. Add the banana mixture to the flour mixture and fold until just combined and no dry flour remains.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and sprinkle evenly with the white sugar, if using. Bake until the loaf is well browned, the top is cracked and a toothpick inserted at the center of the loaf comes out clean, 50 to 55 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Cool the bread in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then turn out the loaf and cool completely before serving.

Serving
Slice and nom! Makes a great snack or dessert.

Storage
Cooled bread can be wrapped tightly and stored at room temperature for up to 4 days or refrigerated for up to 1 week.

Notes
I used less sugar, more like 1/2 cup, and it was sweet enough for me. I didn't sprinkle more sugar on top either.

Comments

Re: My mouth is watering thinking about the flavors!

[jesse_the_k]

Crystal clear to me now!