I came across Dominique Ansel’s Banana Bread that the internet was celebrating so I too went for it and made two mini banana bread loaves. Can't deny the fact, that it is the best banana bread recipe hands down. This banana bread is rich and moist with lots of sugar and lots of butter, like really a lot and you know we love butter here! I never associated banana bread to be an ultra-rich indulgent thing but this recipe is seriously a must try and I am here to tell you it’s worth every single calorie.
I already have some great banana bread in my repertoire, like the banana bread with nigella seeds, chocolate banana walnut bread and chocolate plum banana bread and a banana coffee cake too! But I am here to tell you that my husband who is never a banana bread fan is beyond obsessed with this one. I did not consider him so made using my two mini loaf pans so I can save one for later. But he ate one slice reluctantly and then kept asking for more... had to use up the second loaf too soon. 😄
SO, WHO IS DOMINIQUE ANSEL?
Dominique Ansel is a French-American pastry chef and the owner of Dominique Ansel Bakery in New York City. He is the man behind the famous Cronut, which is a doughnut made from croissant dough. I don't know if I will ever have a chance to eat that or visit his Bakery but thanks to his Instagram for a virtual taste! Also, this banana bread recipe is part of his book, Everyone Can Bake.
WHAT MAKES THIS BANANA BREAD EXTRA GOOD?
The high sugar, butter and eggs compared to the usual banana bread recipes make this a richer quick bread. It would easily pass off as a pound cake and gets even better with some dollop of ice cream if you want to serve it as a full dessert. So don't bake banana bread because you forgot to eat the bananas and they went black on you... instead, plan and wait or ripen some bananas to make this extraordinary quick bread! I swear you won’t regret it, and I want to hear what you think of this bread, so please let me know in the comments if you too tried. You can watch Dominique making this banana bread on his Instagram video Igtv.
Dominique Ansel's Banana Bread in two mini loaf pans
I tweaked the recipe to easily fit my two mini loaf pans of 5x3 inches without compromising on the richness of his recipe. The recipe calls for nutmeg which is questionable in the Muslim culinary world, but you can still make this bread by replacing nutmeg with cinnamon or a mix of allspice and cinnamon for a similar flavour. I have provided cup measurements that were measured by the fluff, scoop and sweep method. Baked at a tad lower temperature and was done in 45 minutes. My two mini banana bread came out of the oven dark brown, with a thick, almost caramelized crust. Thank you very much, sugar and the melted butter did their job well. This bread is crunchy on the outside and incredibly moist on the inside. By the look of the dark almost burnt crust, it may not be appealing, but look at the crumb, the texture, and the sheer rich taste will transport you to the heaven of banana bread!
Dominique Ansel's Banana Bread | Recipe for Two Mini Loaf Pans
Yields: Two 5x3 inch mini loaf pans or one 8x4 inch loaf pan
INGREDIENTS
Dry Items:
- 1 cup of regular white sugar
- 1 and ¼ cup all-purpose flour aka plain flour or maida
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg or cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Wet Items:
- 2 large eggs
- ¾ cup mashed overripe banana
- 100gms butter, melted and cooled
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat the oven to 170°C. Grease and line with baking paper two 5 x 3 inches mini loaf pans and set aside.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour, baking soda, baking powder, nutmeg or cinnamon and salt.
- In another large bowl, whisk the eggs and combine them with the mashed bananas.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ingredients and mix them until just combined. Stir in the melted and cooled butter and fold until fully incorporated.
- Pour the batter into prepared pans and bake in the preheated oven until golden dark brown about 45 minutes. If you find the bread browning too quickly, tent with foil or reduce the temp to 150c towards the last few minutes. The banana bread is done if a toothpick or cake tester inserted in the centre of the loaf comes out clean. Allow cooling for 10 minutes before removing and slicing.
- Serve the warm banana bread with black coffee or tea. Store any leftovers in an airtight container for up to two days.
Now, go and make this banana bread and tell the world how much you loved it!
TRIED THIS RECIPE?
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