Brown Butter Banana Bread is a new twist on an old classic.
I have fond memories of making banana bread with my mom as a little girl. I always knew that when the bananas in our fruit bowl were starting to get too brown a tasty loaf was not far away in our future.
There are many versions in my mom's recipe archives. Some have other fruits like dates or raisins, some use different oils and flours. But most have two things in common - enough wet ingredients to keep it moist and enough spice and sugar to bring out that true banana flavor.
Over the years, I have fiddled with countess recipes but the one I love most is made with brown butter and Greek yogurt. I also use a mix of whole wheat and all-purpose flour and a mix of brown and white sugars. And of course, I use a lot of spices. I am a big fan of pumpkin pie spice since it already includes cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and allspice.
The process is fairly straightforward. Brown your butter and allow it to cool slightly. Mash your bananas and combine them with the other wet ingredients and sugars then incorporate the butter. Then sift in your dry ingredients and combine everything before pouring into a loaf pan to bake. Nuts are optional - add a cup of chopped walnuts or pecans if you are so inclined.
This recipe makes two loaves which is a good thing because it disappears pretty quickly!
Brown Butter Banana Bread
Equipment
- 2 large loaf pans
- 1 electric mixer
- 1 Large Bowl
- measuring cups and spoons
- Spatchula
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 6 ripe bananas mashed
- 4 eggs
- ½ c. brown sugar
- ½ c. white sugar
- 1 stick of melted brown butter
- ⅔ c. Greek yogurt
- 1 t. vanilla
Dry Ingredients
- 1 c. whole wheat flour
- 2 c. unbleached white flour
- 2 t. pumpkin pie spice cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, clove
- 1 t. salt
- 2 t. baking soda
- 1 t. baking power
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Grease two large loaf pans with oil of choice. (I like coconut or butter)
- In a shallow frying pan over medium heat melt the butter and allow it to cook until it starts to turn a nutty brown. Be sure to stir it frequently so it doesn't burn. Once it is a deep rich brown remove it from the heat and pour into a shallow bowl to cool for 10 minutes or so.
- With an electric mixer in a large bowl, blend together the bananas, eggs, greek yogurt, and vanilla. Add the browned butter and two sugars. Beat for a few minutes to make sure everything is incorporated.
- Sift into the bowl both types of flour, the spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix for a few more minutes to make sure everything is combined.
- Pour the batter evenly into the two greased pans and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Check at about 30 minutes and if getting to brown on top cover loosely with foil.
- Cool for about 10 minutes then turn on to a cooling rack. Slice and serve with butter or softened cream cheese.
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