What better way to spend a rainy summer night than to try out a new twist on banana bread? Adapted from this recipe from the Rachel Ray Magazine, I bring you Upside Down Banana Bread.
I made some modifications to the recipe to reduce the fat and calories without losing flavor or texture. No dry desserts in this apartment!
You will need:
3 medium ripe bananas
2 medium extra ripe bananas (to make 1 cup mashed)
3/4 cup of sugar, separated
2 Tb unsalted butter
1 large egg + 1 large egg white
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup vegetable or canola oil
1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
I find that baking is so much easier when I have all if my ingredients out before I begin. I also recommend reading the entire recipe at least once before you start. This will keep you from many baking mistakes I have made in the past…. (stories for another day!).
Directions:
Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees. Spray or grease loaf pan (I sprayed a non-stick version with cooking spray and had no problem removing my loaf).
Now you will prepare your regularly ripe bananas for caramelizing. Brown bananas won’t work because they will not hold their shape as well. Slice each one in half and across lengthwise. These halves, once cooked, will line the bottom of your loaf pan.
Now, heat 1/4 cup of sugar along with 2 TB of water over medium-high heat until boiling.
Once water is evaporated, remove the pan from heat and stir in butter until melted. The liquid in the pan should be a golden brown by this time.
Lay banana slices, flat side down, in sugar and butter mixture.
Cook on low heat for about 1 minute. Then, remove bananas and lay them down to line the bottom of your loaf pan.
Pour remaining sauce over bananas.
At this point, you already have candied bananas, so I don’t see how you could go wrong with this dessert!
Moving onto the batter….
Mash extra ripe bananas in a bowl with remaining 1/2 cup sugar. Brown bananas are best for sweetness and moisture. Place yellow bananas in a paper bag overnight to speed ripening process.
Beat bananas and sugar with vanilla, egg and egg white.
I used an electric mixture but beating by hand with a whisk would work just as well.
Now whisk together dry ingredients (flours, baking powder, cinnamon and salt).
Add all wet ingredients (banana mixture, oil and applesauce) and whisk together until batter is smooth.
Pour batter over bananas and bake loaf for 30-40 minutes. Bread is done when golden brown and knife or toothpick comes out clean from the loaf.
I baked my bread for 35 minutes and think it could have been taken out 2 minutes earlier.
Allow to cool in pan and then use knife or long spatula to separate loaf from inside of pan.
Slice and enjoy alone or with vanilla ice cream! I think it would be delicious served warm with a smear of peanut butter myself…
Pro: Your kitchen will smell amazing. Con: It will be nearly impossible to wait to cool.
The Executive Taster approved and retracted his earlier offer to share the banana bread with his office.
A couple of notes:
Next time I will add more cinnamon. I think up to a teaspoon would work.
The bread was not dry at all and you could not tell that it was made with whole grains. Next time I will try using all whole wheat flour.
What is your favorite use for bananas?
I didn’t want to be the one to say this, but look how good those pans look!
I like to eat bananas before I work out. Eating one banana 45 minutes before I work out fills me up and provides me with the energy needed to have a great work out.
Also, your digital camera takes great photos!
I also think bananas are the best pre-workout snack. Sometimes with a bit of almond butter:-) They are the one thing that won’t bother my stomache while I work out!
This looks amazing, Lauren! I can’t wait to try it. How do you think it would be with maybe chocolite shavings in it? Either way, it looks like a winner to me!
Oh I bet it would be great with maybe some shaved dark chocolate pieces throughout! Maybe even a layer of chocolate chips in the middle of the loaf?
I love this recipe! How unique of a twist! Creative! My fav. way to use bananas is in my morning yogurt OR in banana bread!
I think that bananas in yogurt is an underrated combination. Although, my favorite for breakfast is bananas cooked into oatmeal:-)
How interesting! I have never seen an upside down banana bread before, my mom is an avid banana bread maker and I will have to show this to her. 😉
Looking forward to trying this soon!
I had never tried it before either! It turned out so pretty and tasted good but wasn’t difficult at all.
[…] think the caramelized bananas would travel well, so I dropped that part of the recipe. Here is a link to the original recipe, which I doubled to make two […]