Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus 45 minutes cooking
Makes 1 loaf
• 1 stick softened butter
• 1 cup superfine sugar
• 4 ripe bananas
• 2 eggs
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tsp baking powder
We use a lot of bananas to make this loaf, more so than other traditional recipes. We think the results are outstanding.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease and line a 2 lb loaf pan.
In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar together until you have a paste. Mush the bananas separately, using a fork, and then add to your butter and sugar along with the eggs.
Scrape the vanilla seeds from your bean pod using a little sharp knife, and add to the mixture. Beat until everything is nicely combined. Mix together the flour and baking powder before gently folding into your cake mixture. As soon as there is no more visible flour stop folding, and pour the mixture into the loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes in the middle of your oven. You can check it’s cooked by skewering the middle with a knife or toothpick; if the blade comes out clean it’s ready.