roasted banana bread

 

i have been making so much banana bread lately. maybe it is all of the snow we have gotten this month that is keeping me indoors or maybe it is because it is my absolute favourite thing to bake! while i was CONVINCED my banana bread recipe was absolutely perfect (something that took quite a while to perfect), i am having fun mixing things up. for this recipe i roasted the bananas first to maximize the sweetness, used butter only, topped it with grey sea salt & i added over double the yogurt. now i don't know which recipe is better! this one turned out so moist.

i will be honest though, roasting the bananas first did not make as much of a difference then i thought it would. this technique would be great if you want to make banana bread but don't have the ripest of bananas on hand. it kind of speeds up the ripening process. this is also the first banana bread where i put a fresh sliced banana on top. how cool does it look?!? i don't know why it took me this long to do it, i have seen it pop up on my instagram so many times. i think i will do this from now on if i have an extra banana on hand.

ingredients

for the banana bread

  • 3 roasted bananas, mashed (recipe below)
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/3 cup plain organic greek yogurt, full fat
  • 1 cup raw sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • raw sugar, to sprinkle on top
  • grey sea salt, to sprinkle on top
  • 1 banana, sliced lengthwise to top banana bread (optional but not really)

for the roasted bananas

  • 3-4 large ripe bananas, peeled & sliced lengthwise
  • 1 tablespoon raw sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon grey salt
  • 1 pinch cinnamon

directions

for the banana bread

  • preheat the oven to 325°F and butter a loaf pan.
  • in a mixing bowl, mash the roasted bananas with melted butter and yogurt.
  • stir in the raw sugar, egg, and pure vanilla extract until well combined.
  • sift in cinnamon, baking soda, grey salt & flour. mix until just combined.
  • pour into loaf pan, sprinkle with additional raw sugar & top with a sliced banana.
  • bake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean, approximately 45-50 minutes.
  • let cool completely before slicing!

for the roasted bananas

  • preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • in a roasting pan or cast iron skillet, lay in bananas sliced side up.
  • sprinkle with raw sugar, grey salt & cinnamon.
  • roast for 30 minutes, or until the flesh becomes browned & squishy.
  • let cool.