Have you noticed this crazy phenomenon called Banana Bread? As a person who follows a lot of food websites, chefs, fellow-bloggers and newspaper food section watcher, there is this crazy phenomenon where, I swear the collective households of the entire US are baking banana bread. Here is an article that jumped on the bandwagen.
And seeing it is bread week here at CSPS, I might as well jump on the bandwagon and make some too, right? This is my second go at banana bread during this pandemic and subsequent quarantine time and this one is simply amazing! Browned butter = yum, spiced rum (ok, if I must), banana overload (goodie) and then caramel pieces (OMG!) and walnuts (optional, but still pretty darn good). It’s sort of like bananas foster without setting the thing on fire. If you have some bananas left over while you’re sheltering in place, definitely give this one a go! (PS: don’t overfill the pans; I’d rather go for two than have an overflow!)
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut to small-ish pieces
3 tablespoons spiced rum
1 egg
1 cup very ripe mashed banana
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
3/4 cup chopped soft caramel candies (I used the Craft Caramel Bits)
Directions
Preheat your oven to 350F. Prepare two parchment or foil slings for two 8 x 4 inch loaf pans or one 9 x 5 inch pan. Spray generously with baking spray and dust with flour.
While the oven preheats, spread the chopped nuts on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until they smell nutty and fragrant, about 10 minutes.
Place butter pieces in a medium skillet. Melt the butter over medium heat, swirling it in the pan occasionally. The butter will foam and pop, so be careful. Continue to swirl the pan often. Remove pan from heat once the butter starts to brown and smells nutty. There will be small brown bits on the bottom. The butter should be an amber color. Pour butter into a small bowl and let cool for a few minutes.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the milk, melted butter, rum, egg, and mashed banana and stir well. Stir in the toasted nuts and chopped caramel.
Divide the batter evenly between the two pans, or fill the larger pan to 3/4 full (you may have a little batter left; do not overfill) and bake for 40-45 minutes for the smaller pans or 50-55 minutes for the larger, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out with just a few moist crumbs clinging to it. Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before turning the loaves out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
