Flour Cafe's Banana Bread

Today I'm reviewing a recipe that I've been using for a while.  It is Joanne Chang's Flour's Banana Bread.  Notice I didn't say Banana Nut Bread?  That's because I don't really like nuts in my baked goods, especially the softer ones.  Now this may gross you out (and scar some more delicate ones out there), but when I bite into something soft and hit that nut texture, it makes me think there are bugs in my food.  Weird I know, but I'm sure you out there have your little quirks too (or many more like me).

A little background on Joanne Chang.  She is Chinese and owns Boston's Flour Bakery & Cafe.  She grew up in a traditional Chinese household in Texas and her only experience of dessert when she was real young were oranges.  But she would get to sample different types from her friend's lunches and at their houses and fell in love with good old-fashioned American desserts.  Her family encouraged a practical career so she went to college and majored in economics.  She graduated, got a real good job and baked on the side.  She couldn't get baking out of her head, so she up and quit her job and started apprenticing and gaining experience in the baking world.  She then opened Flour Bakery & Cafe in Boston and the rest is history.  I first learned of Joanne through King Arthur Flour on a video demonstration for her Homemade Pop-Tarts.  I've tried a couple of recipes of hers and then found out she had a new cookbook coming out so I put it on my Christmas list!

My daughter Gillian likes to point out that she got me this cookbook whenever I use it.  I am very grateful to her because I love it.  Joanne has a cute little story for each recipe which I believe kind of endears it to you. So no more gabbing out the book, let's move on to the recipe.

I had bought 2 bunches of bananas last week and noticed they were starting to get those brown spots on their peels that signals to me-banana bread!  That's when they are starting to really get real sweet, but not too gooey and bruised.  And, I noticed that there were 7 bananas left which made this thought pop into my head-just enough for two batches of Joanne's Banana Bread so I can test the new oven on quick breads at regular baking mode vs. convection baking mode!  What?  Those types of things don't pop into your head? 

Now the first step is to cream the sugar and eggs.  The original recipe I got for this was off of a website so it didn't have the full directions.  The reason I'm mentioning this is because the cookbook recipes states that you need to either use a stand mixer or hand mixer with the whip attachment and beat for 5 minutes with the stand mixer and 8 with the hand mixer.  The recipe I used before didn't mention this and I found it really made a difference so don't skimp on it.  Another thing is when she mentions to slowly drizzle in the oil which should take a minute total, don't second guess her.  After you have spent all that time whipping the eggs and sugar, do you want to deflate it which is what will happen if you don't follow her directions?  These two steps are about as hard as this recipe is gonna get.  The rest is pretty simple. 



Regular bake on left and convection bake on right.



This is the bread baked on the regular bake mode
but I probably should have baked it for about 5 minutes more.

This is the bread baked on convection mode and is starting
to sink a little bit in the center.  I should've baked it about 10 minutes longer.

I baked both loaves in my Pampered Chef stoneware loaf pans which measure 9" x 5".  The recipe calls to bake them for 1-1 1/4 hours at 325 degrees.  I did one loaf at this temp and time and the second on convection at 300 degrees (you always lower the temp by 25 degrees when using convection) and baked it for 1hour 5 minutes.  Now if you were using metal pans, these times would probably have been perfect, but the stoneware does tend to bake a little slower so I should have extended the baking time by 5-10 minutes.  Why it didn't dawn on me then, I don't know but as my mom always says, better late than never.  This recipe uses creme fraiche or sour cream.  I've tried both and I really like the creme fraiche.  What's creme fraiche you say?  Go to Martha Stewart's web site and she has a recipe for making your own.  Really try it, it's pretty cool, easy and very tasty.  I think the addition of either one of these gives it a tasty and unique flavor. 

Now go out and get yourself some bananas so you can make this awesome banana bread!  Oh, I almost forgot the recipe!  Here you go:

Flour’s Famous Banana Bread

1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (King Arthur’s is perfect for this)

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. ground cinnamon (I use Vietnamese cinnamon, it’s truly the best)

½ tsp. kosher salt ( if using regular salt, reduce by half)

1 cup plus 2 tbsp. sugar

2 eggs

½ cup canola oil

3 ½ very ripe, medium bananas, peeled and mashed (1 1/3 cups mashed)

2 tbsp. crème fraiche or sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

¾ cup walnut halves, toasted and chopped

Position a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat to 325 degrees.  Butter a 9x5” loaf pan.

In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.  Set aside.

Using a stand mixer fitted with the whip attachment (or a handheld mixer), beat together the sugar and eggs on medium speed for about 5 minutes (handheld 8 minutes), or until light and fluffy.

On low speed, slowly drizzle the oil.  Don’t pour in all at once.  Add it slowly so it has time to incorporate into the eggs and doesn’t deflate the air you have just beaten into the batter. Adding it should take about 1 minute.  Add the bananas, crème fraiche, and vanilla and continue to mix on low speed just until combined.

Using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour mixture and the nuts just until thoroughly  combined.  No flour streaks should be visible and the nuts should be evenly distributed.  Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 1 to 1 ¼ hours, or until golden brown on top and the center springs back when you press it.  If your finger sinks when you poke the bread, it needs to bake a little longer.  Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes, then pop it out of the pan to finish cooling. 

The banana bread can be stored tightly wrapped in plastic wrap at room temperature for up to 3 days.  Or it can be well wrapped in plastic wrap and frozen for up to 2 weeks; thaw overnight at room temperature for serving.