Banana Bread and Saturdays

Dear readers I apologize for the long break between posts. Sometimes in life too many things happen at once and one is forced to leave some things for later. I had one of those situations. I have been itching to post and am so happy to finally be able to. Below is the story of our Saturday a couple of weeks ago. Amongst our many rainy days this fall, this particular Saturday was sunny and crisp and shared with our friends. They live in a nostalgic setting that inspires me to photograph so of course I had my camera along. (Check out the earlier post from their home this past summer here.)

Traditionally in Finland, Saturdays are cleaning days. The rugs are brought out, the floors are vacuumed and mopped, fingerprints are removed and bathrooms washed. After everything gets cleaned up and put away, many families have “candy day” and each child gets a smaller or larger amount of candy depending on custom in that particular family. The sauna is warmed up and everyone gets scrubbed clean and relaxes. It is a nice way to start the new week with the house and kids being clean.

After of day of work, fresh air and fun everyone has an appetite. A slice of warm banana bread, that is so simple to make and uses up those brown bananas on the table fits nicely into the busy day. The perfect companion to go with the banana bread is a glass of cold milk.

This recipe I found from bon appétit (link to the original recipe here).

Banana Bread with Cinnamon Crumble Topping
(recipe by Alison Barakat, owner of Bakesale Betty bakery in Oakland, California.)

1.5 c/3.6 dl flour
1 cup + 2 tbsp/ 2.4 dl + 2 tblsp sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon divided
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 c/ 2.4 dl mashed bananas (2 to 3 medium bananas)
2 eggs
1/2 c/1.2 dl oil
1/4 c/ 0.6 dl honey
1/4 c/ 0.6 dl water
2 1/2 tablespoons (packed) brown sugar
(1/3 c/0.8 dl mini chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 350F/175C. Butter and flour a 9x5x3 inch/23x13x8 cm metal baking pan. Mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk the next five ingredients in a large bowl until smooth. Add dry ingredients; stir to blend. I found some mini chocolate chips while treasure hunting in my cupboard and added them as well. They are completely optional and not part of the original recipe!

Transfer batter to pan. Mix 2 tablespoons sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and brown sugar and sprinkle over batter. I only used half of the crumble, but I prefer things that are not quite as sweet.

Bake bread until tester inserted in center comes out clean, about 1 hour. Cool bread in pan for 30 minutes. Turn pan on its side; slide out bread, being careful not to dislodge topping. Turn bread right side up and cool completely. I must admit, I did not let it cool quite as long and so my slices are not are neat and are a bit crumbly.