The best thing about banana bread or cake, is that it solves the age-old question of what to do with the manky brown bananas at the bottom of the fruit bowl. I like to add nuts, nutmeg and raisins to the mix so it's a bit more interesting with some added bite. The end result is perfect on its own, warmed up with a bit of butter, or better yet, with some peanut butter or chocolate hazelnut spread slathered on top.
What's the A to V?
Bananas are a great source of potassium, fibre and B6, and the walnuts here provide a good slug of magnesium, (non-heam) iron and additional B6. Add some raisins for added potassium and iron.
Ingredients (serves 8 to 10):
4 largish, ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 tbsp of sunflower oil
75g of butter
120g of dark muscovado sugar
150g plain flour
60g of walnuts - roughly chopped - and raisins (swap for pecans if you'd rather)
1 tbsp of vanilla extract
1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda
1 pinch of salt
Optional extras
1 tsp of nutmeg
50g of halva
Method
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees, and use a bit of butter to grease your baking tin.
In a large bowl, mash your bananas, and using an electric whisk (or a hell of a lot of arm action with a manual) mix in the eggs, sugar, and butter. Then whisk in your flour little by little, adding your bicarb, vanilla extract, salt and nutmeg.
Finally fold in your nuts, raisins and 25g of the halva (if you're using it).
Pour the mix into your baking tin, and bake for 30 minutes in a standard cake tin - up to 40 minutes if you're using a deeper, more narrow, bread loaf tin.
5 minutes before your remove the cake from the oven, sprinkle your remaining halva on top. When done, remove from the oven and leave to cool.