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Toasted-Oat Banana Bread

The round and comforting flavors of oatmeal cookies rolled into a rich banana bread.
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difficulty:
yield:

One 9 by 5-inch loaf
time:

About 10 minutes to make the batter and 1 hour and 10 minutes to bake the loaf

introduction

Everybody loves banana bread, and lots of folks think theirs is best. We would never make such a claim publically, and yet, this moist and nutty bread with its oat flour addendum would rival any banana bread at the bake sale. For one thing, it isn’t shy about being a banana bread. Two bananas can flavor a bread, but a full pound of bananas brings the texture to enthrallment level, complete with the occasional jellied banana puddle. We wrote “nutty,” but be advised: no actual nutmeats squabble for attention or interrupt the velvety texture of this bread. Why would we do that when toasted oat flour offers a subtle nuttiness all its own? Why overdress the whole affair with honey? Why impart molasses flavor by adding brown sugar? These are among the questions we asked ourselves as we consumed slice upon slice of the purest, moistest, most banana-y bread ever to have passed our lips. If there were ever an answer, we do not recall. 

Baking Notes

Let us be brief: this recipe is easy.

Use bananas that are riper than you imagine they should be. Throw them in the fridge in their jackets and just let them die.

Do not overfold the batter.

equipment mise en place

For this recipe, you will need a digital kitchen scale, a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, a large mixing bowl and two medium mixing bowls, a whisk, a potato masher, a rubber spatula, and a wire cooling rack.

  1.  

    Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously butter a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan. Dust the pan with oat flour, tilting to coat the bottom and sides, and then knock out excess. 

  2.  

    Turn the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt into a large mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Crack the eggs into a medium mixing bowl and whisk well. Add the sugar to the eggs and whisk until well combined, and then whisk in the almond oil and vanilla. Add the sour cream and whisk until the mixture is homogenous.

  3.  

    Peel the bananas, weigh out 1 pound, and toss them into a second medium bowl. Using a potato masher, pulverize the bananas to a pulpy liquid with just a few small bits remaining (fig. 3.1). Turn the banana pulp into the egg mixture and, using a rubber spatula, combine lightly. Turn this mixture into the dry ingredients and fold gently until the batter is evenly moistened; do not overmix. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan, scraping the bowl with the rubber spatula to get every drop. 

  4.  

    Bake until the loaf is deep golden brown, nicely risen (fig. 4.1), and a skewer or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Let cool in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Invert the bread onto the rack, turn it right side up, and let cool to room temperature.

    1. 3.1
    1. 4.1