Sour Cream Banana Bread

Ingredients

• 3 very ripe bananas, heavily spotted or black-skinned, mashed (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups (220g) all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp fine salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or chocolate chips (optional)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350F and grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan, or line it with parchment paper leaving an overhang on the long sides for easy removal.
2. In a large bowl, mash the bananas thoroughly with a fork until mostly smooth with just a few small lumps. The riper and darker the bananas, the sweeter and more flavorful the bread will be.
3. Whisk the melted butter into the mashed bananas, then whisk in the brown sugar, egg, sour cream, and vanilla until smooth and well combined.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon to distribute the leavener evenly.
5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and fold gently with a spatula just until no streaks of flour remain; a few small lumps are fine. Overmixing at this stage develops gluten and makes the bread tough and rubbery instead of tender.
6. Fold in the walnuts or chocolate chips, if using, with just a few more strokes.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.
8. Bake for 55 to 65 minutes, tenting the top loosely with foil after 35 minutes if it is browning too quickly.
9. The bread is done when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs but no wet batter, and the internal temperature reads about 200F to 205F.
10. Cool the loaf in the pan for 15 minutes, then lift it out using the parchment overhang and cool completely on a wire rack for at least 1 hour before slicing, so the crumb sets properly.

Nutrition

Nutrition information is an estimate per serving and is not a substitute for professional dietary advice.