BRUNCH MENU: Grilled Cheese Sandwiches, Pickles, Baked Sweet Potato Fries, Banana Chocolate Chip Bread, Orange Juice, and Coffee
This recipe makes enough for one mini-loaf of banana chocolate chip bread, plus a couple of extra mini-muffins. The loaf spends less time in the oven than the epic hour of a regular-sized banana bread, and the muffins cook even more quickly, which means you get an appetizer to tide you over.
I know everyone has his or her own favorites when it comes to banana bread. For a long time, I wouldn’t have dreamed of adding chocolate chips to mine. And then, at Phoebe’s 21st birthday party, as I mentioned in this post about quickbread ratios, I ate the banana bread Phoebe’s mom baked loaves and loaves of, and I couldn’t really ever go back.
This recipe actually uses a little more fat than the normal ratio, which gives it an unbeatable crispy top and sides. Great warm out of the oven and topped with chocolate gelato!
From my kitchen, albeit small, to yours,
Cara, THE QUARTER-LIFE COOK
Banana Chocolate Chip Bread and Muffins
Makes 1 small loaf and 10-12 mini muffins
Ingredients
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons safflower oil
1/2 cup sugar
2 large very ripe bananas
1 egg
3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 tesaspoon salt
1/2 cup chocolate chips (milk or semisweet)
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a small loaf pan and a dozen mini muffin cups.
In a mixing bowl, combine the oil and the sugar. Beat in the egg, then add the bananas whole and mash them with a fork. Don’t overmash; you don’t want the batter to become gummy.
Whisk together the flour, soda, powder, and salt. Fold it into the wet ingredients until the flour is just barely moistened. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Bake for 10 minutes for the muffins and 25-35 minutes for the loaf, until a sharp knife stuck in comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before digging in.
