jean’s kitchen- Banana Bread

The Banana originated in Southeast Asia and spread from India, to the Philippines, New Guinea etc. It was cultivated by about 2,000 B.C., but these people were rice eaters, and wheat was unknown there, so breads were not part of their culture or diet.

Theophrastus (a Greek naturalist philosopher around the 4th century B.C.) describes the banana plant in what is probably the first scientific book on botany.

We know that the Greeks made bread with honey, spices and fruits around the time of Pliny the Elder (23-79 A.D.), and we also know that Pliny had knowledge of the banana (he described them in 77 A.D.) So, could the Greeks have made any banana bread? They made bread and had bananas, so it’s a good guess.

Quick breads (chemically leavened) – which most banana bread recipes are – were not developed until the end of the 18th century. This took place in America, where pearlash was discovered. Pearlash is a refined form of potash, and it produces carbon dioxide gas in dough. In ‘American Cookery’ (1796 – the first American cookbook), Amelia Simmons published recipes using pearlash, and America exported some 8,000 tons to Europe in 1792. (But she had no specific recipe for banana bread) Baking powder was not developed commercially until 1857 (phosphate baking powder). So the banana bread as we know it (a quick bread) could have been first made in America in the 18th century when housewives discovered pearlash as a chemical leavening agent and began experimenting in their kitchens. Feel free to experiment in yours.

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 cup butter

• 3/4 cup brown sugar

• 2 eggs, beaten

• 2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. You can add raisins, sultanas, other dried fruit, or nuts if you like… You are the chef!

Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let the bread cool in the pan for about 10 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool.