Vegan Banana Nut Bread, Take 2

Ahh, nothing like the basics! Yes, I know that the world is overflowing with banana bread recipes as it is, but it's my firm belief that you can never try out too many, lest you miss out on "the one"- the banana bread that has just the right flavour, texture, moisture, sweetness and so on for your tastes. Everyone's is different, and since this recipe didn't require me to go get organic eggs, milk or butter from the natural foods shop (though that's the only way I'll buy them) I think it's definitely worth a shot. 

This is a good one to make with limited kitchen equipment on hand- I didn't even have a loaf pan, so I used a large square cake tin, which worked very well and reduced the baking time. In spite of its very basic nature, it was well-received by those who tried it before me - someone at the lab asked for the recipe- that's a good sign!

My verdict is that despite having less oil and sugar than most banana breads, this one is still delicious in it simplicity- no egg replacers, no milk replacers, you don't even need baking soda! It's very tender, soft and fluffy, and adding the sugar sprinkle on top makes it have a nice caramelized crust. Just don't let the bottom burn by putting it too low in the oven and close to the heat element- I made that mistake. Oops. Well, it still tasted good! You can also add chocolate chips or pecan pieces, or use some different spices to make variations. Consider this recipe the next time you're stuck with too many bananas!

Vegan Banana Nut Bread II
Adapted from BBC Good Food

225 g. Cake flour (All purpose is fine; I only had cake or bread flour available as options)
100 g. Brown sugar
75 g. Neutral oil (I used canola)
3 Tsp. Baking powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
3 Tsp. Cinnamon
1 Tsp. Nutmeg, optional
2 Tsp. Vanilla
3 Large or 4 medium sized bananas, as ripe as possible
50-75 g. Walnut pieces

Some raw cane sugar or granulated sugar to sprinkle on top- optional

Preheat oven to 200℃. Grease a large loaf pan or square pan with a bit of oil and cover the bottom with greased baking parchment. Sprinkle with a bit of sugar and cinnamon

Sift or whisk together the dry ingredients (excluding the walnuts). Separately, mash the bananas finely and add the oil, sugar and vanilla. Mix well, until homogeneous.

Mix the dry ingredients into the wet ones and mix until just combined, then stir in the walnuts.

Pour into the greased pan and sprinkle with a bit more cinnamon and sugar, if you like. Bake in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes to an hour, or until a fork poked in comes out clean- cover with aluminium foil if it is browning too quickly.

Let cool before slicing.

Lemon Loaf, with Lavender or Otherwise (dairy-free)

Shhh, ignore the bad photography and aluminium pan... 

I've procrastinated on posting this recipe for a while because, let's face it, this isn't a very pretty loaf in pictures. I'd say it looks better in person, and also once I get a chance to explain why it's got all those green flecks in it- I use homemade lavender sugar, which contains more leaf than flower (both have the characteristic taste and aroma, and my mum puts the whole sprigs into the sugar).

I was actually worried when I made this that people would be too weirded out to try it, but fortunately nobody was- and it turned out to be extremely popular! I mostly came up with this recipe because I had a few odds and ends of baking supplies left before moving, and I wanted something to use them all up. Since I had lemons, coconut milk, pastry flour and my mother's homemade lavender sugar, I went for this loaf.

I think what really sold me on this recipe being a success is that I got requests for the recipe- always the best compliment to me! And really, it did turn out very good. It's moist, lemony, fluffy, aromatic, and lightly crusted in a glaze that is easy to make but was the subject of many compliments. The lack of special ingredients or equipment makes this a good anywhere-anytime recipe for the arsenal.

Lemon (Lavender) Loaf
Adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 1/2 C. Cake flour
1 1/2 Tsp. Baking powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1 C. Sugar
2-3 Tsp. Dried lavender flowers or finely chopped leaves, or another complimentary flavour of your choice (1/2 C. dried cranberries, shredded coconut, 1 C. fresh blueberries...)
1/3 C. Neutral cooking oil, such as canola
1/2 C. Full-fat coconut milk
2 Eggs
3 TBSP lemon juice
Zest of one lemon, or 1-2 Tsp. Lemon extract
1 Tsp. Vanilla extract

For the Glaze:
1/3 C. Powder sugar
1-2 TBSP Hot water
1 Tsp. Lemon extract, or zest

Preheat oven to 180 and grease a 8" x 4" loaf pan. 

Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Separately, beat together the sugar and oil, then add the eggs, coconut milk, lemon zest and juice, and vanilla. 

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until just combined, adding any additional flavourings of your choice at this point. Pour into the pan and bake for 1- 1 1/2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted deeply comes out clean. Remove from the pan after 10-15 minutes.

For the glaze, whisk the hot water into the sugar one spoonful at a time, along with the lemon extract/zest. Adjust until the thickness is about that of heavy cream. Pour half onto the cake after it has cooled for only 10 minutes, then the rest about 15 minutes after that to ensure you get a nice "shell" of glaze.