Why does this recipe use both butter and oil?

Butter contributes its rich and distinctive dairy flavor and the depth that makes banana bread taste so completely satisfying. Oil contributes moisture that remains liquid at room temperature rather than solidifying, keeping the crumb soft for longer during storage than butter alone would. The combination of both produces the most balanced result in both flavor and lasting softness.

Why use brown sugar only rather than white sugar or a combination?

Brown sugar contains molasses which contributes a more complex caramel flavor that complements the warm banana notes in the most completely natural and harmonious way. The molasses also draws more moisture into the crumb and produces a more deeply colored and beautifully caramelised crust than white sugar alone.

What causes the crack along the top of the banana bread?

The crack along the top is completely normal and is actually a sign of a properly baked banana bread. As the center of the loaf continues expanding during baking the set outer crust splits to accommodate the growth creating the classic and beautiful crack along the top center.

Banana Bread Easy Crispy Top Caramelised Sides Moist Recipe

Description

The most perfectly developed Banana Bread with a crispy golden top caramelised sides and soft moist crumb made with ripe mashed bananas brown sugar eggs extra egg yolk sour cream melted butter vegetable oil vanilla cinnamon and allspice mixed into flour and baking soda and baked at 350°F for 70 minutes. A completely extraordinary and deeply tested banana bread recipe.

Ingredients

Scale

2 1/4 cups Plain or All-Purpose Flour

1 tsp Baking Soda sifted

1/2 tsp Cooking or Kosher Salt

1 1/4 tsp Ground Cinnamon

1/4 tsp Allspice Powder

4 medium ripe Bananas 400g peeled makes about 1 3/4 cups pureed

1 cup Light Brown Sugar firmly packed

2 large Eggs plus 1 extra Egg Yolk room temperature

1/3 cup Full-Fat Sour Cream

80g 5 tbsp Unsalted Butter melted

1/3 cup Vegetable Oil

2 1/2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F 180°C with fan. Line loaf pan with scrunched parchment leaving overhang.

2. Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and allspice together. Set aside.

3. Mash ripe bananas until mostly smooth. Measure out exactly 1 3/4 cups.

4. Add brown sugar, eggs, extra yolk, sour cream, melted butter, oil, and vanilla to bananas. Whisk until combined.

5. Pour dry ingredients into wet. Fold gently with spatula until flour just incorporated. A few small lumps are ok. Do not overmix.

6. Pour into prepared pan. Smooth surface.

7. Bake 70 minutes turning pan halfway. A crack will form on top naturally.

8. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Lift out using parchment. Cool on wire rack at least 1 hour before slicing.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 10 minutes
Category: Breakfast, Snack, Bread
Method: Baking
Cuisine: American, Western

Nutrition

Serving Size: 1 slice
Calories: 328
Sugar: 22g
Sodium: 126mg
Fat: 16g
Saturated Fat: 5g
Unsaturated Fat: 10g
Trans Fat: 0g
Carbohydrates: 44g
Fiber: 1g
Protein: 3g
Cholesterol: 22mg

Keywords: banana bread, best banana bread crispy top recipe, moist banana bread with brown sugar sour cream, perfect banana bread recipe from scratch