Chocolate Banana Bread/Cake

I have 2 over riped bananas in my pantry once again. A little tired of making banana muffins and hence searched the internet for new ideas. Came across this Banana Bread/Cake recipe by David Lebovitz and found it interesting as chocolate is added. Actually I was equally baffled about the term "bread", why do they call it bread when it's a cake? Never mind whether it is supposed to be Banana Bread or Banana Cake, I was more intrigued by the chocolate component. Banana and chocolate are always good together, aren't they? I happened to have some Valrhona Araguani 72% dark chocolate in my fridge and decided to have a go at this recipe.

The whole process was fairly simple and quick, just like making muffins actually. I changed some components of the ingredients like Greek-style Yogurt instead of sour cream and almost half the amount of sugar. Instead of chocolate chips or cocoa nibs, I used dark chocolate. The batter was enough to fill one aluminium tray and the balance I used a Winnie-The-Pooh Silicone Mould bought from Hong Kong last year. Hopefully dear son would be attracted to Pooh :) The intense aroma of the banana as well as cinnamon (yes, a bit of cinnamon was added) filled the entire kitchen and I was salivating throughout the 50 minutes wait coz I love cinnamon.

Though the cake didn't look that appetizing but trust me, it tasted good! It was tender and moist, with wonderful combination of banana, chocolate and cinnamon. It was not too sweet (as I reduced the amount of sugar) and had a tinge of bitterness due to the dark chocolate. Hubby brought some to his office and apparently it was quite well received coz the cake was not too sweet.

Pooh didn't turn out too pretty :p and I thought the crust was a little too thick. My son was naturally attracted to the bear-bear (he doesn't know Pooh yet). At first bite, he didn't seem to like the cake and didn't want more. I cut the cake into smaller pieces and used toothpicks for each piece. He became more receptive and even asked for more. Probably he wasn't used to the taste of cinnamon initially.

Ok, another banana recipe added to my list :)

Chocolate Banana Cake

(Adapted from Banana Bread/Cake recipe by David Lebovitz)

(Makes one 8"x 4"x 2" Disposable Aluminium Pan and four 2" silicone mould bears)

(Or one 9" square pan)

210g Plain Flour
1 tsp Double Acting Baking Powder

½ tsp Baking Soda

½ tsp Salt

1 tsp Ground Cinnamon

80g Caster Sugar (original recipe uses 150g)

55g Unsalted Butter, melted and cool to room temperature

1 large Egg White, room temperature

1 large Egg, room temperature

2 very ripe medium/large bananas, mashed

115g Greek Style Yogurt (original recipe uses sour cream)

½ tsp Vanilla Extract

60g Dark Chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used Valrona Aruguani 72%, original recipe uses chocolate chips/cocoa nibs)

1. Preheat oven to 180 degree celsius. If using square pan, butter and line the bottom with a sheet of parchment paper.

2. Sift together in a bowl the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon. Add the sugar and mix well together.

3. In a separate bowl, mix together the melted butter, egg white, egg, banana puree, yogurt and vanilla extract.

4. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and fold in the wet ingredients with a spatula until almost mixed. Add the chocolate chips and fold until just combined, stop when any traces of flour disappear.

5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

6. Cool on a baking rack and slice only after the cake has cooled down.

Storage: This cake will keep well for 3-4 days, or can be frozen, wrapped in plastic wrap, for a few months.