Naturally Leavened Banana Bread

Naturally Leavened Banana Bread

Banana bread recipe using sourdough starter

 
 
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There are few better ways to start your day than a hot cup of coffee and a FAT slice of toasted banana bread with butter. I’m NOT a morning person but thinking about this banana bread really motivates me to get out of bread - I mean bed. This recipe is dairy free (because I love my wife) but can easily be made with butter. What I love about this recipe:

  1. It’s full of delicious ingredients - you can switch out and in whatever you like. Swap the coconut oil for butter. Throw in some dried apricots. I even like putting frozen blueberries in the batter.

  2. It’s naturally leavened (i.e. no chemical leavening like baking soda or powder). Sure it takes longer to make, but hey, you’re on The Sourdough Podcast website, so you appreciate REAL slow food.

  3. This bread is DELICIOUS. Moist, delicately sour from the sourdough starter, sweet from the bananas (and just a little sugar), hearty from the chia seeds and walnuts. This bread will satisfy your morning hunger and give you energy to start the day.

Recipe

Thanks to Madelen Smedlund @loparlimpans for testing and converting to grams.

What you'll need: sourdough starter, 2 mixing bowls, 9x5 bread pan.

Prep time: 10 mins to mix ingredients, 8-12 hours overnight proof.

Cook time: about 1 hour.

Total time: 9-13 hours

Recipe makes: 1 loaf

Ingredients

  • 1/2 C. liquid coconut oil, 110g

  • 1 C. sugar (I usually use less), 150-200g

  • 1 egg, beaten

  • 1 t. vanilla extract

  • 1 C. ripe bubbly sourdough starter (cold can also be used), approx. 250g

  • 3 ripe bananas (2 for batter, 1 for topping)

  • 2 C. all purpose flour, 260g (upgrade: swap out half the flour for fresh millled whole wheat like mine from my local famers at Frog Hollow Farms)

  • 1 t. sea salt

  • 1/2 C. toasted walnuts, chopped, 60g

  • 1/2 C. blueberries, optional (I use frozen)

  • 1 T. chia seeds

  • zest of 1 lemon

Directions

  1. In a large bowl mash two bananas. Add wet ingredients: oil, sugar, eggs vanilla, lemon zest. Beat together until combined. Fold in sourdough starter.

  2. Stir in walnuts.

  3. In a second bowl combine dry ingredients: flour, salt, chia seeds. 

  4. Add dry ingredients to wet and stir until combined. Lightly, fold in blueberries (optional). 

  5. Pour batter into a 9x5 bread pan.

  6. Cover with plastic wrap and leave out overnight at room temperature. Approx. 7 hours at 80F (27C) or longer, up to 12 hours, at cooler temperatures.

  7. Next morning, the batter should have roughly increasing in volume by 1/3. Preheat oven to 350F (177C). (Tip: If the dough is still lacking volume by the morning, try putting it on a heating pad for an hour.)

  8. Slice 1 banana length wise and place the slices on top of the risen batter for decoration. I like to sprinkle a little sugar on top.

  9. Bake until golden brown and internal temp. of the bread is above 200F (93C). Approx. 1 hr.