Banana bread has always been a favourite treat of mine. To lower the overall fat content, I lessened the amount of butter and substituted greek yoghurt instead. Given the natural sweetness of ripe bananas, I also reduced the amount of sugar required. I also added a slight twist by infusing some lavender into the batter. How’s that for something more unusual?
INGREDIENTS (makes one loaf):
- 2 cups plain flour, sifted
- 90g butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 6 ounces (170g) of Greek yoghurt
- 2 eggs, room temperature
- 3 ripe bananas
- 2 tablespoons lavender
- 1 teaspoon vanilla essence
METHOD:
1) Preheat oven to 170 degrees celsius. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper.
2) Cook lavender in a saucepan on high heat for a minute until scent is released. Turn heat down to medium and add butter. Mix slowly until all melted, making sure not to burn the butter. Pour content through sieve, reserving 1//2 teaspoon of lavender. You now have your infused lavender butter.
3) In a mixing bowl, add flour, salt, sugar, and baking soda.
4) Mash bananas using a fork or masher.
5) In a separate bowl, mix eggs, vanilla essence and yoghurt. Pour in the infused butter. Fold in the ripe bananas and 1/2 teaspoon of cooked lavender. Gradually fold in the flour mixture from the other bowl until all combined throughly.
6) Pour contents into lined loaf pan and bake in oven for 45-50 minutes until golden brown and skewer comes out clean.
7) Let it cool before slicing. Serve while fresh.
