Ann's Banana Sour Cream Bread
Submitted by cpthansolo
Banana sour cream bread bakes up exceptionally moist and tender, thanks to a generous scoop of sour cream folded into the batter. Studded with nuts, with an optional cream cheese frosting filling for a richer slice.
YIELD
12 servingsPREP
20 minCOOK
70 minREADY
2 hrsSour cream is the secret behind this banana bread’s exceptionally moist, tender crumb. Its richness and gentle acidity keep the loaf soft for days and react with the baking soda for a beautiful rise.
Reach for the ripest bananas you can find. The blacker and softer the peel, the sweeter and more intensely banana the bread, since all that starch has turned to sugar.
Creaming the butter and sugar until light and fluffy gives this loaf a finer, cake-like crumb, a step up from the denser, one-bowl oil quick breads.
Mix the flour in only until it just disappears. Overworking the batter develops gluten and turns a tender loaf tough, so a few streaks of flour at that stage are fine.
A handful of walnuts folded in adds toasty crunch against the soft crumb.
For something special, split the cooled loaf and spread cream cheese frosting through the middle, the way it was shown on The Martha Stewart Show.
Chef Tips
- Use very ripe, heavily spotted bananas for the sweetest, most flavorful loaf.
- Bring the butter, eggs, and sour cream to room temperature so they cream and blend smoothly.
- Tent the loaf with foil if the top browns before the center is done over the long bake.
- Cool in the pan 10 minutes, then finish on a rack so the bottom does not steam soggy.
Variations
- Spread cream cheese frosting through the split, cooled loaf.
- Fold in chocolate chips along with or instead of the nuts.
- Add a teaspoon of cinnamon or a handful of blueberries to the batter.
Ingredients
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature, plus more for pan
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed very ripe bananas
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
Directions
Preheat oven to 350℉ (180℃). Butter a 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pan; set aside. In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, and beat to incorporate.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to the butter mixture, and mix until just combined. Add bananas, sour cream, and vanilla; mix to combine. Stir in nuts, and pour into prepared pan.
Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Let rest in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool.
Variations To make the cream cheese frosting-filled banana bread as featured on “The Martha Stewart Show," in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together 6 ounces cream cheese, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract until smooth. Once bread is baked and cooled, halve horizontally. Using an offset spatula, spread cream cheese frosting evenly over bottom half. Top with remaining half; slice and serve
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