Recipe: Brown Banana Bread

Lazy cooks, rejoice! Here's a wonderfully simple recipe for banana bread that'll knock your socks off. It's a rich marriage of banana, browned butter, and nutty whole wheat flavor that comes together in just one pot (fewer dishes to wash...hooray!) and will fortify your love for the beloved, comforting quick bread. Be prepared to eat the whole batch yourself.



Brown Banana Bread

1 stick butter
3 large, very ripe bananas
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 t baking soda
1/2 t salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Cut butter into eight pieces and add to a Dutch oven over medium heat. Let butter melt, crackle and foam, swirling Dutch oven occasionally to brown the butter. Watch it closely because it burns quickly. Let butter cool, then pour half into a measuring cup. Set aside.


Add bananas to the cooled butter in Dutch oven. Mash with a fork until almost puréed. Add eggs and sugar and stir with a wooden spoon until thoroughly incorporated.



Add flour, salt, and baking soda and stir gently just until combined (avoid over mixing batter as it will make bread tough). Spoon batter into a greased 12-cup muffin pan or loaf pan. Bake muffins 13-16 minutes or loaf 45-50 minutes.



Remove from oven and let rest in pan for one minute.



Remove bread from pan to wire rack and immediately brush surfaces with remaining browned butter. Let cool slightly and devour.



Banan apetit! Hahaha. Sorry! I couldn't resist.