Banannalog Bread

Most Korean apartments (or at least officetels) do not have ovens. I have to resort to baking in a toaster oven. The toaster oven is great for my Pop Tarts, but it sort of takes the fun out of baking.

A few months back, Heng got a pretty awesome oven by Hauzen (Samsung). It not only serves as a electric oven, but it also can microwave, steam, and dehydrate food. It can probably do your taxes as well.

If my suitcases wouldn't be filled with clothes and Korean stationary, I'd seriously consider investing in a Hauzen oven.

Fortunately, Heng lives across the street from us, so we can bake at her house any time we want. Literally. Cyndi secretly memorized her pass code. :)

We decided to try out my cousin Nani's banana bread. Her banana bread was one of the best that I've tasted. The loaf had a nice crunchy crust, while the bread was soft and flavorful, without being overly sweet.

I asked her for the recipe, and it turns out that she bungled the recipe a bit. Nonetheless, the bread was delicious.

Heng didn't have any white granulated sugar, so we used brown sugar. This change in sugar altered the final product, but our version of the bread was still yummy, if I do say so myself.

The three versions of the banana bread recipe are listed after the video. I recommend Nani's version, but the Banannalog Bread ain't bad either.


Banannalog Bread from Annalog on Vimeo.


Original Recipe (as dictated to me over the phone)

• 1 1/3 cup of flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 5 1/3 TBS unsalted butter (at room temperature)
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 cup of bananas (mashed)
  

Nani's Version

• 1 1/3 cup of flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup of unsalted butter (melted)
  
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 ripe bananas (mashed)
  

Banannalog Bread Recipe

• 1 1/3 cup of flour
• 3/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/3 cup of unsalted butter (melted)
  
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe Korean bananas (mashed)
  

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (approx. 148 degrees Celsius)
2. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl (flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt), and set aside.
   
3. Cream the butter and sugar together until the mixture is light and fluffy.
4. Combine the dry mixture with the butter using an electric mixture.
5. Mix in 2 large eggs.
6. Fold in the mashed bananas.
7. Pour the batter into a greased loaf pan.
8. Bake for 50-60 minutes.
   

The recipe is deliciously simple. It seems pretty hard to mess up.

Props to my sister for bringing me her handheld electric mixer. It makes baking a lot easier, but I do miss my Kitchen Aid mixer.




Joyce, you better be taking care of my baby!