Have you ever been to an Amy's Bread shop in New York? If not, you should know that the promise--the potential--of a home cook turning out treats like theirs is pretty amazing. And since my sister-in-law's name is Amy, I decided I had to get her The Sweeter Side of Amy's Bread cookbook for Christmas. And because I don't know of any fabulous "Sandra" bakery cookbooks, I went ahead and stuck one under the tree for little 'ole me as well.
Since Will, our 15 month-old, usually loves bananas, I have not laid hands on any overripe ones for quite some time. But now, out of the blue, he won't eat them. He will mash them, fling them, poke them, and sculpt them, but nary a bit will get past his lips. I've tried. Of course, I'm more than a little vexed that without warning, my go-to, easy to transport--yet healthy--snack is out of favor with him. But at least now we can enjoy banana bread again.
Know that this is no ordinary banana bread--it's neither achingly sweet (yippee!) nor cinnamon-y. It's flavorful and moist and, well, it's really, really good. We ate both loaves within days. I will force restraint next time by freezing one. Better yet, I'll give away a loaf as a gift and spread the goodness. I hope you'll try it.
Banana Blueberry Quickbread
from The Sweeter Side of Amy's Bread
*The cookbook recommends weighing ingredients, which is what I did. But I'm including the volume measurements (in parentheses) as well.
- 250 grams/8.8 oz. (5 large) Eggs
- 198 grams/7 oz. (7/8 cups) Vegetable oil
- 312 grams/11 oz. (1 1/4 cups + 2 Tbl) Whole milk
- 148 grams/5.22 Oz (1 3/4 cups) Old-fashioned rolled oats
- 600 grams/21.16 oz. (4 1/8 cups) Unbleached all-purpose flour
- 250 grams/8.8 oz. (1 1/4 cups) Sugar
- 23 grams/0.81 oz. (1 Tbl + 2 tsp) Baking powder
- 11 grams/0.39 oz. (1 Tbl + 1/2 tsp) Kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp Baking soda
- 455 grams/16 oz. (2 cups) Ripe bananas, coarsely mashed
- 375 grams/ 13.22 oz. (3 cups) Fresh buleberries
- Position rack in the middle of the oven; preheat oven to 375 degrees; grease two 9x5 inch loaf pans.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, and 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbl of the milk. Set aside.
- Pour the remaining 1 cup of milk over the oats and soak for 5 minutes.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda.
- Pour the egg mixture onto the dry ingredients and stir until partially moistened, then add the oat mixture and bananas. Gently fold together until nearly mixed, add the blueberries, and fold a few more times until all the ingredients are just moistened.
- Divide the batter evenly into the 2 prepared pans. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 degress and bake for 45 to 55 more minutes (*mine took the full 55 minutes), or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of a loaf and the top springs back when touched lightly.
- Let the loaves cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then turn out of the pans and place on a wire rack until completely cool.
* Keeps well for up to 5 days wrapped tightly in plastic and stored in the refrigerator. Freezes well if wrapped in plastic, then foil.