I hardly every make banana bread. Not because I don’t like it, merely because banana blueberry bread trumps plain ol’ banana! I know many of you pledge allegiance to banana chocolate chip – also very good. But the juicy blueberry of Bananaberry bread wins out almost every time in the Davidson house.
You know, in most cases, I’m a food purist. I don’t need multiple layers of flavor. While my husband choses the ice cream blizzard, I often opt for a twist cone or a hot fudge sundae. I like Malt-o-Meal. And Grape-nuts. He has expanded my appreciation for his layers upon layers sometimes (I call his embelishments “frosting”), but I find most foods are more delicious in their simpliest state.
I make an exception for adding blueberries to banana bread!
The Recipe and Variations
The original recipe is from “The Rainbow Bakery” a Gold Medal Children’s Cookbook that was published in 1998. You can tell the page has been well worn in this little book! I’ve only altered the original recipe slightly by substituting soured milk for the buttermilk.
Occas,ionally I have used this recipe for regular banana bread (if I’m out of blueberries), with or without nuts. And I would say that it is as good as any other banana bread recipe this way. I’ve tried many, many banana bread recipes and haven’t landed on one that I find amazing without the blueberries. I’m open to your suggestions in the comments as I continue that search. What I’m looking for is one that is almost gooey, but not quite. Most recipes I find are too dry.
Possibly the Best Banana Bread
And that’s what makes this Bananaberry Bread superb! It my book, the blueberries add the perfect amount of moisture. Plus they taste amazing!
Bananaberry Bread
Bananaberry Bread is a nice twist on traditional banana bread. This recipe is made with buttermilk or soured milk and has wonderful taste and texture.
Ingredients
- ½ cup milk
- ½ Tbsp. white vinegar
- ½ cup (1 stick) softened butter
- 1 ¼ cups brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 ½ cup mashed ripe bananas (3-4)
- 2 ½ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF. Grease bottom of a 9-inch loaf pan.
- Measure ½ cup milk and stir in ½ tablespoon of vinegar. Set aside to sour.*
- With an electric mixer, beat together softened butter and sugar. Add eggs, soured milk and mashed banana and blend. Stir in flour, baking soda and salt just until blended. Gently fold in blueberries. Pour into prepared pan.
- Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (Mine ususally takes an addtional 5 minutes.) Cool for 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cool completely
Notes
*You could substitute buttermilk for the soured milk.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 12 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 216Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 1gCholesterol: 33mgSodium: 308mgCarbohydrates: 46gFiber: 2gSugar: 23gProtein: 4g
Are you loving this recipe? Or looking forward to trying it? Be sure to rate and share! And comment below to share your other favorite banana bread recipes.
