"I discovered this by accident!" says reader Colleen G. of Chicago. "It was a dreary, rainy day, and my 8-year-old daughter and I were looking to make banana bread. We only had a few bananas in the house, so we decided to give applesauce a try." Happily, the applesauce worked out, complementing the banana flavor and providing an extra moistness not often found in quick breads.
If you’d like to turn the bread into a larger cake, Colleen suggests doubling the recipe, using a Bundt pan instead of a loaf pan, and cooking everything for 1 hour, 15 minutes. Either way, though, she proudly declares this recipe is "hands down, the best banana bread we've ever eaten!"
Ingredients:
Bread:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped or ground walnuts
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 ripe banana, mashed
3/4 cup applesauce
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
4 tablespoons butter (half a stick), melted
Topping:
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons chilled butter
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a loaf pan.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups flour, walnuts, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a medium mixing bowl, combine banana, applesauce, white sugar, egg, and melted butter. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until flour mixture is just blended. Pour into loaf pan.
4. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, and cinnamon. Using a fork or pastry blender, cut chilled butter into mixture until it looks like small crumbs. Spread evenly on top of bread dough.
5. Bake 35 to 45 minutes, checking doneness after 35 minutes. Note that your knife or toothpick will not come out perfectly clean, as there are some very moist spots in the cake. Just make sure not to burn the edges.
Serves 12
The Grandparents.com Recipes section is filled with delicious reader recipes, like White Chicken Chili.
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