Art of cooking (Sweet loaves : Banana Bread & Date Loaf)

In everyday English berry means a small edible fruit. Botanically though bananas are classified as a berry. Other fruits not readily thought of as berries includes tomatoes, grapes, capsicums, cucumbers, squashes, melons, even oranges, lemons & limes. So the banana has a very large extended family & plays a much larger role in warm climes in being a regular contributor as an important staple.Dates originated in the Fertile Crescent & seem to have remained there with the major production still being centered in the Middle East.

Banana Bread

125g butter

1C (250ml) sugar

2C flour

1t vanilla essence

1t bicarb

1t baking powder

2 eggs

3 large ripe bananas

The original recipe calls for castor/caster sugar (powdered sugar). I have generally used crystal sugar (granulated sugar). I guess the only difference can be less sweetness due to the coarser grind? The flour type again opens the dichotomy of different European, American, British nomenclatures for ground wheat. I have mostly used all-purpose or plain flour which is generally described as a mixture of hard & soft wheat (again beware the slippery slope of flour types & degree of grind) therefor suggesting polohrubá but I guess that cake flour (hladká) would be more appropriate. Don't worry both will work perfectly. Instead of vanilla essence vanilla sugar can be substituted for convenience. The more ripe the bananas the better. They cannot be too ripe even though they may appear only fit for the compost heap. I have started adding one large grated carrot to the banana mash. I don't know the origin of this addition but it seems to work pretty well.

Cream together the softened butter & sugar.

Mix dry ingredients. Beat eggs. Combine all ingredients & mix well.

Pour batter into loaf tin lined with baking paper.

Bake fan oven 160C for 60 mins.

Date Loaf

225ml water

110g dates chopped

55g butter softened

1t bicarb

225g ap flour

170g sugar

1/2t salt

1 1/2t baking powder

55g walnuts

1 egg

Boil water, add next 3 ingredients & set aside.

Mix dry ingredients. Chop walnuts. Beat egg.

Combine all ingredients & mix well. Pour batter into loaf tin lined with baking paper. Bake fan oven 160C for 60 mins.

Bon Appetit,

Randolph.