Caramelized Banana Bread

The hubster looooooves him some banana bread. He's all about the muffins and quick breads, but banana bread packed with nuts is his very favorite, by far. I have several recipes that I like to use, each with it's own subtle nuance. I bake whichever I'm in the mood for or whichever I have all the ingredients for at the time. This caramelized version is one of our favorites.

The toffee flavor in this Caramelized Banana Bread is a total winner!

What I love about this Caramelized Banana Bread is that it only requires two bananas. Well, that and the fabulous caramelized flavor the bread gets as it bakes. The bread is soft, moist, and fluffy, with subtle notes of caramel - not to mention, the huge and plentiful chunks of toasted walnuts.




Start by mixing up a flax egg (that's a tablespoon of flax seed meal mixed with three tablespoons of warm water). This is the secret ingredient to this bread. The flax egg adds moisture and tenderness and requires the batter to be baked longer - which is what gives the bread that awesome caramelized toffee-like flavor. So yum!

Smash the banana into your flax egg bowl and then mix in the rest of the wet ingredients until well combined.





Next, add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.




Fold in 2 cups of toasted walnuts. My hubby likes big chunks, so I don't even have to chop 'em. 😊




Pour the batter into a well buttered loaf pan and bake on top of a baking sheet (to catch any molten banana bread) for 60 to 75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

I cool my bread in the pan for 20 minutes, loosen the edges with a butter knife, slide out the bread onto a cooling rack, and let it cool completely. Then, I wrap the bread in foil and then in two layers of plastic wrap and set it in the fridge overnight before slicing.

I wrap my Caramelized Banana Bread well and refrigerate overnight for the perfect slice.

Put on a pot of your favorite coffee the next morning and slice yourself a piece of deliciousness.

We like our Caramelized Banana Bread packed with big chunks of toasted walnuts.

Check out that nut action. This muffin bread is the whole package - moist and fluffy, great big chunks of toasted nuts, and the flavors of banana and toffee mingling together to make getting out of bed totally worth it.

Caramelized Banana Bread

INGREDIENTS
1 Tbsp flax seed meal
3 Tbsp warm water
1 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp Kosher salt
2 large bananas
2 large eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 to 2 cups walnuts, toasted*

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan with butter and set aside.
2. Whisk the flax seed meal and warm water together in a large bowl and let rest for a few minutes.
3. In another bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, and salt.

4. Mash the bananas into your large flax seed bowl and then whisk in the rest of the wet ingredients along with the sugars.
5. Dump in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
6. Gently fold in the walnuts.
7. Pour into the greased loaf pan and bake for 60 to 75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Let bread cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Then use a bread knife to loosen the edges and turn out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
9. Wrap in foil and then in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight before slicing.

* To toast walnuts: Spread them evenly onto a baking sheet and toast in a 350 degree oven for 7 to 10 minutes. Keep an eye on them. Cool completely before dumping into your batter.