Banana and Raisin Bread

I don’t know how many people can relate to my unusual relationship with bananas.
Most of the time, my tummy can’t handle raw bananas unless they are organic. I feel bloated whenever I eat them.

This relationship frustrates me greatly because I love bananas, but my body can only tolerate them when they are cooked.

A simple banana and raisin bread is one way I can enjoy them without the bloating. I refined this banana bread recipe in 2020 when the whole world retreated into their homes, specifically the kitchen.

At one point, finding essentials like bread in stores became a mission for everyone. I started to make my own bread almost every week and would experiment with different ingredients each time.

During lockdown, we mostly cooked, ate, and worked from home. At first, it was exciting, but eventually, it became tedious, so I simplified many of our family meals, including my bread recipes.

One day I would add cranberries, the next sour cream, and the next I would put raisins in banana bread. Since I had plenty of raisins, I perfected the banana and raisin bread recipe.
On their own, bananas are quite high in carbs, so the measurements and what you add to your banana bread should be carefully considered.

Banana and raisin bread variations

Some variations of this banana bread that I have tried include substituting the raisins with ½ cup of sour cream or ¼ cup of cranberries.
If you love chia seeds, you can also add ¼ cup of chia seeds. This works well if you also include 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice.
To ensure your banana bread is moist, use cake flour and overripe bananas that are almost brown instead of bright yellow.

Related:

• Homemade Multiseed Bread

Can you freeze banana bread?

When I bake banana bread it gets eaten pretty fast and we have almost no leftovers after a day.
On occasions that I have batch-baked, the bread has been able to retain freshness after storing it in the fridge.

I have to confess though, that I feel that this banana bread tastes even better when eaten a day after baking.

I would like you to try this at home- have a piece of the bread minutes after it has cooled down, and then another slice the next day.

Trust me, you’ll come back singing about how much better this banana raisin bread tastes the next day.

If you do batch-baking for instance, you can store this banana bread in the fridge for 5 days.

If you wish to preserve it for longer than that, then you can freeze it. This banana bread will stay moist and fresh for up to 3 months in the freezer.

Wrap it in cling film a few times, and seal it in a freezer bag. When you are ready to eat, take it out of the freezer and let it sit and defrost on the counter.

How to make banana raisin bread

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and grease the bread tin.
2. Peel bananas, and mash them in a large bowl with a potato masher until smooth.
3. In another bowl, mix sugar, vanilla, and butter until well blended. Beat the eggs, and combine them with the butter mixture.
4. Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, and raisins together and pour into the butter mixture. Pour in the mashed bananas, do not over-mix.
5. Pour the batter into the greased tin and bake for 50 minutes.
6. Once ready, turn off the oven and let it cool in the oven for another 10 minutes.
7. Remove the tin from the oven, and let it cool completely before removing from tin. You might need to run a knife around the pan to remove the banana bread from the pan.
8. You can serve the banana bread with vanilla custard, ice cream, peanut butter or enjoy it by itself.

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