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The World’s Best Banana Bread…

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…and the most decadent!!  Imagine the easiest and most moist banana bread topped with a warm, caramel bubbling with crunchy pecans on top.  Sounds fattening? Absolutely, but who cares….just do extra crunches tomorrow and you’re good to go.  That’s my idea of balance…it’s how I roll 🙂

 The World's Best Banana Bread... Just Crumbs Blog by Suzie Durigon

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Remember, after you add the buttermilk/yogurt, the mixture will curdle a bit…that’s okay!!!

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If you run out of time, the cake is still delish without the caramel topping!!

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…but it’s beyond delish with the caramel!!

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Aaaand you can add chocolate chips if you feel extra decadent!!
Lastly, if you’re wondering about making this ahead (and thinking “can I do the caramel ahead of time?”), the answer is ABSOLUTELY! The only caveat is that this cake tastes sooooo good warm (especailly if you’re serving it with cold ice cream) so just pop the whole pan in the oven before you’re ready to serve it!!!
The World’s Best Banana Bread…
Author: Suzie Durigon
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12 large squares
Give this a try….I promise it will replace your go-to recipe!!
Ingredients
  • Batter:
  • 1 c butter, room temp
  • 1 1/2 c sugar
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 4 ripe bananas
  • 1 tbsp vanilla
  • 4 tbsp buttermilk or yogurt (preferably not Greek)
  • 2 c flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • Topping:
  • 1/3 c butter
  • 1/2 c brown sugar
  • 1/4 c milk
  • 1 c pecans, chopped
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar (if you forgot to take the butter out of the fridge, microwave it for 20 seconds) until fluffy.  This step is important for a fluffy cake because you want it to mix for long enough to incorporate air into the mixture before you add the eggs (see below)
  3. Add eggs and vanilla and mix again (the mixture should still be light and fluffy)
  4. Add the bananas into the bowl and keep mixing until it’s incorporated (there will be some nice chunks of bananas in the cake when it’s cooked…if you don’t want the chunks, then mash them with a fork before you throw them into the batter). Next, add the yogurt/buttermilk (the batter will now become a bit curdled but that’s okay).
  5. In a separate bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together.  Add to the wet ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined (but don’t over mix…take the bowl out from under the mixer and hand mix the last few turns to get all the batter mixed in).
  6. Bake in a parchment lined 9 x 13″pan for about 40 minutes (the top should be brown and the middle should just slightly bounce back when you press it gently with your finger).
  7. Meanwhile, as the cake is baking, place the butter and brown sugar into a saucepan and cook until it incorporates a bit. Then add the milk and stir until it becomes nice and caramel-like; add the nuts and remove from the heat.
  8. Pour the caramel mixture over the cake and spread it out so it covers the entire top of the cake. Place under the broiler for a few minutes (but watch it because it will burn…don’t go off and do laundry or anything!). Remove from the oven and, if you’re good, let it cool a bit and serve with the best quality vanilla ice cream you can get your hands on (or you can eat it from the pan with a fork when it comes out of the oven…I totally just did that!)