Piece of life
As I write these words, I’m enjoying a few days’ vacation with my family in Cape Cod. I’d be lying if I said we were having the best vacation, as the weather and a number of unexpected events have not spared us since we left Montréal. However, we’re still taking advantage of these few days to relax and enjoy being together.
About the banana bread, chocolate and tonka
Vacation involves travel cakes, meaning something that’s easy to transport and convenient to eat. And cakes are the perfect candidates. Of course, we also take along our share of industrial snacks [one of the few times I buy cookies instead of making them], but I also try to get through all the fruit in the house before we leave [as you know, waste is not my thing]. As usual I made a few jams with the strawberries and apricots I’d found the day before departure [in the quick-sale section of my grocery store, always have a look there]. And for the few bananas left in the fruit basket, banana bread seemed just the thing we needed for our departure.
I’ve already shared a banana bread recipe on the blog. It’s a recipe I make very often, varying the ingredients [nuts, chocolate…]. This time, I wanted to change things up a bit from my usual recipe… And above all, I was obsessed with tonka bean. I absolutely had to use it in this banana bread. So I combined bananas, chocolate and tonka, and frankly, I’m a huge fan of the combination. I definitely recommend you to try.
It’s hard to ignore this little bean that’s been in fashion for a few years now. Native to South America, the bean is a seed contained in the stone of a fruit. The fresh seed is then desiccated and macerated to obtain a dry bean, which is used for a variety of purposes [including pastry-making, cooking and perfumery]. Its flavor is intense and complex, with notes of vanilla, almond, chocolate and caramel. Be careful, however, not to overuse it, as it becomes toxic in large doses. But there’s no need to worry about its use in pastry-making, given the small quantities used.
I absolutely love this banana bread! The cake is moist and slightly sweet [as I like them], with a delicate tonka flavor that makes all the difference.
There’s no need for any special equipment or cooking skills. All you need is a good old-fashioned bread mould and a bowl, and 10 minutes later the cake will already be baking.
Tonka bean
The taste of tonka must remain subtle for a good balance [be careful, we still want to taste it otherwise there’s no point]. Considering that tonka beans vary greatly in size, the proportion in the recipe remains approximate. My bean was about 3 cm long and I used half of it. It’s up to you to adjust according to your personal taste.
Banana bread with chocolate and tonka
Équipements
Ingredients
- 3 ripe bananas mashed
- 200 g flour
- 50 g almond powder
- 70 g melted butter
- 80 g sugar
- 2 eggs slightly beaten
- 1 tsp backing powder
- 1 pinch of salt
- 100 g dark chocolate coarsely chopped
- 1/2 tonka bean
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Grease a bread mould.
- Mix the mashed bananas, sugar and melted butter in a bowl.
- Add the eggs.
- In a separate bowl, mix the flour, almond powder, baking powder and salt.
- Pour the flour mixture over the liquid ingredients. Mix to a smooth paste.
- Add the chopped chocolate and grated tonka bean. Mix well.
- Pour the mixture into the mould.
- Bake for 1 hour, or until the banana bread is cooked.
