Never-Fail Chocolate Banana Bread

Never-Fail Chocolate Banana Bread

I’ve always believed that skillful, successful baking meant following recipes to the letter — after all, that’s what I was taught in cooking school. Pastry chefs are more precise, the general logic goes. Their minds and personalities are completely different from those of cooks.

That’s why I was so surprised when — flush with over-ripe bananas — I tried this banana bread recipe fr0m Epicurious.  Although it didn’t adhere to any baking “best practices” — you just threw all of the ingredients into a bowl, gave the mixture a stir, and stuck it in the oven — it turned out dangerously delicious. (Note that you might need to cook the bread for longer than the recipe recommends – I sometimes go with 1 hour 10 minutes.) Unlike many banana breads, this one was moist, rich with banana flavor, and speckled with melting dark chocolate chips.

After yielding such enticing results after just 10 minutes of active time, it’s no wonder I made the recipe again…and again… I soon found myself buying extra bananas just so I’d need to bake another loaf.

Even better, the results impressed no matter how much I tinkered with or, in a distracted state, completely disregarded the recipe: three bananas or four (I like four even though the center can sometimes seem almost undercooked), 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips or more, toasted hazelnuts on top (see the picture below), whisking the egg after it’s been added to the other ingredients.

The miniscule effort I make is always well worth it. Regardless of where everyone is on the cranky meter, there are smiles all around once this chocolate-studded loaf comes out of the oven. That’s why I often double the recipe and freeze a loaf for later.

Hazelnut-Chocolate Banana Bread