Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Ingredients

• 3 ripe bananas (Brown spots are desirable for extra flavor; mash mostly smooth.)
• 9 tbsp unsalted butter (Browned; the source says this browns down to approximately 1/2 cup. Use 1/2 cup of the browned butter in the batter.)
• 1 large egg (Room temperature.)
• 0.75 cup brown sugar
• 0.25 cup white sugar
• 5.5 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 0.5 tsp baking powder
• 0.5 tsp salt
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla paste (Use extract or paste.)
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (The source gives 1 to 1 1/2 cups total: about 1 cup is folded into the batter and the remainder is reserved for topping. Use more, up to 1 1/2 cups, as desired.)

Steps

1. 1

   Add the unsalted butter to a saucepan over medium heat. Stir often as it melts, foams, and sizzles. Continue until it turns golden and smells nutty, taking care not to burn it.

2. 2

   Pour the browned butter into a bowl and place it in the freezer for 5 minutes. It should be warm rather than hot when used.

3. 3

   In a large bowl, mash the ripe bananas until mostly smooth.

4. 4

   Add 1/2 cup of the browned butter, the brown sugar, white sugar, room-temperature egg, and vanilla to the mashed bananas. Whisk for 1 to 2 minutes, until the mixture looks glossy.

5. 5

   Add the all-purpose flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. These may be mixed together separately first or added directly to the bowl. Mix very thoroughly until the dry ingredients are evenly distributed and no dry flour remains.

6. 6

   Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

7. 7

   Fold about 1 cup of the semi-sweet chocolate chips into the batter, reserving the remaining chips for the topping.

8. 8

   Line or grease a loaf pan. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips over the top.

9. 9

   Bake for 60 minutes, loosely covering the loaf with foil halfway through to prevent over-browning.

10. 10

    Insert a toothpick into the center of the loaf. It should come out with a few moist crumbs rather than wet batter. If needed, bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes.

11. 11

    Let the banana bread cool slightly, then slice and serve.

Notes

The source does not specify the loaf-pan size. Chocolate chips are intentionally flexible, with 1 to 1 1/2 cups suggested. The browned butter should be warm, not hot, before mixing with the other ingredients.

Nutrition per serving

• dessert
• baking
• banana bread
• American
• vegetarian
• one-bowl
• holiday baking