Chocolate Banana Bread {Easy Recipe} - Miss in the Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

Why does banana bread have to sit overnight? ›

Remove bread from pan(s). Cool completely on rack. Wrap and store at room temperature overnight before slicing. (We know it's hard to wait, but your bread will be more evenly moist and less crumbly if you let it sit overnight.)

Fight the urge to use more banana than called for in your recipe. Using too much banana could make your bread heavy and damp in the center, causing it to appear undercooked and unappealing. If you have bananas leftover, you can always freeze them for later use.

Once the loaf is fully cooled, wrap it in plastic wrap. Then, wrap the loaf in aluminum foil. This will ensure it's airtight and will keep the loaf from drying out and avoid freezer burn. Store the wrapped loaf in the freezer for up to three months.

Bake your banana bread until it registers an internal temperature of 200 to 205°F. Use an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center. This is the best and easiest way to ensure your bread is perfectly cooked through but not overdone.

Let it cool for 10 minutes — this helps the loaf solidify and makes it easier to remove from the pan. Remove from pan and cool another 10 minutes. Grasping the parchment paper sling, lift the loaf out of the pan and place on the cooling rack. Cool for another 10 minutes before slicing.

While it's safe to keep many baked goods at room temperature, it depends on the item and should be taken on a case-by-case basis. For instance, breads and rolls can last up to four days at room temperature, but any bread with meat or hard-boiled eggs should be refrigerated within two hours, according to the USDA.

You incorrectly measured the ingredients.

If you do not measure the ingredients exactly (and just eyeball things) then the liquid-to-dry ratio of the ingredients could be off. Too much liquid can lead to banana bread that sinks in the middle. Of course, an excess amount of dry ingredients can also lead to trouble.

If so, I would dump out all the flour, remeasure and then add in the correct amount, subtracting a little bit (say a half teaspoon) for the flour you couldn't remove that stuck to the other ingredients. Was it before you baked it?

If your bread is getting overdone on the outside while still undercooked in the center, reduce the oven temperature and bake it for a longer time. The primary reason as to why banana bread may be raw in the middle is simply down to not enough cooking time.

If they smell off, that's another good indicator that they are no longer okay to use. Rotten bananas will often have a fermented or alcohol-like smell. While it's okay if the banana peel is dark brown or even black, if the inside is too, then the fruit is beyond ripe and now on its way to rotten.

Can I bake two loaves of banana bread at the same time? ›

You can double a standard banana bread recipe, as long as you bake the batter in two same-size loaf pans, or one after the other.

You may be baking at too high a temperature. Home ovens are often not accurate. Try lowering the temperature by 25°F, and bake for a slightly longer time. If you are using a dark colored pan like many non-stick pans it will cause the outside to brown more quickly while the inside stays raw.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (176 C). Grease bottom only of a 9x5 or 8 1/2x4 1/2 loaf pan. Or make a parchment paper sling and place in loaf pan, set aside. In a large bowl combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt.

It is possible to leave bread dough to rise overnight. This needs to be done in the refrigerator to prevent over-fermentation and doughs with an overnight rise will often have a stronger more yeasty flavour which some people prefer.

The benefits of the overnight rise go beyond flexibility. Long, slow fermentation in a cold environment leads to better, more nuanced flavor development in your bread. So you can save time and add flavor, all in one go.

When the bread is fresh from the oven, there's still a lot of moisture in the bread. But by the second day, a lot of it has left leaving essentially the equivalent of dried fruit in a loaf of bread. It makes sense though.