Banana bread

Serves 4

(Lisa Barber)

This bread is best served warm from the oven, when the lovely smell of cinnamon and cooked bananas is still lingering in the kitchen. Bananas that have begun to soften and bruise are best – so this recipe is perfect to use up the fruit sitting in the bottom of your fruit bowl.

2 tbsp chopped almonds
100g/31/2oz muscovado sugar
1 tsp of ground cinnamon
1 rounded teaspoon of baking powder
Pinch of salt
225g/71/2oz plain flour
4 medium-sized bananas
110g/33/4oz butter, at room temperature
2 large eggs

Heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas5. Place the chopped almonds and dark sugar into a small bowl, mix together using your fingers and set aside. Now take a large mixing bowl and sift the cinnamon, baking powder, salt and flour together. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas using a fork then add to the dry ingredients, along with the softened butter.

Using an electric mixer, beat until all the ingredients are well combined, starting slowly and gradually increasing the speed, for a minute. Add the eggs one by one and mix well to combine.

Line an eight-inch loaf tin with parchment paper and pour the cake mixture in, smoothing the top. Sprinkle the brown sugar and chopped almonds over the top of the cake mix, then place on the middle shelf of the oven to cook for an hour. Remove and allow to cool slightly before turning out. Eat immediately.