Banana bread with oats and blueberries

Cooking notes

• Sometimes I feel like I buy bananas just to let them become overripe, so I can make banana bread! The mix of oat flour, mushy bananas and beautiful blueberries makes this banana bread super moist and my personal favourite.

• It is best stored in the fridge, especially in humid conditions, and best had at room temperature, when it’s soft and juicy.

• Substitutions – Feel free to use plain flour, but in my view, the ground oats add the perfect grittiness and texture to the soft, moist bread.

• Makes about 12 portions.

Ingredients

• 1.5 cups of rolled oats

• 3 overripe bananas

• 75 gms of unsalted butter, melted (about 1/3rd cup)

• 1 tsp baking soda

• A pinch of salt

• 115 gms caster sugar (1/2 cup)

• 1 egg, beaten

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 125 gms blueberries (about 1/2 cup)

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 170°C, and butter a loaf pan. (I used a round dish for this photo shoot, but I do prefer the loaf pan!)

2. Grind the oats to a coarse consistency.

3. In a big mixing bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. To these, add the melted butter, baking soda and salt, and mix well.

4. Stir in the sugar, beaten egg, and vanilla extract.

5. Then, add in the oat flour and mix well to combine everything.

6. Finally, add the berries, squishing a few to ooze out the lovely juices.

7. Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake for 45-50 minutes at 170°C, or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

8. Take out from the oven, and allow the bread to rest in the pan for 10 minutes. Then, remove the bread from the pan and let it cool for another 20 minutes before serving. Slice and enjoy!

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