Banana Buckwheat Loaf
FROM OPEN KITCHEN
Does the world really need another banana bread recipe? Is there anything more to say on the subject? As I was pondering this, I noticed a bowl of blackening bananas on my counter, and I remembered why we need an endless supply of banana bread recipes. Looking for inspiration, I opened my baking pantry and surveyed the many half-used bags of this and that. A bag of buckwheat flour was staring back at me, and I decided that was just what my banana bread needed. The resulting loaf, laced with cardamom and moistened by roasted walnut oil, was better than any I had eaten, made more tender and crumbly (in a good way) by the gluten-less buckwheat flour. And to top it off (only if you’re so inclined) a lip-smacking glaze flavored with tahini and maple with little crunchy nubbins of toasted buckwheat groats sprinkled all over it. This combination of flavors and textures was so good, I found myself spreading extra glaze on each slice and sprinkling with more toasted buckwheat. If you want to do that, you’ll have to double the glaze and the toasted buckwheat. Feel free to substitute any other fat for the walnut oil if you don’t have it on hand or don’t want to buy it. Vegetable oil, mild olive oil, melted butter, or especially browned butter all will work fine. And don’t worry about buying that bag of buckwheat flour—you’ll be using it often.
For the loaf:
2 tablespoons whole buckwheat groats
1 cup walnuts
1¼ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup buckwheat flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon ground cardamom, plus more for the top
¾ teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
½ cup roasted walnut oil, other neutral oil, or melted and cooled butter
1 cup light brown sugar
3 small, ripe bananas, mashed (1¼ cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the glaze:
½ cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more if needed
1 tablespoon tahini
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons heavy cream or 1 tablespoon milk
Note:
If your bananas are large, measure out and use only 1¼ cups of mash, otherwise it may be too much batter for the pan.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a standard (8 ½ by 4 ½ by 2 ½ inch) loaf pan.
Spread the buckwheat groats out on one side of a small baking sheet and spread the walnuts out on the other side and toast until lightly browned, shaking the pan once or twice (but being careful to keep the buckwheat and walnuts separate), 8 to 10 minutes. Set aside. When cooled, roughly chop the walnuts.
In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, the baking powder, cardamom, and salt. In another medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, brown sugar, bananas, and vanilla. Fold in the dry ingredients and the walnuts and transfer to the prepared loaf pan. Place on small baking sheet and bake until a wooden skewer comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes.
Transfer the loaf to a cooling rack and run a butter knife around the sides of the cake to loosen. After 5 minutes, turn the loaf out and let it cool completely, right-side up, on the cooling rack.
Wait, if you can, until it’s nearly cooled to mix up the glaze. Combine the confectioners’ sugar, tahini, maple syrup, and cream in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Add drops of water if it still is too stiff or more confectioners’ sugar if it is too loose. It should be just pourable.
Drizzle the glaze over the loaf and immediately sprinkle with the buckwheat groats. Lightly sift more cardamom over the top.
TIMING TIPS:
This keeps well, so you could make the loaf a day ahead of time, but I think of banana bread as more of a spur of the moment thing as it is easy to put together. Glaze about 30 minutes before serving, and make sure to sprinkle the toasted buckwheat right after, when the glaze is still wet.
