Truly MOIST banana cake!

Unfortunately I don't have a camera that can take a photo of the cake from inside my stomach so I'll leave the looks to your imagination. But I promise you this is insanely delicious! It is mommy dearest's recipe - she makes it in a pressure cooker (and also manages the same effect without the yeast), whereas I prefer the oven and so have to add some yeast. No difference in looks or taste really.


INGREDIENTS

Flour (wheat or maida either is fine) – 1 & ¼ cup

Bananas – 5, overripe to the point where they're not edible

Baking powder, baking soda – 1 tsp each

Yeast – 1 sachet - this is roughly 3/4 of a tablespoon (sachet has instructions how to use it)

Unsalted butter – ½ cup

Salt 1 tsp

Sugar – ½ to ¾ cup (bananas have enough sweetness so don’t need too much)

Optional - Dry fruits like pecans/walnuts/dates/tooty frooty – small pieces, the ones we get in grocery sections

Optional; I don't use - Eggs - 2-3

METHOD

       Mix flour, baking powder & soda, salt together and keep aside

       If using pecans/walnuts, lightly roast them without oil. This way they don't soften too much during baking.

       Mash the bananas, melt the butter, & blend them. Add sugar and blend again – this smells really bad!(If you have eggs, add these here and blend them in)

       Mix the flour and fluid to a thick batter. This is thicker than idli batter but still not a dough.

       Prepare yeast according to instructions on the packet & mix with the batter

       Keep aside for 5-10 mins to allow the yeast to take effect

       Gently fold the dry fruits into the mixture

COOKING

Pre-heat oven to 330 F.

Put the batter into a baking container; it should be ½ - ¾ full.

Bake for 30-40 mins, keeping a watch and bringing it out till a toothpick comes out clean.

(While cooking in an oven, the yeast will cause the cake to rise to almost 50% more than the original level. This may be a good indicator of whether the batter is getting cooked.)

Once done, allow to cool a bit. And then ... ATTACK!