I make - Gluten-Free Banana Bread

I always like banana bread. It's a great base with all sorts of add-ins and flavorings, chocolate, nuts, candied ginger or dried fruits. I've tried them all. As much as I like the combo with candied ginger or with thyme, the vanilla version is the one I make the most. I just love the simple unadulterated banana flavor and texture. This is one of the first recipes I converted when I became gluten-free. For me, a good banana bread is like what life should be, unfussy and pure pleasure, gluten-free or not.

My Favorite Gluten-Free Banana Bread

- 1 cup (200-250 g) banana puree from 2-3 bananas
- 60 g butter, softened (or 1/4 cup oil)
- 60 g brown sugar (or up to 100 g to taste)
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon (optional)
- 1/2 tsp mixed spice (optional)

- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup (140 g) gluten-free flour blend (or your favorite blend)
- 1/2 cup (50 g) porridge oats, blitz to flour (or ground almond or same GF flour blend)
- 2 tsp baking powder
- topping: 2 tbsp demerara sugar or chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven at 180C. Grease and line a cake tin or loaf tin

Mash bananas with a fork in a bowl with wide base. The bananas sold here are usually 100 g each without skin.

In a big bowl, beat butter with sugar for 3 minutes before adding one egg after another. Mix in vanilla extract, cinnamon, mixed spice and salt.

Beat in two types of flours along with baking powder and ground linseeds (if using). Scrap all the banana puree into the flour bowl. Use an electric beater to mix the dough well. The beauty of gluten-free baking is that you can use machine to your heart's content without worrying toughening the gluten (since there is none!).

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, scatter the demerara sugar (or chopped walnuts) on top and bake at 180C for 25-30 minutes. When a toothpick inserted to the middle of the cake and comes out clean, it's baked. This banana bread has a light and moist crumb, highly irresistible.