Recipe: Banana Cake

My parents gave me a bunch of bananas last week and so today being an off day for me, I decided to put them bananas to good use. Remember how I related that I was searching for that unforgettable banana walnut cake taste I had at Banyan Tree, Bintan here? Well, the search ain't over. But I believe with every banana cake recipe I tick off my list, I'm one step closer, aye?

The recipe I used today is from an issue of Food and Travel magazine that I got from my mother (I have like 5 A4 plastic folders full of recipes torn out from magazines). While it didn't give me the taste of Bintan, the result was a banana cake that was moist, not overly sweet, fragrant and fluffy. In other words, I like. :)

What you'll need:

1. 3-4 ripe medium-size bananas, mashed (I used 4; leave some bite-size chunks and make sure it's not too soggy)
2. 150g butter (I used unsalted since the recipe calls for an addition of salt later, but if you only have salted butter, leave out the salt later)
3. 2 tbsp olive oil
4. 150g caster sugar (I reduced the sugar to 130g, don't like my cakes too sweet, plus I thought the bananas will add to the sweetness as well)
5. 2 eggs, beaten
6. 4 tbsp warm milk
7. 1 tsp vanilla extract
8. 240g plain flour
9. 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
10. 1/2 tsp baking powder
11. Pinch of salt (I used 1/8 tsp to measure)

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 170 degrees Celsius.
2. Butter and flour a bundt pan (or any other preferred baking tin).
3. Mash your bananas and set aside.
4. Beat your butter, olive oil and sugar together until light and fluffy.
5. Gradually add in your eggs and beat well, then add in the mashed bananas, milk and vanilla extract. Mix well to combine all.
6. Sift your flour, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder and salt together.
7. Add half of the dry ingredients into your creamed mixture and gently fold in. Then add the remaining flour mixture and gently fold in until everything is incorporated.
8. Pour the contents into your prepared baking tin and bake for 35-40 minutes (The original recipe called for 17-20 minutes which was totally way off; I baked for 35 minutes but you should adjust according to your oven's temperature and the size of your baking tin - I think mine's a 23" bundt pan). If unsure, always fall back to the skewer test :) It should come out clean when inserted into the cake.
9. Be patient and leave your cake to cool in the baking tin before any attempts at removing it. To unmould, turn the tin upside down onto a wire mesh/plate and shake to loosen the cake from the tin (mine drop right down once I flipped it over).
10. Cool further on the wire mesh/plate before slicing (I couldn't really wait and so cut into it almost immediately after unmoulding and I had a slice of warm and fragrant banana cake!).