Banana and Chocolate Chunk Bread

This Banana and Chocolate Chunk Bread is really a cake - deliciously moist with a close texture and ideal for an elevenses or tea-time treat with a cup of tea. 

It is also a great way to use up any over-ripe (or even slightly browning) bananas too - no waste here.

There are tons of varieties of Banana Bread and they each have their own charm, if I don't add chocolate I love a gentle spicing with ginger and cinnamon or even mixed spice; vanilla also works well but when the chocolate is in the mix, I don't think it needs anything else. 

Banana and Chocolate Chunk Bread

Here's how:

• 275g peeled banana
• 2 tbsp milk
• 180g plain flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 75g walnuts
• 100g dark chocolate
• 2 eggs
• 100g melted butter
• 160g dark brown sugar

Firstly pre-heat the oven to 170 degrees and grease and line a square or loaf tin. 

Now in a mixing bowl, mash most of the bananas up quite smoothly with the milk. Then with the final 1-2 bananas use your fingers to gently break up into bigger chunks - and allow for a different texture throughout the cake.

Into the banana bowl, sift the flour and add the salt and baking powder and gently mix.

In a different mixing bowl, add the butter (melt first if it isn't already). Add the brown sugar and the eggs and whisk up till light and creamy in texture.

Now roughly chop the walnuts and chop the chocolate into large chunks and set aside.

Add the banana and flour into the sugar, butter and eggs combination and fold in until you have a good, wet cake batter and no evidence of any flour hanging about.

Now add the walnuts and chocolate and give a final stir through.

Pour the batter into the lined tin, and place into the oven for 60 minutes exactly. 

Remove from the oven, and allow to stand in the tin for ten minutes. Then remove, and allow to stand for a further ten minutes before slicing and serving. Enjoy!

Banana and Chocolate Chunk Bread