Brilliant Banana Brownies - A Little Cake Tester's Idea !

Me : "Would you like to go to the beach today ?"

Oliver : "No - I'm going with Emma next week Mummy. I want to ride my new gocart a long long way and then you can make me some brilliant banana brownies...... That is an alliteration I can eat you know !"

That did make me laugh as he'd obviously been thinking that one up. Oliver is due to start school in a few weeks and really is ready to go. He does love to make up alliterations with big bad burps probably being one of his all-time favourites.

Well - I haven't actually baked in ages and there were some very ripe spotty bananas in the kitchen. 

Can't remember last time we had cake in the house. Given Steve and Michael were off out today and given Oliver wanted to stay home - gocarting and brownies it was.

I've made the BBC Best Ever Brownies recipe a few times before, and very good it is too. I decided to use it as a starting point on this occasion and work around what I thought may work best and what we had in the cupboards.

185g salted butter
185g milk chocolate

3 large eggs

250g white sugar

85g plain flour

75g cocoa powder

130g mashed ripe bananas

65g milk chocolate (chopped)
65g white chocolate (chopped)

2tsp vanilla extract

Melt the salted butter and milk chocolate together in the microwave (takes approx 1min) and then set aside.

Beat the 3eggs and sugar plus vanilla together with an electric mixer for about 6 or 7 mins until really thick and fluffy.

Fold the melted butter / chocolate mix into the whipped eggs and sugar to combine..

Sieve in the plain flour and cocoa powder, then fold in until just combined. 

Now fold in the banana and chopped chocolate.

Put into an 8" square silicone baking pan. For brownies, I like to prep this with a big strip of baking parchment covering the base and up two sides - it just makes it really easy to lift out later.

Bake in a fan over at 160deg C for approx 30mins. The top will be set, but the brownie will still be a tiny bit wobbly in the middle. A tooth pick will come out sticky from the centre.

Allow to cool, then transfer to the fridge for an hour or so before cutting. It should be a bit squidgy in the middle.

Serve as it is with a cup of coffee or glass of milk - or warm and serve with vanilla ice cream.

Sarah-Jane Nash, August 2013 - www.siliconemoulds.com