Banana bread

Banana bread is a type of cake made with mashed bananas, and typically cooked a loaf shape. It is often moist, sweet, and can be described as a quick bread. There are however, some recipes that are closer to traditional-style rye breads.

History

Banana bread first became a standard feature of American cookbooks with the popularization of baking soda and baking powder in the 1930s, separating it from more traditional yeast leavened breads. It appeared in Pillsbury's 1933 Balanced Recipes cookbook, and later gained more acceptance with the release of the original Chiquita Banana's Recipe Book in 1950.

National Banana Bread day is 23 February. Bananas appeared in the US in the 1870s and it took a while for them to appear as ingredient items for desserts. The modern banana bread recipe began being published in cookbooks around the 1930s and its popularity was greatly helped by the introduction of baking powder on the market. Some food historians believe banana bread was a byproduct of the Great Depression as resourceful housewives did not wish to throw away overripe bananas (as they were still a costly item to purchase), others believe the modern banana bread was developed in corporate kitchens to promote flour and baking soda products.