Sometimes I make a recipe according to the lavish ideas I have rolling around inside my head and get so excited when I’m about to pull my newest creation from the oven, only to discover it didn’t go quite like I planned. Or worse, I have a cake-tastrophe. In the case of these brownies, I didn’t get what I planned. I got more than I planned, in the best way. I intended to make chocolate banana bread, baked in a 9-by-9-inch pan, so that it would take on a banana bread meets banana bars meets chocolate cake quality. What emerged from the oven was much more like brownies with a hint of banana than chocolate banana bread. Although the brownies have banana undertones, chocolate steals the thunder. I love happy chocolate accidents.
Chocolate steals the show because it’s used in three ways, and one of those ways does not include using chocolate chips or melted chocolate. I won’t make you do chocolate math and I’ll just spill the cocoa beans how I did it. First, I used cocoa powder. Ordinarily, I don’t use cocoa powder in brownies because I find it tends to dry them out and prefer to use melted chocolate. Here, however, the bananas kept the brownies gooey and moist and counteracted any drying effects that cocoa powder tends to have.
Secondly, I used chocolate Greek yogurt which tenderized the crumb and boosted the chocolate intensity level. Baked goods made with yogurt, sour cream, or buttermilk stay especially moist and soft and the chocolate yogurt worked according to plan and the brownies are soft and springy, tender, and chocolaty.
The third chocolate use came via a box of packet of instant chocolate pudding mix tossed into the batter. Although the pudding mix can be omitted, I think of it as moisture and softness insurance in powder packet form. I’ll likely never bake banana bread again without it because it does magical things. However, if you choose to omit it, I recommend increasing the amounts of both cocoa powder and granulated sugar, about 2 extra tablespoons of cocoa powder and 2 to 4 extra tablespoons of granulated sugar. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to recreate the softness, depth of flavor, moisture, and just a certain x-factor the pudding provides.
I glazed the brownies with my favorite frosting, Vanilla Caramel Glaze, which I used on the Spiced Apple and Banana Bundt Cake. I want to bake things just as an excuse just to have that glaze. It’s buttery, rich, very caramely, smooth, and it has great flavor depth, which is surprising considering how few ingredients are used. I want to dig my fork into the luscious caramel-vanilla ribbons over and over. I made extra glaze just to have around midnight, when my strongest want-a-spoonful cravings come on, from homemade peanut butter to frosting and glaze. I never crave celery sticks at that hour.
Although the brownies have some springiness and sponginess to them, they are not cakey, which is a good thing because I hate cakey brownies. They’re springy and bouncy in the way that a chocolate cake-mix-cake is. However, they’re not just a chocolate cake with some banana throw in; nor are they banana bread with some cocoa powder added. They’re fudgy and brownie-like. So although I intended to create chocolate banana bread for Week 6 of Banana Bread Fest I’m so pleased these didn’t come out according to plan. Long live good kitchen karma.
Related Recipes
Banana Bread with Vanilla Browned Butter Glaze – Week 1 of Banana Bread Fest Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes!
Zucchini Banana Bread with Browned Butter Cream Cheese Frosting – Week 2 of Banana Bread Fest
Pumpkin Banana Bread with Browned Butter Cream Cheese Glaze – Week 3 of Banana Bread Fest
Spiced Apple Banana Bundt Cake with Vanilla Caramel Glaze – Week 4 Banana Bread Fest
Carrot Pineapple Banana Bread with Browned Butter Cream Cheese Frosting – Week 5 Banana Bread Fest
Fudgy Nutella Brownies with Cream Cheese Frosting – My go-to brownie recipe and it’s the base I use for all other brownie recipes. Made in one bowl with a whisk and it’s a 5-minute easy batter to make, just as easy as a mix
Chocolate Cake with Chocoalte Ganche – The best homemade chocolate cake recipe, no mixer required. Better, easier, and faster than a box and the ganache can be made in the microwave in minutes
If you had to pick banana bread or brownies, which would it be? This is such a hard call because at times I want chocolate, and nothing else will do, so brownies it is. However, when it’s done right, very little can trump a perfect slice of banana bread. I adore it – in case you hadn’t noticed with 6 weeks of banana bread, banana cake, or banana something. Do you have a great recipe for banana bread or for brownies? Between melting butter or creaming it, melted chocolate or cocoa powder and how much, how many bananas and whether to whip them or mash them; how much flour, baking soda or baking powder or a combo of them, how many eggs, or eggs plus a yolk, how long to bake, size of pans…Other than chocolate chip cookies, no other two recipes seem to have more variations and methods than banana bread or brownies and everyone has their favorites. This recipe is my jumping off place for banana bread and the inspiration for the subsequent weeks of Banana Bread Fest. This was week 6 and I have week 7’s recipe already made. This recipe is my foolproof one-bowl brownie recipe upon which all other brownie creations are derived. It’s as easy and fast as a boxed mix, no mixer required, and the resulting brownies are much richer, more intense, uber-fudgy, not at all cakey, and yo’ll never need boxed brownie mix again. Feel free to link up your favorite recipes for either banana bread or brownies and have a great week! Reminder that these giveaways are still going on: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies + KitchenAid Stand Mixer + $200 Williams-Sonoma Gift Card Giveaway (through Monday 10/8 – winner announced next post) Grill On Morningstar Farms Giveaway (until Tuesday 10/9) Muir Glen Gift Basket Giveaway (until Tuesday 10/9)
