Banana dates and rum loaf

A slice of loaf with banana, dates and rum.

This loaf consists of just few ingredients, banana, dates, spelt flour making it more nutritious than the regular banana loaf. The rum is the star here giving this loaf such a nice flavour and aroma.

Course Coffee time, Dessert

Cuisine European Cuisine

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 45

Resting time 30- 60 min 0

Total Time 1 35

Servings portions

Calories 244kcal

Author Ramona Sebastian

Cost £6

Ingredients

500 g spelt flour (light)
40 g cane sugar (plus 2 tbs to mix with yeast)
10 g dry yeast (best to use the fast action version)
1 teaspoon Himalayan salt
110 g butter (melted)
120 g dates (chopped)
3 medium bananas (very ripe) (mushed)
90 g banana chips (slightly crushed)
1 teaspoon rum essence
1 handful walnut (chopped and roasted)
100 ml milk lukewarm
150 ml cream double/heavy cream
150 ml water or milk it might need more

Metric - US Imperial

Instructions

Prepare an oven baking tray by greasing it. Set aside.
Place the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar into a mug. Add 100ml lukewarm milk and stir. Allow it 5 minutes to dissolve. It should start to bubble up.
In a larger bowl, mix the flour with the salt, the sugar, the rum and the mashed bananas. Add the yeast and milk mix, cream and the butter and start kneading.
Add more milk or water as needed and knead until it forms a dough for about 10 minutes (laborious a little may sound, I know, but it’s all well worth it in the end). It will get all nice and smooth (ok, maybe with little lumps from the bananas -if those were not properly ripe in particular, but nothing to worry). When dough no longer sticks to the hand it’s indicative that this is actually done. Add the chopped dates, nuts and knead for a further minute or two to incorporate those.
Drizzle some oil over it make it into a ball shape and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Rest in a warm place for at least 30 min -1 hour.
The dough will rise nicely, knock it down a little and divide into three pieces.
On a flour dusted or oiled surface start rolling each piece into a sausage shape. Do the same with all three.
Plait all three together and place on the baking tray. Leave again (covered) in a warm place to rise for at least 30 minutes.
About 10-15 min before it's ready for baking, put oven on and preheat at 180C fan assisted or 200C otherwise.
Bake for about 35-45 minutes until nice and golden. Check with a sqewer or a long wooden stick to make sure this comes out clean.

Notes

Serve warm or cold.

For this nice and shiny looks, I do mix 1 teaspoon of cinnamon with one or two tablespoon honey and a good squeeze of lemon and brush it over the loaf immediately as I take it out of the oven so while it is still very hot. It gets soaked in immediately.

A few slices of scrumptious banana, dates and rum loaf.

I use this as a bread for a beautiful breakfast treat and we have it either sweet ( by adding jam, Nutella or honey and yoghurt) or even savoury (with egg, bacon and cheese) delicious!!

If you don't think you will be consuming it within 3-4 days I recommend you slice it as soon as it cools off completely and freeze it. Take out as much as you need, one, two or how many slices you need out of the freezer, toast and eat it as you desire. It will be as fresh as it was when you initially bagged it and placed it in the freezer.

Enjoy it folks. It's really lovely ?

Nutrition