Wednesday recipe - Buttermilch Bananen Brot (Buttermilk Banana Bread)

While toodling around www.thefreshloaf.com yesterday I came across a recipe for a buttermilk banana bread.  Given that we had part of a bottle of buttermilk in the fridge, and it often goes past expiration before being used, and a bunch of bananas that will go overripe before we use them, I was inspired to make this recipe.

Looking at my schedule over the next few days, last night was the night to do it.

Ingredients for 2 loaves  (actually just made one loaf)
10 g fresh yeast (I used instant)
1-2/3 Cups of room temperature butter milk

1 very ripe banana
500 g of  flour bread
15 g salt (if you like it sweeter takes only 10 g of salt) ( I used about 12g )

Preparation

Banana peel, slice and puree with the room warm buttermilk.

For the dough, mix the yeast with the buttermilk. Add the flour and the salt
and the dough with a spiral mixer 2 minutes to slow down and knead for 6
minutes faster level. (I mixed in most of the flour with the yeast, buttermilk, and banana, and then let it rest for 30 minutes.  Then added the salt and the rest of the flour)

Cover the dough and leave for 30 min.

Fold the dough 2-3 times. (I did the stretch and fold every 30 minutes for about 2 hours.  I think I could have added a little more flour and been okay)

Halve the dough and shape into two oblong loaves. Add the floured upside
down on the sheet with parchment paper, cover and let it go another 30
minutes (as the bread tears during baking to beautiful)


(I shaped all of the dough into one boule and lets it rest, covered with a towel, on my cornmeal covered bread peel)

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 450° F, prepare for steaming.

Score the loaves. Bake the bread for 10 minutes at 450° F, then turn
down the oven to 400° F and bake for another 20 minutes.

(I scored the single loaf, spritzed with water, and then placed it on my baking stone at 500 ° F and covered it with my steam retainer.  After ten minutes removed the steam retainer and reduced the temp to 450° F.  After another ten minutes, I rotated the loaf.  After another ten, I removed it from the oven and let it cool for 30)

The loaf came out with a nice thin and light crust.  It really exploded through the score I made, taking over 50% of the crust.  It has a nice impact of banana flavor as the crust touches your tongue.  The crumb is very tender with a hint of banana.  My wife declared this one a keeper, one of the few times that has happened.  She thinks a slice or two of this bread would be an appropriate addition to a meal at a small bistro.