Subtitle one: How to BURN butter rather than brown it.
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Subtitle two: When you think you know how to do something so you have all the confidence in the world, but then you FAIL.
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Before making this banana bread, I’d made brown butter before. Not enough to call myself an expert, but I could do it, that is, until yesterday, when I promptly ventured into the kitchen, overconfident in my abilities, set the timer for 5 minutes and, checking the saucepan of butter-randomly at best, turned the butter dark brown. Upon googling it, I declared my butter burnt and looked to the internet for ways to salvage it. Mad props, Martha.
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Lucky for you, this travail did not go undocumented. Here’s to the good, the bad, and the ugly.
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Luckily, with a little help from Martha and a helpful chart, I filtered most of my butter and/or spooned out the brown part and left the burnt bridge…er, butter, behind. I browned an extra tablespoon of butter to make up for what I had lost in the fire (HA!) and then, bound and determined, set out to make this banana bread I’d been dreaming of for weeks.
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Like I mentioned earlier, I wasn’t a brown butter fanatic, but I did recognize its powers. You don’t realize it until you try it, but brown butter lends a deeper, richer, nuttier flavor to anything it touches. #yum.
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Dulce de leche and I, on the other hand, are buds. We’ve had some good times, some profitable time$, and some sentimental times. So, as I was perusing Sally’s recipes one day and saw this, I knew it must be done. Dulce de leche and bananas were made for each other.
Oh yeah- and that little teaspoon of bourbon! You can leave it out, or you can add a little more, as many others have. I wanted to incorporate it out of curiosity AND because Collin and I went to Louisville last weekend. There, we toured a bourbon distillery. Not being big consumers of spirits while at the same time being interested vacationers, we marveled at the science being making bourbon and brought a baby bottle home with us (1.6907 oz., to be exact). And since we don’t have any big plans to drink it any time soon, I’m baking with it!!!

I used more dulce de leche than this, but see how I’m avoiding the edges of the pan? You want to to do that, too. A.K.A. Be like me!
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All that to say- this banana bread is more desserty, but if you want to make and eat it for breakfast, don’t let me hold you back. The dulce de leche swirl makes it sticky, so have some napkins nearby (or be ready to lick your fingers). You should eat this bread warm and with a generous slathering of BUTTER…or more dulce de leche if that’s the case :).
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Now go get yourself some bananas and make bread!
As one who got to taste this fresh out of the oven, I give it a two thumbs up.
Thanks, babe!