It is almost impossible to fuck up butter and sugar
I started from a recipe I found online, but ended up changing it - most notably using butter instead of canola oil, and doubling the recipe so as to use up a whole pomegranate. I figure that's enough of a change that I can put my name on it, so:
dry group:
- 4 cups flour (16.8 oz)
- 1 1/2 cups sugar
- 5 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
wet group:
- 4 medium ripe bananas, peeled & sliced
- 1 cup butter + some extra for the pans
- 2 eggs
- 2/3 cup milk (whole or 2% preferred)
- 2 tsp vanilla
mixins:
- 2 cups pomegranate arils (about 1 largish pomegranate or 2 smaller ones)
- 2 cups chopped walnuts
Search the internet for ‘how to eat a pomegranate’ to learn about separating the arils in a bowl of water.
preheat oven to 360°
butter two 9x5x3 loaf pans, or a bunch of smaller ones. I bet you could put this into muffin tins, too.
Combine the dry group in a big bowl
Combine the wet group in a food processor with the plastic blade. Could also be done with a mixer. Get it smooth.
It wouldn't hurt to mix the pomegranates and walnuts in a bowl together. It wouldn't hurt to put a little of the dry mixture in with them and mix it up - supposedly, that keeps the goodies from settling on the bottom.
Add the wet group to the dry group and stir until just blended - what Alton Brown calls 'the Muffin Method'.
Add in the arils and walnuts, saving about 20% for topping. Don't overstir, just fold them in.
Spoon the batter into the loaf pans. Top it with the extra arils and walnuts you just saved.
Bake at 360° for 45-60 minutes. A toothpick should come out clean when it's done.
Let them cool a little bit in the pans so they don't break, but when you're ready, turn them out onto a cooling rack or tea towel.
Try to wait until it's almost cool before hacking off a piece, slathering it in yet more butter, and cramming it into your maw with a cold glass of milk. But we know you won't wait.
To wait would be to miss the point entirely :)
