Cream Cheese Filled Banana Bread
The original recipe (banana bread): Cream Cheese-Filled Banana Bread by Averie Cooks
For a more decadent treat, frost the banana bread with some cream cheese icing! The icing recipe I use is linked HERE. Please note that 1/4 of the recipe is sufficient to cover the top of the loaf. Alternatively, you can make half the recipe if you want to frost all sides, during which this becomes more of a cream cheese filled banana cake!
Serves 8 - 12, depending on how big your slices are :)
INGREDIENTS
For the bread:
1 large egg
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup full-fat sour cream
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large, ripe bananas
1 cup all-purpose flour, plus additional for dusting the loaf pan
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
pinch of salt
For the cream cheese filling:
1 large egg
4 ounces cream cheese (I use full-fat)
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
3 tbsp all purpose flour
DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350F and spray a 9x5" loaf pan with cooking spray (eg. PAM), then dust with flour.
2. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the egg, sugar (both white and brown), oil, sour cream, and vanilla. Using either a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, or hand mixer, mix until thoroughly combined.
3. Add the bananas and use a spoon or spatula to mix until incorporated.
4. To the wet mixture, add the flour, baking powder & soda, salt, and fold until combined. Set this bread mixture aside.
5. In a separate large bowl, combine the cream cheese filling ingredients and with a hand mixer, beat until smooth.
6. Pour half of the bread mixture into the loaf pan and either wiggle it around and tap it on the counter, or use a spatula to smooth it out a bit.
Note: The original recipe says to pour about 2/3 of the batter in, but we found this didn't leave enough for the top layer.
7. Pour the cream cheese filling mixture over top of the bread mixture in the loaf pan as evenly as possible and use a spatula to smooth outwards.
8. Pour the remaining bread mixture on top of the filling and smooth out.
9. Bake around 50 minutes, checking after 45min to be safe.
Note: When the loaf is done, the top should be a golden brown. As the original recipe mentions, it can be difficult to tell if the middle is set because the cream cheese is never fully solidified. Between the 45-50 minutes, I use the toothpick method to see if it comes out clean, but I only insert it as far as the top bread layer since the cream cheese layer may give a false reading!
10. Let it cool fully before serving or icing. (see note above for my favourite icing recipe to use with this!)