The Diverse And Interesting History Of The Banana Bread Recipe

By Ben Cook

The original banana bread recipe looked nothing like it does today, and it sure didn't taste like it does today. There have been many cultures spanning over thousands of years that have tried to improve upon the original bread recipe. Eventually, from these efforts the modern day banana bread recipe was born.

While history is earmarked with culinary revolution from the earliest days to the last days of this week, the dawn of the banana bread recipe is harder to track than some of the other breakthroughs in cooking. Despite the difficulties in pinpointing the exact first banana bread attempt, there is plenty of evidence that can show us how the evolutionary experimentation infolded. This can help us understand what we are looking at and the most likely scenario for that time period.

If we look at the evolution of the basic banana bread recipe ingredients we can most likely gauge when the first actual recipe was handed down and where it was probably developed. All banana bread recipes are quick bread recipes. This simply means that there is no yeast used for rising in the baking process.

Quick bread was the only bread available when tits introduction came about around 12, 000 years ago. This bread was flat, hard and chewy, and lacked any great flavor. But it was filling and cheap and easy to make. Simply grinding up some wheat flour and adding some water to the mixture turned into "bread" when added to hot rocks and ash coverings for the cooking part.

It has been speculated that the first actual banana bread recipe was tried. Given that the original version of bread was not very tasty, it is likely that people were gathering various elements in an attempt to make the bread taste better. It is quite possible that bananas were part of that experimental process.

It was, however, the Egyptians that were able to transform the flavor and the feel of bread. In 4, 000 BC the discovery of fermentation of bread dough was astounding. This would lead to a softer and fluffier bread product that would appeal to a wider range of tastes. Fermenting the dough before cooking it allowed gas to escape, leaving behind air pockets to soften the overall texture.

A Greek philosopher was heralded as producing the original book on botany, and in this book you can find a thorough explanation and a drawn picture of the banana plant. This means that Greece had bananas and they were already starting to experiment with the different ways they could approach the creation of bread.

While these original banana bread recipes are not the same as our favorites today, they were the very origin that led to the banana bread recipes that even we pass on from time to time. Today, we add baking powder to our banana bread recipe to create leavening. This helps the bread rise. Yeast would make the bread rise too much while no leavening ingredient would create flat, hard, and chewy bread. In 1875, almost 100 years after the first American cookbook was written, baking powder would become an American staple. Thus, it is said that the first banana bread was created in the United States in the 18th century. - 17268

About the Author:

If you want to learn how to make lots of delicious types of banana bread at home, try these banana bread recipes written by Ben Cook. Ben recommends thismoist banana bread recipe to start with.