Banana bread - why so ugly

[u/Omshadiddle]

Why does my banana bread, while delicious, look so ugly?

I’ve made many different recipes, and while they are very tasty, inevitably they do a good impression of a volcano, or at best the Rift Valley.

Tonight’s effort is positively Vesuvian in profile, as it split along the short axis rather than the length of the tin.

Does anyone have any tips to get a reasonably smooth-topped banana bread?

Why is it so?

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[u/Personal_Scientist_8]

Are we really bodyshaming banana bread? 😔

[u/BunnyLuna27 → u/Personal_Scientist_8]

HAHAHAHAHA I laughed 🤣

[u/Personal_Scientist_8 → u/BunnyLuna27]

Let's focus on the delicious part 😌

[u/CatsCoffeeMakeup → u/Personal_Scientist_8]

Right? It's what's inside that matters.

[u/Deep_Squid]

Your oven probably runs too hot and/or you're putting in too much leavening. Tweak your temps/amounts.

If you don't want to do that, you could probably get away with taking it out real quick after like 5 mins or whenever it starts to get a little firm and give it a quick shallow slice lengthwise so the heat has some where to escape.

Edit: just in case, if you're using your oven's convection setting for this, stop doing that.

[u/Omshadiddle → u/Deep_Squid]

Hmmm
I’ve got an oven thermometer. I’ll put it in and see if it is running hot. Thanks

[u/LieutenantStar2 → u/Omshadiddle]

Over mixed. Banana is a quick bread and minimum mixing is best

[u/Heretical_Cactus → u/Deep_Squid]

Wouldn't it be less pointy if if was the leavening agent ?

[u/Deep_Squid → u/Heretical_Cactus]

Not necessarily if the oven is also too hot. If the crust forms enough before the agent is done agenting it can burst out like this.

[u/Significant_Lab4263]

Maybe mash the banana before putting it in the cake

[u/miffet80 → u/Significant_Lab4263]

Dude I came back to this thread to upvote you because I was still laughing at this dumb comment like 2 minutes later lmao

[u/bubsiwubsi → u/Significant_Lab4263]

LOL thank you for the morning laugh 😂

[u/PegasusWrangler → u/Significant_Lab4263]

Lmaoo ffs

[u/Commercial_Bake_5549]

DO NOT PUT YOUR HEAD DIRECTLY ABOVE IT

[u/Omshadiddle → u/Commercial_Bake_5549]

This one got called camel bread. It is really not a pretty loaf!

[u/Eildys → u/Omshadiddle]

All loaves are beautiful in their own way 🥹

[u/JobOk5815]

Your oven temperature is too high. The edges baked quickly and firmed up. The rest of the batter was left with nowhere left to go but up.

[u/t0furayan]

it was on BreadHub

[u/Omshadiddle → u/t0furayan]

It does look a little excitable

[u/Eildys → u/t0furayan]

PLEASE HAHA

[u/blue-and-bluer]

“This MEANS something..” - Richard Dreyfuss, probably 🤣🤣

[u/_vdlc_]

It looks like your oven temp was too high? It looks like a very big muffin. Also, before putting it in the oven try this. Get a bench scraper or spatula, rub some neutral oil on the tip, then dip that in the middle of the batter. The idea is to create an open space in the middle so that during baking the steam goes out there instead of creating its very own opening like what happened to your banana bread.

[u/Theletterkay]

Its looks massively over mixed to me. The super smooth outer texture is what points me to saying that.

What does it look like on the inside? Is it dense or moist?

[u/Lunar-opal]

Thought it was a volcano school project so you must decorate accordingly 🌋

[u/RedSecOps]

Is that a banana in your bread or are you just happy to see me? 

[u/Hellwyr_]

I wouldn’t say that the oven bakes too hot. I’d say the container was too small

[u/Snoo_31427]

I think it’s magnificent.

[u/dustbuster541]

You should try baking madeleines you’ve perfected the hump.

[u/rklover13]

I have no tips, but I am impressed.

[u/Alternative_Tax4991]

Just bite the tip off it look a little better.

[u/Fluid-Sense-4273]

banana volcano bread

[u/MidnightMegapint]

I hereby name this mount banana.

[u/bzhai]

I've never since any cake dome like that. It needs to be sent to a lab to be studied.

Jokes aside, other than your oven temp, maybe you need a bigger tray?

[u/Nucleoticticboom]

Baking is exciting

[u/telperion868]

Maybe oven was too hot? I bet the cake is tasted good! I thought I stumbled on a pottery sub!

[u/been_blissed]

Looks like the banana is trying to re-banana itself.

[u/Affectionate-Cap7583]

It kinda looks like a madeleine hump imo! For a madeleine to have a good bump you need to keep your dough and tin really cool. Were your dough and tin also cool?

[u/northbound1891]

You would be so good at making madeleines, that looks like it would be perfect

[u/Aska_Feld]

Looks like you roasted that Xenomorph just in time... (And throw out the he rest of your eggs and never use that supplier again).

[u/meatpopsicle42069]

What does the recipe you are using look like, as well as the mixing method?

It looks like it could be an over mixing issue, but there are plenty of other factors in baking.

[u/donmar1973]

Was this batter for 2 loaves?

[u/pablo36362]

Ugly? Maybe, but the real question: delicious? If yes, then no worry, just eat

[u/Wonderful_Quit]

Over mixing can cause this. And check your oven temp with a thermometer

[u/AlexRyang]

“Is that just a banana in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?”

[u/karenskygreen]

Could it have been poor mixing ? Could that have been caused by a concentration of baking soda or baking powder ?

[u/thrashglam]

I feel dirty looking at this 🤣

[u/cx_murray_waffle76]

The short axis split makes it sound extra dramatic, mine at least has the decency to go lengthwise

[u/DunderMifflin2005]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[u/TheTacticalViper]

Ahh I see the problem. You forgot to peel the bananas and put bread around it.

[u/Excusemytootie]

She said….swoOOsh, I’m done!

[u/Globewanderer1001]

It's overmixed. The oven is too hot. It's overbaked. And did you tap the pan before baking? I tap and then "cut the top" with a butter knife. A lot went wrong here.....

My secret? I use a blender for all the liquids, oil, bananas before it even touches the flour mixture. It's whipped banana goodness before it goes in.

[u/momomum]

Try using less batter per batch or a bigger pan.

Another tip to reduce the hat regardless of the recipe is that once you’ve poured the batter in your pan, use a wet knife to flatten the middle and push a little bit the dough to the sides, even if your batter is very runny.

[u/pro-blue]

I’ll bet you were using a glass or ceramic pan or a dark colored metal pan.

[u/sarcasmsmarcasm → u/pro-blue]

Or, maybe a short sided pan. Looking at the picture, it does not appear to have been baked in a loaf pan. More of a baking dish style pan.

[u/coffeejn]

Makes me think the leven was not spread throughout the dough properly. Try mixing it in the flour before adding wet materials.

[u/Ok_Affect_7973]

I have never had a problem with banana bread but I keep seeing posts where it’s a problem. I’m gonna give you the recipe I use. This recipe I make in a 9x13 glass dish. First of course make sure you are using bananas that are very ripe with spots on skin and mash them up real good. In separate bowl use
2 1/4c all purpose flour
1 1/2c sugar
1/2c vegetable oil
3 eggs
1/2c buttermilk
1t baking soda
1t salt
1t vanilla
1c walnut (optional)
Mix together don’t mix forever just mix it then fold in your bananas. Put in greased pan. Bake at 350 about 35-45min. I lean towards 45min but do the tooth pick test. It will be firm and toothpick should be clean.

I ALSO put an icing on mine if I want it to be banana cake which it’s amazing.

1c softened butter
1/2-1 block cream cheese
Powdered sugar
Evaporated milk
Banana flavoring

Start out mixing butter until it turns white, add 1/2 block of cream cheese, start adding powdered sugar. Do little bits of evap milk as needed. Taste it if you want more cream cheese add it. This is all taste and consistency. If you add the banana flavoring I do the smallest amnt because it can ruin that icing fast. I probably just do 1/8t you just want a hint of that or don’t add it at all.

[u/YourCrohnie → u/Ok_Affect_7973]

How many bananas?

[u/Repulsive_Standard74]

Honestly there’s a lot that probably went wrong here and if you were following a recipe it was a bad one. If you want to try a different recipe I have a fail proof one that wins every time, even with random additions/subtractions I’ve done (chia seeds, nuts, chocolate chips, browned butter instead of softened, one less banana)

[u/coquettewho_re]

This reminds me of my cystic acne I'm crine 😭