Since going to farmers markets is one of my favourite pastimes, I have run into what we would have called “exotic” produce in Canada, but which is actually locally grown and fresh. Last weekend, I found a banana farmer who had many different varieties of bananas, many which could be used for cooking, I was compelled to stop at his stall and ask if he carried plantains. I was awash in memories from my days in Toronto, with it’s plethora of Caribbean restaurants, that I didn’t mind how much he charged me for these massive plantains.

They are apparently lower in sugar than regular bananas, but I didn’t find this with the ones I bought. They were a bit easier to work with than regular bananas though, and mashed up quickly for this scrumptious banana bread I have adapted from a NYT Cooking recipe.

Ingredients:

3 ripe plantains (300 g)

1/2 cup melted coconut oil

2 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp sea salt

2/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup buttermilk

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/3 cup chocolate spread (like Nutella)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 F. (180 C) and grease a loaf pan with oil or butter.

Combine flour, soda and salt. Set aside.

Mash bananas and weigh them with a scale. To them, add melted coconut oil, sugar, vanilla, eggs and buttermilk. Incorporate ingredients with a whisk until sugar is dissolved.

Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and mix until just combined. Pour 1/3 of batter into pan, and then top with half the Nutella. Swirl the Nutella with a skewer throughout batter. Add next 1/3 of batter into pan and repeat with equal amount of Nutella. Pour remaining batter into pan and make until skewer comes out clean.

Enjoy!