This wonderful bread recipe has been a family favorite for several generations, the original recipe has been successfully tried and tasted countless times, and it is found on page 442 in the Fruit and Nut Breads chapter from the cookbook “The Complete Book of Breads” (Publisher: Simon & Schuster, January 22, 1973) by Bernard Clayton, Jr. This book and recipe has stood the test of time since the first measure of flour when my mom and I were on a bread baking binge in the late 1970’s.
I modified the recipe for commercial use and baked it as a regular part of our sweet bread and dessert offerings at Innovative Food Services, a now defunct catering company in New Orleans, and the primary function which was to supply food services for several upscale employee cafeterias for a law firm and for a large oil industry client. This was in the mid 1980’s, oil was still booming on the Gulf Coast, and this was also when I was the chef and helped run the kitchens for both locations along with owner Greg Surrey, who is now the owner of Surrey’s Cafe & Juice Bar located at 1418 Magazine St, New Orleans, LA 70130. But I digress with a tad bit of history, always a story behind most of my recipes, so on to the ingredients and preparation.
| Ingredients | ||
| 1 | Cup | Coconut, flaked, to toast, divided |
| 1/3 | Cup | Butter, room temperature |
| 2/3 | Cup | Sugar, granulated |
| 2 | Large | Eggs, room temperature |
| 3 | Tbsp. | Milk |
| 1 | Tsp. | Lemon juice |
| ½ | Tsp. | Almond extract |
| 2 | Cups | All-purpose flour, sifted |
| 1 | Tsp. | Baking powder |
| ½ | Tsp | Baking soda |
| ½ | Tsp | Salt, sea |
| 1 | Cup | Banana, mashed |
| Procedure Steps: | |
| 1. | Preheat oven to 350° F, then spread out the coconut flakes evenly on a flat sheet pan. Place the coconut flakes in the oven to toast, stirring them occasionally until toasted. Remove from the oven and allow the coconut flakes to cool to room temperature. |
| 2. | Meanwhile, in a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Then, beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the rest of the wet ingredients, the milk, lemon juice and almond extract. |
| 3. | In another large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients, the sifted flour, baking powder, baking soda and sea salt, stirring well to evenly distribute the flour mixture. |
| 4. | Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well, then evenly fold in the mashed banana. Gently fold in the toasted coconut, reserving about a ¼ up to sprinkle on top. |
| 5. | Grease a large loaf pan (9”x5”) and then pour and/or scrape the batter into the loaf pan, then evenly smooth out the top. Sprinkle the top of the batter with the remaining ¼ cup of toasted coconut. |
| 6. | Bake in the 350° F for 1 hour, or until a metal skewer or wooden toothpick inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean. |
| 7. | Remove from oven and allow to cool in the load pan for 10 minutes on a cooling wire rack. Scrape the sides of the loaf pan with a knife, then gently remove the loaf from the pan and allow it to rest until completely cooled before cutting. |
