this is the cake (bread?) that stole the show during the pandemic. it was the first recipe I have ever gone viral for on the internet and for good reason. she is perfect. every time I make this recipe I am blown away and so proud that I was the one that developed it. I am truly full with pride for it. to this day it is still loved, made regularly and posted. it has become so many of your go-to banana breads and i am truly grateful and so honored. 

when you cut into this loaf, you get the reveal: soft, deeply banana-y crumb with a dark ribbon of maple tahini running through it like the loaf has a secret. the top is swirled and glossy, the outside is crusted in toasted sesame seeds, and the whole thing smells like a bakery that knows exactly what it's doing. it's nutty, it's caramel-y, it's cozy, it's a little sophisticated, and it's still, at its heart, banana bread. the people's loaf.

the sesame-crusted pan (my favorite trick in this recipe)

before any batter happens, you butter the loaf tin and then sprinkle sesame seeds all over the inside, so they stick to the butter and coat the pan.

why? because as the loaf bakes, those seeds toast directly against the hot pan and become a thin, crunchy, deeply sesame crust on the OUTSIDE of the bread. it's like giving your banana bread a toasted sesame jacket. it costs you two tablespoons of seeds and ten seconds, and every slice gets that little edge of crunch and toastiness. once you do this you'll start sesame-crusting other loaves. I don't know how to help you stop, I haven't stopped. 

swirl school

the swirl is just tahini, maple syrup, sesame seeds, and a pinch of salt stirred together. getting it INTO the loaf goes like this: half the batter into the tin, dollop on half the swirl, drag a knife or skewer through it gently a few times. rest of the batter on top, rest of the swirl, and this time swirl gently across the top, horizontally, so the surface bakes up marbled and gorgeous.

the keyword is gently. a few confident passes gives you bold ribbons. enthusiastic over-swirling blends everything into one uniformly beige situation, delicious but anonymous, and we didn't come here to be anonymous.

three small things that make this loaf behave

• do not overmix the batter. whisk the dry into the wet in two stages and stop when it just comes together. flour that gets overworked builds gluten, and gluten is great in bread-bread and rude in banana bread. lumpy-ish batter = tender loaf.

• bake it on a sheet tray. the tray sits under the tin in the oven and catches any drips, so a bubbling swirl never becomes a smoking oven floor. it's the kitchen version of wearing a seatbelt.

• tent if it browns too fast. this bakes low and slow, 325 for an hour to an hour fifteen, and if the top is getting dark before the middle is done, a loose foil tent stops the browning while the inside catches up. toothpick comes out clean, she's ready.

   

the choices are yours

chocolate is listed as optional and technically that's true, but two-thirds of a cup of bittersweet chunks folded in at the end... chocolate and tahini are a match made in heaven and this loaf is where they got engaged. no brown sugar? granulated works. only unsalted butter? bump the kosher salt to a teaspoon and carry on. bananas should be properly ripe and mashed well, they're the moisture AND the flavor, so the softer and sweeter, the better the loaf.

slice it thick, toast it tomorrow with butter, and tell me: swirl loyalists, chocolate-added rebels, or both-at-once maximalists? declare yourself in the comments so I know who I'm dealing with :)

xo,

e

p.s. if tahini in your baked goods is a revelation (it is), the tahini swirl skillet brownie is your logical, gooey next step.

tools:

9x5 loaf pan

whisk

measuring spoons