'Tally Me Banana' Loaf Cake Recipe

First things first: the name 'tally me banana' derives from an absolutely brilliant song - a true top banana indeed - 'Banana Boat Song (Day O)' by Harry Belafonte. Not only did Harry release some pretty jiggy music ('Jump In The Line' and 'Coconut Woman' to name a couple), he was also a keen social activist and was a strong voice for the Civil Rights movement and did a lot of humanitarian work, particularly as an ambassador for UNICEF. If Harry was a banana, then he would now be very ripe at the age of 91. All hail the calypso king!

Playing the song whilst baking is optional (ha! no it isn't - get it on!) 

I would recommend playing the song on repeat, although this does induce the risk of being unable to say 'banana' in the future without mentally (or sometimes vocally - eek!) crooning 'tally me banana'.

Ingredients: 

140g Caster Sugar

140g Self-Raising Flour

140g Butter

2 Large Eggs

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

2 Big Bananas - Ripe

Icing Sugar (to taste)

Dried Banana Chips or Chewy Banana Pieces

1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C / 160C Fan / or full if your oven is as crap as ours is currently!

2. Rub butter all over the inside of a loaf tin (2lb size preference) and line the inside with baking parchment (yes, over the butter). 

3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (we use an electric mixer as we're lazy and it is entertaining when the whisk flies off sometimes).

4. Slowly add the eggs (which must be beaten first) and a little flour (measure the flour out first in a separate bowl, then sift into the mixture).

5. Fold (we basically mix) in the remaining flour, the baking powder and mash up the banana with a fork and add this too. 

6. Pour the mixture (see photo ->) into the tin, as evenly as you can, and bake for about 45 minutes (stick something thin in it to check the consistency - preferably a skewer or chopstick or similar).

To Decorate:

1. Leave to cool for...well, whenever it feels cool-ish.

2. Spoon icing sugar into a bowl. We usually start with about 6 teaspoons and add more as we go along as we eat the icing sugar in the bowl due to pure greediness. 

3. Add a couple of teaspoons of cold water to begin with, mix it up and go from there. 

4. The aim is to conjure a thick icing that will cover the whole of the top of the loaf. 

5. Go by feel and keep mixing as you go. There is, after all, nothing wrong with trying a little (or a lot) to check that the consistency is correct. 

6. Cover the top of the loaf with the icing and finally push on the banana chips/pieces where desired. 

7. Leave to set.

8. Gobble up.

TOP TIP: ice the loaf on a cooling rack, placing clingfilm underneath to catch any dripping icing. This keeps the surface clean and also acts as a useful device to collect the spare icing so that you can then lick this off like a kitty and devour it. 

Confession: I adapted this recipe ever-so-slightly from BBC Good Food. I have to own up - I don't want to be accused of fraudulent behaviour.

Second confession (oh dear): I kept sneaking morsels of this cake in the morning whilst I was 'getting ready' to drop Doctor Josh off at work. A few days later there was a sliver left and I got caught out. Luckily I am pregnant and have a very hungry baby who requires consistent nourishment and so I was not in trouble!

This loaf cake is very delicious, will last a few days (can also be frozen too) and you can pretend that it is healthy due to the bananas.